How To Join The Metaverse: A Step-By-Step Guide

You have most likely heard about the Metaverse by now, but this term was around for long before the Giant tech companies decided to hop in. There is no doubt that Facebook and Microsoft together revived a concept that we all knew was a long time coming but even though these tech companies are investing Billions to gain dominance in this future market in the vision they see fit, there is still a long way to go. Zuckerberg has himself admitted that his plan could take over a decade to build. Even then, there are plenty of ways you can experience the Metaverse in it’s early stages first-hand. Let’s take a look at how to join the Metaverse.

What is the Metaverse?

You’ve probably heard of Virtual Reality, but the “Metaverse” is a fairly new concept to the general public. But the term itself was coined way back in 1992, when sci-fi writer Neal Stephenson used the term “Metaverse” to describe a 3D virtual space in his dystopian cyberpunk novel Snow Crash.

But what IS the Metaverse? well it can be a little tricky to explain considering that this technology does not actually exist yet and we have no idea how it is going to turn out like, we have seen the concept in movies like Ready Player One, Free Guy and of course The Matrix. so let us take a look at a simple explanation.

The Metaverse is, simply put a merging of virtual, augmented, and physical reality, this new technology is going to blur the lines between real life and virtual life, it will revolutionize how we interact with each other and our environment. It is basically going to be a whole new world, with crypto as it’s currency and users will be able to exchange digital assets like Avatar accessories, NFTs, real estate, virtual clothes and much more, the possibilities are limitless. The Metaverse is going to be a decentralized, meaning there is no Government or central authority like a corporation, the users are going take control over their private data. Blockchain technology is definitely going to play a huge part in the Metaverse.

Imagine being able to go anywhere, do anything and be anyone (although it’s always best to be yourself). You could go out “shopping” with friends, socialize with strangers, have a picnic in the park with your friends, and join meetings with clients from the other side of the globe. This is all going to be possible thanks to the huge strides we have taken in the Virtual reality (VR) and Augmented reality (AR) space. Businesses and giant corporations have already started buying pieces of land in the Metaverse for Millions and sometimes hundreds of Millions!!

Facebook has undeniably kick started the recent hype around the Metaverse but In fact Metaverse like games have already existed for quite some time now. Games like The Sims, Roblox and Second Life are in fact virtual worlds very similar to the ones we will see in the Metaverse. However we are heading toward a future where we will be able to do much more than just play mini games or complete quests. Are you excited yet? you will be even more excited to know that there are many platforms operational right now where you can get an early taste of the Metaverse but first let us take a look at what you will need to access the Metaverse.

What you will need to join the Metaverse

Computer– For most metaverse platforms existing right now a computer or a laptop will work fine, however some Metaverse games may require more processing power in which case a VR Headset will be require, plus a VR Headset is going to give much more immersion and will provide a much better experience. The staple in the VR headset market right now is the Oculus Quest 2 ($299) which is, unsurprisingly, owned by Facebook. It is self-contained and thus, doesn’t require a PC or gaming console for it’s processing.

Crypto wallet– Since the Metaverse runs on Cryptocurrency, you will need a Crypto Wallet to trade items in the Metaverse. You will also usually be able to login with your account through your crypto wallet. However if you are just going to take a look and don’t intend to stay right now, then most metaverse games also have a guest login option where all your information will be stored on your device.

Smartphone?– If you just want a taste of how the metaverse will look like then you can even use your Phone to access games like Roblox and Minecraft which do not require as much processing power.

Now that we have an understanding of what the Metaverse is and have all our equipment, let’s take a look at some of the best Metaverse games you can experience right now.

Decentraland

Decentraland is a 3D virtual reality world powered by Ethereum’s blockchain. You can create virtual buildings like homes, galleries,theme parks and more, and charge other players to visit these buildings. Every virtual asset in this virtual world is owned autonomously by the players, which are bought with the cryptocurrency called MANA, which is 29th by market share as of February 2022.

Decentraland also hosts many events, scavenger hunts, concerts etc. frequently. Joining Decentraland is simple and straight-forward, you can even login as a guest without needing a crypto wallet

The Sandbox

The Sandbox is another Ethereum based ecosystem where you can design, create and share the items in the world. The platform has blown up in popularity ever since they announced their partnership with Meta. SAND is the crypto currency that The Sandbox runs on.

Many high profile corporations and celebrities own pieces of “land” in The Sandbox, these include the likes of Bored Ape Yacht Club, Pranksy, Atari, Gucci, Adidas and many more.

The Sandbox Game Maker Alpha is a free software for game design which allows creators to build 3D voxel worlds from templates to speed up the game development. The NFTs that you create with the software can later be sold.

Gala Games

Gala Games is not a game but a Game Studio. Gala believes in making games that are genuinely fun to play, whether the player is a blockchain expert or not. The Dev team at Gala has already released many popular Games like SpiderTanks and TownStar with many more like Legends Reborn, The Walking Dead: Empires, Mirandus and Last Expedition in development.

All Gala games are free to play and are play-to-earn type games. You can register for Gala games through this link and link a wallet, complete your profile and you will be ready to play

Axie Infinity

Launched in early 2018, Axie infinity is a Pokémon inspired Play-to-earn blockchain game which runs on, you guessed it, Ethereum. Players collect virtual NFT creatures called Axies, you can collect, breed, and sell these Axies. Depending on rarity they can sell for anywhere between a few hundred dollars to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

To join Axie Infinity you will need to connect a MetaMask wallet, then you need to connect a Ronin wallet with which you will buy your first Axie. The cheapest Axies on the market right now sell for around $30-60.

Now that you have your Axies you can download the game to play. If you are playing on a PC you will have to download the Mavis Hub launcher, you can also download the app on iOS or Android.

To breed your Axie you will need SLP or AXS. SLPs can be earned by logging in each day, completing quests and winning battles.

Mines of Dalarnia

Mines of Dalarnia is a free-to-play action-adventure game running on the Chromia blockchain. It is a simple 2D game with rather satisfying graphics. You can mine and combine various in-game items, improve your gear and get skills to unlock the MoD universe’s secrets while also fighting enemies and searching for rare relics and artifacts. the game is set in a post-apocalyptic world, where the earth has been destroyed by a nuclear war. The only survivors were those who took shelter in underground bunkers. After the nuclear war, these survivors emerged and found themselves in a world filled with zombies and mutants.

It is the first 2D game with procedurally generated levels on the blockchain, meaning the levels were not developed manually by developers but are actually randomly generated based on computer algorithms.

Mines of Dalarnia is a browser-based game so anyone can join the game right from their browser without needing to download anything, the game runs on DAR which is it’s native cryptocurrency and the default currency of this world. The game is free to play and players start out with 20 Dalarnia Tokens. New items can be crafted by items obtained by mining. Any items, relics or artifacts you find while playing the game is actually an NFT and can be traded on markets.

Update- I have been playing Mines of Dalarnia for quite some time now, one thing I like is even if you do not buy actual land (“levels”) in the game, You get 2 DARs every 24 hours when you login along with the 20 DAR welcome bonus. These tokens can be used to rent special levels for mining, each level has it’s own set of 4 available minerals in varying quantities which can be later used to craft consumables and upgrade equipment.

Stageverse

Stageverse is an expanding world with 3D venues where events take place. It is a virtual social space for hosting events, exhibitions and parties. Stageverse has seen it’s active users increase by over 1000% and podcast audience has increased by 500%.

As of now, Stageverse has a total of 2 million downloads. Stageverse is the place to go if you want to listen to great stories told by interesting people. They release one show every week and have a slew of talented writers and performers in the community. All shows are available for immediate download through iTunes.

Even though Stageverse is developed for VR headsets Stageverse can also be accessed through iOS and Android and is coming to PCs soon.