In the Metaverse, one could own a huge digital mansion with no physical upkeep. Or teleport from place to place without transportation costs.
Meanwhile, Decentraland has people paying huge amounts for plots of easily accessed virtual land. As you probably know or have guessed, virtual land is no where near as finite a resource as physical land. Meanwhile, Decentraland has people paying huge amounts for plots of easily accessed virtual land. Real-world inefficiencies such as scarcity are carried to the digital realm artificially. A Snoop Dogg fan bought $450,000 of virtual land on Sandbox just to be Snoop Dogg’s virtual neighbor. Even in the virtual world (where, remember, teleportation is possible!) location is still a factor in price.
Many people seek status symbols in various forms. It’s why people will buy luxury fashion brands over more functional cheaper alternatives. It’s why people want the originals of paintings rather than a suitable replica. It’s why NFTs are so popular.
That instinct clearly carries onto virtual platforms. We’ve already seen years of evidence. In the gaming world people pay money from their real lives to buy virtual assets. People buy skins (different costumes / designs) for their characters on Fortnite.
The Metaverse is a chance for people to really explore limitless potential. Imaginations can run wild with the world one can build when resources are abundant and the laws of physics bendable. You can see these two possibilities with Minecraft. The game Minecraft comes with several modes where your goal is survival, but if you like, you can pick “creative” mode. When you’re in creative mode, you’re free to simply explore and build.
So it’s possible to have a Metaverse where people can flaunt their digital luxuries, while also letting anyone else simply create without their bank account going to 0.