Is the Future of Esports in the Metaverse? from lisajames's blog

Because esports and gaming are a mash-up of pop culture and personalities, therefore, developing a metaverse to hold them all seems like an expected future of it... does it, or not? Let’s see in this article.

What is Metaverse?

The metaverse has recently become a prevalent issue of discussion, with both Facebook and Microsoft claiming ownership. But what exactly is the metaverse? And when will it arrive?

Metaverse is a hybrid technology, and it blends virtual materiality, augmented reality, and movies to let users "live" in a digital world. Promotors of this technology envisage working, playing, and staying connected with friends, and they click through activities ranging from concerts and conferences to virtual globe travel.

The word "metaverse" was coined by Neal Stephenson in his 1992 science fiction novel "Snow Crash." In this novel, he imagined a lifelike epitome meeting in realistic 3D buildings and other virtual reality scenarios.

Bringing A Brand to Action

Movies and television shows frequently attempt to envisage what the internet would seem like as a physical location. It's not a massive stretch for video game makers. They have created immersive worlds to integrate other companies and experiences. The process has already begun. Fashion houses have created virtual collections within video games in collaboration, and epic Games offers a variety of branded experiences within Fortnite. That promotes businesses ranging from Marvel superheroes to Ariana Grande. These collaborations began as sponsorship possibilities to contact gamers. But it gradually turned into much more.

In 2020, Fortnite sponsored a Travis Scott performance, which drew over 12 million concurrent spectators. The virtual world includes its currency, markets, and events that attract millions of viewers. Hence, game worlds, such as Axie Infinity, can quickly become metaverses in their way. Besides this, in July, the game had a trading volume of $600 million, making it the world's most valuable collection of non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

What Does the Metaverse Mean for Esports?

The call of a single world to support corporations, their followers, and brand partners is not lost on esports executives. Today, we're witnessing the emergence of "little esports metaverses"—each attempting to fundraise while establishing a long-lasting community.

Espoworld

Espo unveiled EspoWorld, its metaverse online app. This app is made up of multiple esports team "districts." These Districts have a Team HQ, and virtual plots of land surround headquarters in the form of NFTs. You can buy, personalize, and sell those NFTs. Mini-games will integrate to stimulate wins to "improve" a team's district. At the same time, the idea is to raise finances and visibility for esports teams. While also encouraging friendly competition. EspoWorld began with six teams competing.

NAVINATION

Natus Vincere (NAVI), a Ukrainian esports organization, and DMarket announced cooperation in late 2020. This partnership worked to establish the NAVINATION game metaverse. NAVI supporters can use the digital ledger platform to create, sell, and purchase digital things. This blockchain platform also assists in competing in leaderboards, earning prizes and presents from partners and the team itself.

DeathRoad

DeathRoad is a metaverse and an online racing game. It includes a city hall where gamers can vote on development decisions. Members use $DRACE, a BEP-20 coupon, to buy or hire automobiles. These coupons use inside the Binance ecosystem. Although, users who own more cars have their votes weighted more heavily. However, upon finishing races, the player receives more $DRACE.

Custom Esports Jerseys

With the popularization of digital gaming, custom esports jerseys have also increased. The avid gamers buy online esports uniforms to create a game zone environment. These esports uniforms wick away perspiration and assist in holding the remote for a long time. Whereas, the tight-fitting clothes won’t dangle. So, the player can easily handle the joystick.

Final Thoughts

So far, fragmented efforts have been made to create an esports metaverse, which negates the purpose of a one-stop-shop experience. The solution might be twofold: brand unification and monetary centralization. Each metaverse has its currency, which is challenging to move from one to the next. The valuations of cryptocurrencies and NFTs are constantly changing, further complicating matters.

Epic Games, the creators of Fortnite, have notably taken on Apple and Google for not allowing other payment methods. Epic has processed over $1,600,000,000 in direct payments, according to the firm. It employs industry-trusted encryption and security procedures to protect customer transactions.

Some IP holders have already agreed to participate in a hypothetical metaverse. Sony Group and other investors recently granted Epic Games $1 billion. This grant is given to create a metaverse including many films, music, and video game franchises.

Hence, we may be a few years away from donning a Virtual Reality (VR) headset and entering the metaverse. But the concept has limitless promise for esports. After all, there's a reason Netflix sees Fortnite as its main competitor rather than HBO or Hulu.