In October 2021, the CEO of Facebook , Mark Zuckerberg, started a new cycle. However, instead of giving impetus to discussions about online privacy problems, the entreprennzd used the spotlight to announce the change of the name of the most accessed social network in the world to Metaverse .
In other words, it is the offering of a hybrid online experience which has the potential to be projected into the physical world . The video in which Zuckerberg announced the evolution of Facebook – in a world of augmented virtual reality – left many people shocked, even though there have been rumors about it since 2019.
While the buzz generated by Facebook's shift to a potential cyberpunk dystopia had a fair share of the public's attention, many quickly realized that the Metaverse is not a new concept .
Multiple shared spaces fit this definition. An example is the existence of the World Wide Web with blockchain technology , which already existed and was used by several people.
Therefore, we will clarify what this new-world virtual reality of casinos and platforms are, and how the Metaverse Gaming will affect the future of the industry world of online betting going forward.
What is the Metaverse?
The term Metaverse is a merging the words meta and universe . It was first used in 1992 in a science fiction novel, The Snow Crash, by American writer Neal Stephenson. The story of the book takes place in the Twenty-First Century, in Los Angeles, in the decades following a worldwide economic collapse.
The work presents Sumerian language, such as the BIOS for the human brain , and presents several unique concepts from a mix between ancient history and computerized technology. In the current context, the Metaverse refers to the 3D virtual world focused on generating social relationships .
The popular multimedia online platform "Second Life” it could be classified as one of the first virtual spaces to be disseminated, which highlights the economic platform and provides a real world of possibilities to earn money . At one point, Second Life had more than a million active users, which led to the creation of a virtual currency, the Linden Dollar .
Now, most of the platforms called the Metaverse are VR (acronym for Virtual reality, in English) that use blockchain Etherum . This cryptocurrency uses the ERC-20 standard for its fungible and non-fungible tokens. They let users interact and negotiate with each other. With this, the VR world of Facebook will implement ideas presented and developed in the Metaverse using the Etherum blockchain.
What are the most common metaverses?
Without a doubt, the most famous Metaverse today is the Decentraland , devised by Argentines Ari Meilich and Esteban Ordano. The pair began work in 2015, before introducing their project in 2017 through an initial coin offering that raised$ 26 billion .
The offer came via virtual land lot auctions Decentraland's Genesis district, which corresponds to the virtual size of Washington D.C. at the end of 2021, the Government of Barbados announced plans to open an embassy on the site.
In addition to Decentraland's Genesis, there are other popular metaverses, such as Axie Infinity, Somnium Space and SandBox . Incidentally, Axie Infinity is an NFT (non-fungible Token) game created by Sky Mavis, a Vietnamese game studio.
Axie Infinity consists of users collecting, breeding, and fighting Pokémon-like creatures known as Axies. The game was released in 2018 and today has more than 2 million daily active users .
Somnium Space won the world a year earlier – and it has much more advanced graphics than competitors, with the main focus being on its VR element. The SandBox is nothing more than a most famous version of blockchain mobile game of the same name. In addition, it differs from the others by having plots of land with the same size.
Casino Metaverses established
All previously mentioned metaverses have self-sustaining economies , offering tokens fungible as money and non-fungible as land or other digital assets. Many users have real business with Ethereum in these virtual worlds.
So, it is no surprise that Metaverse casinos exist on these platforms . Including, at the beginning of 2021, video game pioneer Atari announced the opening of gaming establishments in Decentraland, in the Vegas City district, with operations starting in April of the same year.
Moreover, this is not the only casino in Decentraland. There is also the Tominoya Casino . Japanese-themed, the venue has two floors with three wings each. Meanwhile, the SandBox has the Sand Vegas Club, a metaverse casino that allows investors to buy NFTs , thus earning a share in the profits of the establishment.
There is also the Everdome, a hyperrealistic Metaverse which makes no point of getting points from games, and this also applies to Highstreet. Bloktopia is a 21-level virtual giant building where users can play poker and various casino games.
Gambling games available in the Metaverse
Although many people find the maximum play with dealer in online games , this is not as difficult to happen as it seems. Metaverse casinos, such as Tominoya, also hire real people to act as dealers. More than that, hire hosts to walk in shifts around the venue, helping punters with their needs.
According to some reports, these hired people receive$ 500 a month for their services. I.e., there are no comparisons in the level of interaction of a metaverse casino with an online casino . But that's not all, no! The games offered by Metaverse casinos are also considerably different from what most online players are used to.
And, yes, they also have the classic casino games such as slot machines, blackjack, baccarat and roulette . At the same time, they offer original products from the Metaverse casino. At Atari in Decentraland, for example, customers are allowed to bet on games inspired by Atari's legendary arcade machines.
The diversity of betting is much more present in Metaverse casinos . They also don't limit their customers with what may or may not be offered. Metaverse casinos are free to meet the needs of the market.
How betting transactions happen in the Metaverse
In recent decades, the Metaverse has built a very strong link with crypto technology , especially due to the Ethereum blockchain. All the platforms mentioned above use the Ethereum ERC-20 token as the basis of their economy.
For example, Decentraland's native non-fungible token is MANA, and Axie Infinities ' is Shards (AXS). They are the complements of the virtual world to fiat currencies. At Atari Casino, located in Decentraland, MANA tokens are accepted for placing bets. The place also approves Decentraland Games ' native token - $DG, Atari crypto tokens, and the Dai stablecoin, which has value pegged to the US Dollar.
These tokens are available for popular cryptocurrency exchanges for conversion, and their value swings are no different from already established cryptocurrencies. This means that tokens have high volatility , and a simple news or speculation can drastically affect its value.
Facebook has one history of experiences with the creation of blockchain and cryptocurrencies . His first attempt was the pound, which was later renamed to Diem, after observation by the American government. Expectations are that the social network Metaverse will utilize crypto technology and perhaps adopt Diem if the government authorizes it in time.
Regulation for betting in Metaverse casinos
To date, no one is regulating Metaverse betting . Virtual businesses, including, remind us of the first crypto casinos that appeared online, two years after the emergence of Bitcoin . They also had no body overseeing their activities, which caused them to act in good faith with their clients.
This scenario was only changed in 2014, when regulators of online gambling games , such as Antillephone, began providing licenses for websites that hosted this activity and accepted digital currencies. Metaverse casinos take issue with crypto betting sites , because the old institutions are still on the Internet.
In this digital world, no one has 100% control over the actions . Metaverse casinos live within a virtual reality operated by Decentralized Autonomous Organizations, and this is part of a system of clear rules and no central authority . Thus, all those who own land in the Metaverse have a vote to define how it is organized – which means that the governance of the Metaverse is entirely democratic .
That way, if a metaverse Casino starts exhibiting behavior that is hated by people, they can vote to change the rules – potentially restricting the operator's practices or even banning it altogether.
What is the future of Metaverse betting?
In 2022, it is still difficult for Metaverse betting to gain the attention it needs to affect the results of online casinos . The statistics of the number of people interested in this new world is different those who like traditional gambling.
Therefore, while VR technology gains space in homes around the world, more players will be influenced towards Metaverse casinos , since there is a great immersion and diversity of establishments offered in the virtual place.
It is even difficult to imagine that someone will regulate the most popular Metaverse games and those that will still arise. Regardless, this cannot be said about Facebook – due to its extension to the Metaverse and the number of people who use the platform as a social network. It is unlikely that the governments of the whole world will not interfere with the functioning of this unlimited virtual reality .
Even so, online casinos also utilize blockchain technology. In this way, they manage to keep pace for a while. The game is just an entertainment based on the Metaverse when people discover the infinite possibilities of the Metaverse, the operators of the World Wide Web will be afraid of what might happen.
While this moment does not come, Metaverse games remain a hobby for certain people , where only a very small percentage of the population frequently accesses and participates in this digital universe.
Reference:
- Ratan, Rabindra, and Dar Meshi. "The Metaverse Is Money and Crypto Is King."The Conversation, 14 Jan. 2022, https://theconversation.com/the-metaverse-is-money-and-crypto-is-king-why-youll-be-on-a-blockchain-when-youre-virtual-world-hopping-171659
- Rapoza, Kenneth. “Why you Absolutely Must Invest in the Metaverse."Forbes, 18 Nov. 2021, https://www.forbes.com/sites/kenrapoza/2021/11/14/why-you-absolutely-must-invest-in-the-metaverse
- Jeffries, Scott. "Diem Coin: What You Need to Know."GOBankingRates, 11 Oct. 2021, https://www.gobankingrates.com/investing/crypto/what-is-diem-coin/
For more news on the world of casinos, click here .
