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Decentraland

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Decentraland
Original author(s)Ariel Meilich, Esteban Ordano[1]
Developer(s)Decentraland Foundation, community
Initial releaseFebruary 20, 2020; 4 years ago (2020-02-20)[2]
Written inC#, GLSL, and HTML
Available in1 languages
List of languages
English (official)
TypeVirtual world
LicenseApache-2.0
Websitehttps://decentraland.org

Decentraland is a 3D virtual world browser-based platform[3]. Users may buy virtual plots of land in the platform as NFTs via the MANA cryptocurrency, which uses the Ethereum blockchain.[4] It was opened to the public in February 2020,[2] and is overseen by the nonprofit Decentraland Foundation.

Users can develop the land by using the Decentraland's own editor, or importing 3D models from external software. Cosmetic gear, like t-shirts and hats, can be traded.[5]

A desktop internet browser and a crypto wallet (optional) is needed to access. After loading, the user is prompted with a character creation screen. A menu lists current events, clicking "Jump In" transports the user to the event. Users can navigate the world using the keyboard and the mouse.[6]

History

Decentraland was created by Argentinians Ari Meilich and Esteban Ordano,[1] and has been in development since 2015.[5] When it launched in 2017, parcels of digital land sold for about $20,[7] and mana tokens sold for $0.02.[1] The game's first map, Genesis City, was made up of 90,601 parcels of land.[5] It raised $26 million in its initial coin offering (ICO) in 2017.[1]

The development began in 2015 with the "Stone Age", at that time Decentraland was just a 2D grid running exclusively in web browsers. After that came the "Bronze Age", launched in 2017, and the full content description (models and textures) were stored on the blockchain themself. After that have been the "Iron Age" and the "Silicon Age", when the Ethereum Blockchain was integrated, allowing an ecosystem of decentralized apps created by the users.[8]

In April 2021, during a surge in popularity for NFTs, parcels sold for between $6,000 and $100,000.[7] In June 2021 London-based auction house Sotheby's created a digital replica of its New Bond Street headquarters as a virtual gallery in Decentraland to show digital art.[9] New York-based digital real estate developer Republic Realm paid the equivalent of $913,228 for 259 parcels of Decentraland that it planned to turn into a virtual shopping district named Metajuku, styled after the Tokyo shopping district Harajuku.[10][11] In November a reporter for Reuters said they had "visited this site multiple times since and not seen any shoppers."[12] The Canadian cryptocurrency company Tokens.com bought a patch of virtual land in Decentraland in November 2021 for $2.4 million worth of cryptocurrency.[12] Because of the relatively small pool of mana, the currency is volatile, spiking to as high as $5.79 after events like Facebook's rebrand to Meta and favorable press releases.[3][12]

In November 2021 the government of Barbados announced plans to open an official diplomatic embassy in Decentraland on a plot of land for a reported cost of $5,000 to $50,000 which is planned to be funded by a grant by Decentraland.[13]

In December 2021 the platform reached 500,000 monthly active users.[14]

Reception

In March 2020, Luke Winkie, writing for PC Gamer, described the game as "rickety", noting numerous bugs and the game's "brutally long loading times", as well as hard-locks related to the game's cryptocurrency-based authentication process. Winkie described the platform as having a strongly libertarian political bent, saying "Decentraland is a truly fascinating concept. It peels back like an onion, revealing a Randian fever-dream built with Roblox textures".[5]

According to Eric Ravenscraft of Wired, activity on the platform is unclear, with the world mostly empty and with a number of concurrent users of around 1,600 in 2021, a figure that might include inactive users who remain logged on.[3] Ravenscraft wrote that Decentraland was buggy with poor moderation.[3] Users have minted NFTs of avatars with slurs in their names and at one point the name "Jew" was for sale for $362,000.[3] Despite the community voting in favor of adding "Hitler" to the banned names list, there were not enough votes for the decentralized autonomous organization's (DAO) smart contract to execute.[3] Ravenscraft also said the game currently feels reminiscent of an early access game.[3]

In January 2022, a video clip of a rave in Decentraland was posted to Twitter by DJ Alex Moss. The clip went viral and was widely mocked on social media.[15][16][17][18] Zack Zwiezen, writing for Kotaku, unfavorably compared the clip to similar virtual concerts and parties in AdventureQuest 3D, Fortnite, Roblox, and VR Chat, and described the look of the game itself as similar to “a fictional game that was tossed together in a few hours for an episode of CSI: Whatever City, in which the investigators are trying to solve a murder that involves some 'new' and 'popular' online world."[18] Prompted by the clip, Jason Koebler of Vice investigated other raves held on the platform, and described the experience as mostly empty and plagued by technical bugs.[6]

In January 2022, Zachariah Kelly writing for Gizmodo, reviewed a virtual version of Melbourne Park created in Decentraland to promote the Australian Open. The event hosted replays of matches and a tennis minigame. Kelly praised the 3d models created for the project, as well as the Decentraland's intended scope. According to Kelly, the platform's ability to run in a browser window was technically impressive, but poor draw distance and other issues made it feel "clunky" and lacking in activity. Kelly was also skeptical of the necessity for blockchain and NFTs.[19] Kelly Revisited Decentraland's Australian Open space several days later, to review the closing concert. He said his experience was plagued by technical issues, and that footage of the event taken by others compared unfavorable to online concerts held on other platforms, such as Fortnite.[20]

See Also

The Sandbox (video game)

References

  1. ^ a b c d Russo, Camila (2018-06-13). "Making a killing in virtual real estate". Bloomberg.
  2. ^ a b "The gates to Decentraland have opened!". Decentraland. 2020-02-20. Retrieved 2021-12-26.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Ravenscraft, Eric (2021-12-26). "The Metaverse Land Rush Is an Illusion". Wired. Retrieved 2021-12-26.
  4. ^ NFTs: The Center of Attention at Sotheby’s Virtual Decentraland Gallery Helen Holmes, Observer Media, June 7, 2021
  5. ^ a b c d Winkie, Luke (19 March 2020). "Inside Decentraland, the surreal Second Life for crypto true believers". PC Gamer. Retrieved 27 December 2021.
  6. ^ a b Koebler, Jason (20 January 2022). "Was the Viral Metaverse Rave Fun? An Investigation". Motherboard. Vice. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  7. ^ a b Marquez, Alexandra (2021-04-05). "Welcome to Decentraland, where NFTs meet a virtual world". NBC News. Retrieved 2021-12-27.
  8. ^ Goanta, Catalina. "Selling LAND in Decentraland: The Regime of Non-fungible Tokens on the Ethereum Blockchain Under the Digital Content Directive". doi:10.1007/978-3-030-52387-9_8. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  9. ^ Goldstein, Caroline (2021-06-07). "In Its Ongoing Bid to Draw Crypto-Collectors, Sotheby's Unveils a Replica of Its London H.Q. in the Blockchain World Decentraland". Artnet News. Retrieved 2021-12-27.
  10. ^ Howcroft, Elizabeth (2021-06-30). "Crypto billionaire Novogratz leads funding for virtual real estate firm". Reuters. Retrieved 2021-12-27.
  11. ^ Feitelberg, Rosemary (29 June 2021). "Metajuku Shopping Center to Play Up Digital Wearables". Women's Wear Daily. Retrieved 27 December 2021.
  12. ^ a b c Howcroft, Elizabeth (2021-11-24). "Virtual real estate plot sells for record $2.4 million". Reuters. Retrieved 2022-02-06. MANA is highly volatile. It has gained around 400% this month according to Coinbase, spiking after Facebook's name change.
  13. ^ Wyss, Jim (14 December 2021). "Barbados Is Opening a Diplomatic Embassy in the Metaverse". www.bloomberg.com. Retrieved 19 January 2022.
  14. ^ McDowell, Maghan (1 February 2022). "What fashion week looks like in the metaverse". Vogue Business. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
  15. ^ Alston, Harry (20 January 2022). "I Spent A Day In Decentraland's NFT Metaverse So You Don't Have To". TheGamer. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  16. ^ Mercado, Mia (20 January 2022). "Here's What a Metaverse Rave Is Like, I Guess". The Cut. New York Magazine. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  17. ^ Ross, Gemma (21 January 2022). "Reviews are in for the metaverse 'rave' — they are not good". Mixmag. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  18. ^ a b Zweizen, Zack (20 January 2022). "NFT Bro's 'Metaverse' Rave Looks Boring, Dead". Kotaku Australia. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  19. ^ Kelly, Zachariah (17 January 2022). "So This Is What It's Like Inside the Australian Open's Metaverse". Gizmodo Australia. Retrieved 4 February 2022.
  20. ^ Kelly, Zachariah (31 January 2022). "I Tried To Go to a Concert in the Metaverse. It Didn't Work". Gizmodo Australia. Retrieved 4 February 2022.
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