Yuga Labs completed a successful second trip last Saturday, providing members of its community with a preview of what’s to come in its other metaverse world, slated to launch later this year.
According to Yuga Labs, around 7,200 players participated in the 90-minute trial run. Holders of the Undeed non-fungible token (NFT) – a collection linked to lands in other metaverses – were invited to join the experience, along with a guest.
CoinDesk attended the closed event as a guest and was able to interact with other “travelers” and participate in the action-packed story.
From the outset, the experience was designed to transport players to a sci-fi fantasy world that combined elements of the popular MMORPG (massively multiplayer online role-playing game) and NFT culture.
Users began the journey by entering “Infinity Space”, an empty area where travelers could familiarize themselves with controlling their avatars and sending messages to other players. Michael Figg, Yuga Labs’ chief creative officer, said that Voyagers were able to gather in small groups and speak directly to each other – a feature meant to mimic a “real-life event”, in which players could only talk to others. Could do and listen.
After about 20 minutes, the large screen above Infinity Space appeared and broadcast a message from Bored Ape Yacht Club mascot Curtis, who was “hosting” the experience.
The ape character splits the group into four teams based on color and announced their respective captains: Luster (yellow) was led by Yuga Labs Community Programs Manager Lobeli, Crimson (red) was led by Twitch streamer Brysant, Weldon (green) was led by Snoop Dogg’s son and NFT collector Cordell Broadus, and the winning team, Glacia (blue) was led by gamer Jimmy Wong.
The Voyageurs’ livery changed to their assigned team colors, and the players began to assemble in groups. Moments later, a wormhole opened to “the Swamp”, transporting players to their team area to complete tasks and earn points. The game included several wacky instructions, including collecting “magic blobs” to give to digital toads that spewed flames from their mouths. Throughout time, passengers could run, jump, fly, and explore multidimensional space.
The winners of the game received a “winged helmet” by Yuga Labs. Said Will be airdropped to their wallet.
While some of the existing Metaverse experiences were marred with poor graphics, slow motion, and virtual spaces that were difficult to navigate, the user experience on the other side was comparatively robust and easy to use.
In particular, the experience was incredibly detailed and there was no problem of massive overcrowding despite thousands of players being in the space at once.
Feedback from players was generally positive, with many sharing optimism for the future of the platform.
Nevertheless, some users complained about connectivity issues and questioned the significance of several in-game artifacts that are shrouded in mystery.
The gamification of the Underside platform is a part of Era Labs’ broader strategy to generate excitement and allow holders to get familiar with the experience ahead of its official launch. Yug Labs welcomes first trip to host in July 2022 4,600 players First time on the other side. Players returning to the Other Side for a second voyage are eligible to claim the Obelisk, a digital collectible item to commemorate their adventures.
According to data from secondary marketplace OpenSea, other Deed NFTs have done 568,607 ETH, or just over $1 billion, in trading volume. At the time of writing, the minimum value for the collection is 1.67 ETH, or approximately $3,000.
Figg told CoinDesk that more trips are being planned ahead of the official launch of the platform. In the meantime, he is focused on building an ecosystem that will eventually be accessible to token holders at all times.
“We’re doing these grand theatrical experiences right now with First Trip and Second Trip, these are basically big 90-minute Broadway shows,” Feige said. “But we’re taking all of the technology that we’re building and funneling it into a version on the other side that will be built with a higher level of cadence and accessible.”
Each trip executed by the team provides feedback on the parts of the experience that work and those that need to be fixed. Epoch Labs chief gaming officer Spencer Tucker told CoinDesk that the biggest takeaway from the second voyage was that players wanted more intimate “breakout” and community-building experiences to strengthen relationships with fellow travelers.
“As we build in the future, it’s something we’ll definitely keep in mind because you can have tenacity, but you also need the ability to have your own identity and form your own clique,” Tucker he said. “As we figure out what sustainable space looks like, we want to allow people to stop and smell the roses occasionally, while still having really cool experiences they can dive into.”
Yug is yet to finalize the date for his third trip. However, Figg and Tucker shared that there will be other enhanced experiences and opportunities for token holders to access the other side in the coming months.
Source: www.coindesk.com
