The Sandbox is one of the premier metaverse games currently on the market, hosting many experiences and projects. They are a firm favorite here for lots of reasons, but the chief reason might just be the team’s onboarding prowess.
Last July, I wrote an article titled, “3 Ways The Sandbox Is Becoming the Ultimate Meta Game” in which I praised The Sandbox for its business model where it has become almost like a mini but 3-dimensional Steam, housing games within its walls. In this article, I also said, “The Sandbox’s partnerships with brands and IPs represent a widening of gaming’s scope and the start of a tectonic shift in marketing.”
That sentiment has done nothing but strengthen in the past 7 months, with two pieces of recent news exemplifying that growth in very different ways.
The Sandbox & Saudi Arabian Government
The first partnership is unexpected to say the least. The Sandbox has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Saudi Arabian Government to support metaverse development. Saudi Arabia has been vocal and forward-thinking with regard to Web3, so it isn’t a bolt out of the blue, but nonetheless, it’s quite the win for The Sandbox.
What sort of fruits this partnership will yield is hard to say at present. Whether the Saudis look to utilize The Sandbox and buy land within it, or simply tap into the experience of the likes of Sebastien Borget, the co-founder and COO, time will tell. I suspect it will be the latter, though. Meanwhile, if you’d like to see our interview with Sebastien, click here.
The Sandbox & Toei Animation
Toei Animation is a Japanese animation studio of considerable acclaim. Toei is known primarily for Dragon Ball — one of the most iconic anime series in history, as well as Digimon and Sailormoon, to name a few.
In a recent Medium post, The Sandbox announced that Toei Animation will be entering the metaverse with their desirable IPs. It’s not yet known which may be coming over, but I suspect a lot of Dragon Ball Z fans are frothing at the mouth at the mere prospect of official DBZ NFTs.
“Metaverse” is a concept that has emerged in recent years. TOEI ANIMATION is now ready to set sail into this new ocean. We are very happy and proud to be working with The Sandbox and Minto as our partners. I am confident that the “FLEET” we have assembled will be able to discover new continents and new routes that will guide the entertainment industry for years to come […] I am truly looking forward to seeing the adventures and stories of the various works and characters we have created so far in this new field.
— Satoshi Shinohara, Managing Director of Toei Animation
To celebrate the partnership, 1,000 Toei commemorative and limited edition NFTs have been given out to the first 1,000 users to register. Needless to say, that window closed rather quickly.
Lead image made in part with a photo by Damir Babacic on Unsplash
