Decentraland and The Sandbox are two of the most established metaverse platforms on the planet!

Web 3 enthusiasts view the metaverse as a network of virtual worlds that are interoperable and decentralised. However, this concept is yet to be fully realised, despite the rapid development in the space. What is undeniable is the contribution of Decentaland and The Sandbox towards this virtual reality (see what we did there? 😉)

What is Decentraland & The Sandbox?

Decentraland is an immersive 3D metaverse which focuses on enabling players to purchase plots of land alongside exploring the massive virtual universe. The platform features a diverse assortment of unique experiences such as games, casinos, galleries, concerts, and much more. 

Similarly, the Sandbox is a virtual world that lets users build, play, own virtual property and monetize all their virtual experiences. One of the primary aims of Sandbox is empowerment of creators and users to build the platform in whatever way they desire. The Sandbox enables creativity and flexibility in building its gaming ecosystem.

What do The Sandbox and  Decentraland have in common?

Decentraland and The Sandbox share the metaverse concept. They both enable users to explore the virtual world and interact with other players and items within it.

Both platforms let users purchase virtual land and build whatever they desire on it. Basically one is able to create unique content and experiences that can be monetised. They also have native marketplaces and a token that’s central to all transactions - SAND & MANA. 

The biggest similarity between them is their choice of the Ethereum blockchain as their home. All land and virtual assets on both platforms are represented and stored as NFTs on Ethereum.

What’s the difference between Decentraland & The Sandbox?

Access

You can explore Decentraland without a cryptocurrency wallet. However, you need one to earn, purchase NFTs, and run other transactions.

With The Sandbox, you need a cryptocurrency wallet to sign up and play. The game supports three software wallets; MetaMask, Bitskit, and Venly.

Virtual Real Estate

Decentraland has 90,601 parcels of land which are grouped into 

• Individual parcels, 
• Estates, consisting of multiple parcels, 
• Districts, which are places with parcels that have similar themes), &
• Plazas, which are community owned parcels. 

Meanwhile, The Sandbox boasts 166,464 plots of land. They can be classified into estates which are owned by one person or districts that can have multiple owners.

Maturity

Decentraland is seen as a pioneer in the metaverse space, while The Sandbox is currently still under development and is not ready for full release.

Governance

Decentraland is currently run by a DAO, while the Sandbox is run by a centralized authority.

Interface

The Sandbox currently has superior graphics to that of Decentraland. However, Sandbox users have to install a windows application to access it, unilike Decentraland. Decentraland also enables secure peer-to-peer communications without centralized surveillance.

Future Plans

The Sandbox has a few clear goals such as:

• Bringing the platform to mobile devices before the end of 2022. 
• Launching the platform on consoles like the Xbox and Playstation. 
• Hosting up to 5,000 games on the platform available by the end of 2023. 
• Creation of in-game jobs to create a metaverse economy that mimics the real world.

Decentraland doesn't have a specific roadmap, partly due to the decentralized nature of its governance. However, there are proposals to 

• Attract creators, brands, and celebrities to the virtual world and allow them to make NFT drops and ads
• Make Decentraland interoperable with at least four other Metaverse worlds.

‍Backing & Partnership

• Decentraland is backed by respected firms usch as FBG Capital, CoinFund and Digital Currency Group. It’s also in partnership with the likes of Polygon, Samsung and the South Korean Government.
• The Sandbox is owned by Animoca brands and also boasts huge backers such as Samsung Next and Softbank. It has big partnerships with brands such as TV series “The Walking Dead,” children’s cartoon“The Smurfs,” gaming brand Atari and rapper Snoop Dogg.