By Farheen Ahmad
Metaverse offers complementing and collaborative opportunities which are perfectly aligned with the growth and profitability prospects of the gaming industry.
According to research published by Gamespad, the segment of gaming and associated platforms is uniquely poised to further their influence in the metaverse in the coming years. The observation has come in the wake of the increased popularity that the gaming category is witnessing in different virtual worlds such as Sandbox, Decentraland, etc. This rising popularity is likely to get furthered by the advancement in technology and the fast-expanding user base in the gaming sector. Moreover, the mainstreaming of the metaverse with more users jumping on the bandwagon will also help gaming companies to intensify their penetration to set new benchmarks for growth and profitability in the virtual worlds. So, if you too are curious about what is fueling the next wave of growth for the gaming sector in the metaverse world, here’re the complete details:
1) Superior Gaming Experience: The immersive, interactive, and encapsulating nature of the metaverse takes the gaming experience to a different level altogether. The metaverse has the ability to virtualize everything which means gamers can imagine themselves as a part of the game and live the entire experience virtually. They can become part of the virtual world, move within the environment, and make instant adjustments to perform optimally during their playtime. This capability of metaverse platforms to offer gamers an opportunity to become one with the game is unique and can easily be counted as the prominent distinctive competence of virtual worlds. Needless to say that after experiencing the entire gaming experience in the virtual world, it’s hard to go back and enjoy ordinary, mundane, and mechanized gaming on computer screens.
2) Development Opportunities: Metaverse offers an exciting ecosystem for the entire creator economy as developers, creators, and artists can explore collaborative opportunities to offer something unique to gamers. For example, the features of 3D avatars, tokenized characters, and unique templates are finding special favour with gamers while offering attractive growth opportunities for the in-game economy. Further, the sales of the AR/VR gears and haptic suits are spurring the production of companies involved in the manufacturing of these allied components and devices. In sum, this capability to create a win-win situation for all stakeholders in the metaverse ecosystem is helping the gaming industry to shatter records of popularity in the virtual space while setting benchmarks for other segments to match and live up to.
3) Economic Incentive: Given the attractive economic prospects, gaming in the virtual world has opened a new stream of revenues for gaming corporations and players. Buoyed by the unprecedented response to incentive features, gaming companies are pushing ahead with the feature of monetary reward in their offerings to gamers. Users, too, are finding it quite attractive as data indicate that players prefer to play games that bring real money and other tangible benefits to the table. Metaverse also allows gaming companies to attach and leverage NFTs, a fact that is proving instrumental in augmenting their appeal among the target audiences.
4) Fostering Bonds: The multiplayer gaming capability in the metaverse allows a large number of players to connect with each other from across the globe. Further, metaverse platforms are intrinsically social in nature which means players can interact with each other, create communities, and establish connections, thereby taking their social engagement to a new level. Further, gamers can attend virtual concerts, organize performances, or even perform in front of virtual crowds to showcase their talent in other allied areas of fun and entertainment. No wonder, these added dimensions of engagement and collaboration are helping the gaming industry to flourish in the metaverse world like never before.
The gaming industry is at the forefront of the metaverse revolution that is rapidly unfolding in front of us. The segment is uniquely poised to leverage the capabilities of virtual worlds and then align these opportunities with the tastes and preferences of new-age gamers. No doubt, gaming companies have largely remained successful in putting out impressive growth so far. However, to continue with the same momentum, the entire industry has to put in concerted, holistic, and encompassing efforts to create an environment of trust and mutual benefits for all stakeholders. The role of administrators and regulators deserves special mention here as open and constructive policies can help the entire metaverse economy to grow with desired pace and momentum.
The author is founder and CEO, Interality