The Sandbox Builds Mega City in HK With Star-Studded Lineup
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Play-to-Earn The Sandbox Builds Mega City in Hong Kong With Star-Studded Lineup

A brand-new megalopolis will soon rise in Hong Kong, headlined by the city’s powerful names in entertainment, finance, real estate, and gaming. But instead of joining Hong Kong’s sprawling urban jungle, this new development—called Mega City—is set to penetrate the realm of the metaverse through robots, ninjas, and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

The brains behind this is The Sandbox, a decentralized gaming virtual world and subsidiary of Hong Kong-based game software company Animoca Brands. The Sandbox is based on “play-to-earn,” a popular gaming model in NFT and crypto that rewards users with in-game assets as they play. These rewards may include gears, weapons, avatars, and shields that a player can buy, sell, or trade on a marketplace using crypto. Since these assets are essentially NFTs, they are unique on their own and can be monetised.






In The Sandbox metaverse, a plot of real estate is aptly called “LAND,” an Ethereum-based NFT that players buy to build digital experiences like dioramas and other games. Another token type is SAND, an ERC-20 token that serves as the basis of all the transactions within the game. You can earn SAND by playing games in The Sandbox or buy it from crypto exchanges. Participants can also make user-generated content called ASSETS, which can be traded on the marketplace.

Some of the big names that have committed to building Mega City are PwC Hong Kong, Times Capital, artist and music producer Dough-Boy@BlueArk, award-winning entertainment stars Stephen Fung and Shu Qi, and Hong Kong-based illustrator Dreamergo. They will create an NFT art gallery, a clubbing metaverse hub, a virtual amusement park, a fantasy park, and more— all mirroring the glitz and glamour of Hong Kong’s bustling city.

“The soul of Mega City is the talent of Hong Kong. More than a strict metaverse reflection of Hong Kong, Mega City is its expansion into the future, a place of dreams and fun. All LAND in Mega City will share this city-of-the-future connection that will be uniquely Hong Kong in its visual approach while reflecting the vision of individual LAND owners,” Animoca Brands said in announcing the partnership on Jan. 5, 2022.

Meanwhile, Ocean Park revealed last Feb. 15 that it will also join The Sandbox metaverse by creating unique content designed after its theme park. While it has not disclosed exact details, players can expect to see an immersive virtual experience through NFTs and gaming.

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