The race for the metaverse is only heating up as 2022 continues seeing major digital projects come to life. And just how valuable could it all be? Short answer: very. Global consulting firm McKinsey is forecasting that virtual worlds can generate up to $5 trillion by 2030. In addition, the firm also says that it’s plausible that we will live more than 50 percent of live events could be held in the metaverse.
You might be wondering then what it is that we will be doing in the metaverse that could possibly be that exciting.
Gaming, for starters, is already attracting millions of users to virtual worlds. And this is just the prelude to something even greater ahead. With that in mind, we'll be looking at the 20 best metaverse games in 2022 that you’ll surely want to keep in mind or even try out today.
Kicking off our list of the best metaverse games that you should be trying out in 2022 is Axie Infinity. It might not come much as a surprise to you since Axie has become the undisputed leader of play-to-earn, a gaming model that rewards its players with cryptocurrency they can later trade for real-world money. And while Axie Infinity has seen a meteoric rise in the last year or so, its beginnings go all the way back to 2018, when this blockchain-based title was first launched by technology firm Sky Mavis. Since then, it became a global sensation for its appealing game play, which lets users breed cute digital characters called ‘Axies’ and enter them into fun competitions and battles in return for two in-game tokens: Smooth Love Potion (SLP) and Axie Infinity Shards (AXS). Players can also try their hand at generating passive income by staking their tokens. This Pokemon-inspired title might be a staple in the metaverse gaming industry, but its developers say they have ambitious growth plans for Axie, which could raise the stake even higher.
2. The Sandbox
While the metaverse is still far from becoming a fully realized concept, there are plenty of metaverse projects getting off the ground - and attracting plenty of attention from players all over the world. The Sandbox has managed to cement its place as one of the top metaverse-like platforms, in part thanks to how valuable its plots of land have become. At the end of 2021, a plot of land there sold for a record $4.3 million amid a race by investors and brands to snap up more metaverse real estate. The Sandbox is a community-centric platform where players can purchase pieces of land and there develop whatever applications they choose, from mini-games to virtual infrastructures and digital clothing with the Sandbox Game Maker mode. Following a sandbox game model, this metaverse game is completely developed and controlled by its players who can also create NFT avatars to explore the many pieces of land within The Sandbox. All transactions are settled using the platform's currency - SAND. One of the main attractions of this free to play metaverse game is how easily participants can buy digital land, develop their NFT creations and sell them in the marketplace. And if all of this wasn’t enough already, players can count on the platform’s high-profile tenants like Snoop Dogg, Atari and Adidas for opportunities for extra fun.
3. Illuvium
Illuvium is an open-world RPG that has been getting a lot of buzz ahead of its release later in 2022. Built on top of the Ethereum Blockchain, the game is all about exploring a vast virtual world and collecting powerful creatures known as “Illuvials”. Each Illuvial has their own strengths and weaknesses, and they can come in four classes: Fighter, Rogue, Psion and Empath. Illuvials can be ‘fused’ to make increasingly more powerful creatures. Players can enter tournaments where they also equip their Illuvials with weapons and armors and earn prizes worth several ILV tokens. They also can simply choose to sell their beasts. Metaverse fans can also rejoice by knowing that not only can Illuvium be a very addictive game, but a visually appealing at it too. Judging by a few snippets released so far, this metaverse game is on track to become one of the first true AAA titles out there. While we’re still waiting to see and hear more from the project, we’re safe in our choice of placing Illuvium as one of the top metaverse games of 2022.
4. Decentraland
Decentraland is already an established metaverse project that’s gained plenty of projection no less thanks to the fact that people are willingly snapping up plots of virtual lands there for millions. Moreover, this fully decentralized world comes with plenty of entertainment options for its players, from creating to exploring and selling original content. Similarly to The Sandbox, Decentraland has a vibrant community and the platform frequently hosts interesting events. The Decentraland world is entirely owned by its users. At the beginning of 2021, this metaverse had a monthly active user base of about 300,000 people and 18,000 daily users. Besides engaging with the many metaverse games available on the platform, users can also have fun by creating NFT wearables for their avatars, including shirts, hats and shoes. All in game assets can be easily sold through the marketplace in return for Decentraland's in game currency - MANA. One of the best parts about this metaverse is that you don’t need an account to visit it, but you’re planning on having an in-depth experience. We do suggest you get yourself an account and a digital wallet like Metamaskk to help you access every advantage of Decentraland.
5. Star Atlas
When it comes to metaverse games to play, Star Atlas is the name to keep in mind.
Star Atlas aims to be one of the first AAA metaverse games - and it has all the right features to achieve that status; it’s cinematic, has a complex and enticing storyline, features a mesmerizing collection of virtual worlds, has a great community and packs all the good stuff of gaming and crypto all in one place. It can do this because developers are using Unreal Engine 5, which enables real-time environments with cinema-quality. This alone should be enough to make you curious. But wait, there plenty more features that make this title one of the top metaverse games in 2022.
Built on top of the Solana blockchain, Star Atlas can achieve a number of things that other crypto games can't, like super slow fees and higher speed across the network, which makes the trading of in-platform NFTs easy and relatively affordable for players.
Powering all the transactions of this space-themed metaverse game are two native tokens - POLIS and ATLAS. But what is Star Atlas really all about? This game is set 2620 where three major groups fight for control over this universe. The MUD Territory governed by humankind, the Ustur Sector controlled by sentient androids and lastly the ONI Region, a consortium of alien races.
Players can explore alien planets as a spaceship captain with a crew, discovering various resources along the way and engaging with different space races. The best part is that you can enjoy all of it with friends and family. Sure, as we mentioned, this metaverse is still in the works but given what we know so far, it’s safe to say that Star Atlas is very much on track to becoming one of the top titles this year.
6. CryptoKitties
If there was ever a game we can thank for creating the hype surrounding crypto and the metaverse, CryptoKitties. This was way back in late 2017, when CryptoKitties became the first huge NFT fad (so huge it broke the Ethereum blockchain). What’s there not to like about cute digital cats that you cannot only breed and have online fun with but also make real money while at it? In this sense, CryptoKitties has got you covered. Let’s get to some of the ground rules: there are three main ways of playing this metaverse game which are breeding, trading or completing tasks. This highly popular blockchain game was developed by Dapper Labs, a Canadian company behind other crypto hits like the NBA Top Shot.
7. My Neighbor Alice
This NFT title is a multiplayer builder game where users can buy and own virtual islands, collect and build exciting items and meet new friends. Players can let their imagination run wild when creating new NFTs to decorate their virtual land or sell to others like NFT houses, fashion items, avatars and much more. In fact, My Neighbor Alice can appear quite similar to Farmville (for those who remember it), letting you pick crops to grow and livestock to breed. All NFTs created can be exchanged in the marketplace in return for ALICE, the platform’s token. Players enjoy this particular NFT game for how fun and interactive it is, as they explore the islands on offer, each with a particular theme like Snowflake Island, Sandy Coast, Submerged Islands or Medieval Plains. We're sure you'll want to play metaverse games that can offer a wide range of entertaining experiences and My Neighbor Alice is certainly up to the job.
8. Alien Worlds
Alien Worlds is a blockchain-based metaverse game that centers around a sci-fi theme and a mining adventure. This metaverse spans across seven alien worlds in the year 2055, after humans were forced to escape Earth amidst a ranging pandemic. Each of these worlds within the Federation of Alien Worlds has their own environment, experiences, economy, land, tools, avatars and opportunities to earn NFTs. This metaverse game lives on two blockchains - Ethereum (ETH), WAX and Binance Smart Chain (BSC). Players are made to compete for the scarce resources within this metaverse in return for the Trilium (TLM) token, which can be used for staking and voting in Planet Decentralised Autonomous Organisations (Planet DAOs).
9. Fortnite
There's no metaverse games list complete without Fornite.
The free-to-play game Fortnite is a staple amongst the younger players and there are some 30 million daily users on this metaverse-like platform. So, clearly, there’s something about Fortnite. This title is developed by Epic Games and started out as a Battle Royale-type open world RPG game but it has been adding more other virtual experiences as the Fornite universe continues expanding. There are countless games within this metaverse that include exploration and battling other players for rewards and prizes. Another great feature is that this metaverse game will allow you to build whatever virtual infrastructures you want thanks to the Creative Mode. All in all, Fornite brings together the best of physical world activities with the potential of a metaverse environment as players can easily create assets and trade, buy or sell them.
Because of the exciting and unexplored potential of the platform, Fornite can be a great place to not only play games but become a part of a very vibrant community. Even those who’re not necessarily looking for a gaming experience will surely be tempted by the type of events hosted by Fornite, including music concerts by superstars like Travis Scott, Ariana Grande and Marshmello. More recently, Fornite announced a partnership with Lego to create family-friendly metaverse experiences. As one of the most popular metaverse games, Fornite is undoubtedly an experience you should try.
10. Roblox
Last but not least, we’re naming Roblox as one of the top 10 metaverse games in 2022. Just like Fornite, Roblox is an immersive world full of innovative experiences, with a strong focus on creativity and community. This platform allows users to create and share games across the Roblox virtual world, so technically it’s not just one game. Whatever you imagine, be it a new game, a funny avatar or virtual mansion, you’ll be able to create your own world with Roblox. An open-world interactive experience, there aren’t any limitations to how much fun this playing experience can be. This metaverse game also has a great economy powered by the game's main currency Robux, which players can exchange for real-world money. There are also several high-profile brands building a permanent presence inside Roblox, like Gucci, while other companies including Nike, Ralph Lauren and Vans have too set up experiences in this platform to connect with digital customers. This platform can also be experienced in virtual reality, adding yet another reason as to why it's one of the best metaverse games currently available.
Bottom line
The metaverse is a technological advancement that comes as the natural pairing to online games as players look for increasingly more engaging and dynamic virtual experiences. And as online metaverse games continue developing to achieve higher levels of complexity, we can expect this segment to become more popular in the coming years, with some of the finest metaverse games hitting the headlines and drawing in millions of players all around the world.
