How to use Minecraft to understand the Metaverse and Web3

What is the Metaverse?

The Metaverse is a term coined by Neal Stephenson in his 1992 science fiction novel Snow Crash to describe a future virtual reality-based online world. Some have gone as far as pronouncing Stephenson’s novel a prediction of the future.

Before you agree that it’s some mystical peek into the future and invoke the rules of time travel, let’s first investigate what the Metaverse is through the lens of something much more accessible: Minecraft. But, more on this later.

Unlike the internet or even virtual reality as we know it today, the Metaverse would be a fully immersive 3D environment where people could interact with each other and with digital objects as if they were real.

The Metaverse is yet to be fully existent. However, some platforms have already created experiences close to what the Metaverse will be like. Video games, for example, have already pushed the boundaries of gaming via virtual economies and in-game events.

Simply put, the Metaverse is a concept of an online 3D universe that patchworks various virtual spaces. Much like a future iteration of the web, the Metaverse is coming to fruition bit by slow bit. The goal is to allow users to socialize, game and even work in these 3D spaces.

It could be said that as technology evolved, the emergence of something like the Metaverse was an inevitability — a natural evolution of sorts as things ran their course.

Related: Microsoft metaverse vs. Facebook metaverse: What’s the difference?

What is Web3?

Web3 is the third generation of the World Wide Web and refers to the vision of a decentralized web. The first iteration, or Web1, was focused on static content, while Web2 introduced dynamic content and social media features.

Now, with Web3, the focus is shifting toward a more decentralized web where users are in control of their own data. Originally called the “Semantic Web” by inventor of the World Wide Web Tim Berners-Lee, Web3 is geared toward enabling websites and applications to process information more autonomously and intelligently.

Through technologies like Big Data, machine learning and decentralized ledger technology (DLT), data can be processed in a smarter, more human-like way.

How is Minecraft a helpful tool to understand the Metaverse?

Minecraft is a game that allows players to build and explore in a 3D world. It is also one of the first games to offer a virtual economy, with players able to trade items. As such, Minecraft can be used to understand the concept of the Metaverse.

By understanding how to use Minecraft, people can better understand the Metaverse and Web3. In addition, they can learn about the potential of these concepts and how they can be used in the real world.

What makes Minecraft a great metaverse platform?

A few key factors make Minecraft a great platform for the Metaverse. Minecraft is highly adaptable, meaning that players can create their own content and share it with others. This makes it easy to create new experiences and worlds within the game.

Minecraft also has a large and active community that creates a sense of belonging, allowing players to connect with each other. Most importantly, Minecraft is constantly evolving, with new features and updates being released regularly. This makes it easy to create new experiences and worlds within the game.

There are many more areas in which Minecraft has succeeded as far as metaverses are concerned. Let’s break them down below:

The Minecraft metaverse is decentralized — nobody owns it

There’s a reason why Mark Zuckerberg’s desire to build the Metaverse via Facebook was met with derision by many in the crypto community.

Facebook’s move gives us a peek into a metaverse largely owned by tech giants like Zuckerberg. It’s Monopoly all over again and goes against the grain of decentralization, which is essentially what the Metaverse is about.

On the other hand, Minecraft is a great example of a decentralized metaverse. While Microsoft owns the game, it is still an open platform…