The Rise (and Fall) of Virtual Land Sales

The virtual real estate market took off in 2022, with activity from brands, celebrities, enthusiasts, tech companies, and more. Many believe that virtual land will be a building block of the developing metaverse, where users can own the space they build on, a far cry from the state of Web2 gaming platforms that maintain control of everything built in their ecosystems. The idea caught fire earlier in the year, especially on blockchain-based platforms like The Sandbox and Decentraland, where individual parcels of virtual real estate were selling for an average of $11,000.

However, the madness did not last long; in October, the prices of these parcels fell approximately 80%. Reports of low usage in Decentraland also ignited a storm of joy…