Any metaverse aspiring for global relevance will have to steal these ideas from my brain. Any metaverse aspiring for global relevance will have to steal these ideas from my brain. Any metaverse aspiring for global relevance will have to steal these ideas from my brain. Back in 2020, “metaverse” was a buzzword. The idea of living and interacting virtually in a decentralized environment felt exciting, especially on platforms like Decentraland, and The Sandbox. A few years down the line, the hype fizzled, and almost no one talks about it anymore. It now feels like old glory, just like NFTs. Some brands don’t want to be associated with the word, even if they are building something similar. Still, the metaverse holds untouched value that could completely transform virtual interaction. The metaverse that will change the world must tow the footsteps in this article. Why the metaverse died Oftentimes, projects with good use cases shut down, only for another project to build the same thing years later and succeed. So what happened? Timing. Timing. When the metaverse was trending and platforms like Decentraland promised people virtual land ownership, Real World Assets (RWA) weren’t a thing. Today, the RWA market is nearing $40 billion in market value. Imagine combining the metaverse with RWA, you’d have the opportunity to not just own virtual land but also real-world property, and even enjoy fractional ownership. In terms of providing real value, the metaverse didn't provide something substantial to keep people. So it was just like NFTs where people traded off hype and got dumped. At that time, most virtual worlds focused on speculation, buying land, flipping NFTs instead of building platforms that would create meaningful daily experiences. The onboarding process was rough too. Thankfully, many crypto applications now have better user experience and have eliminated much of the technical jargon. Back then, users struggled to sign up on metaverse platforms because of it. Newbies got overwhelmed by unfamiliar terms like gas fees, bridges, seed phrase… Setting up a crypto wallet like MetaMask which was the common entry point for metaverse platforms, meant managing seed phrases and private keys. This was complex for non-crypto-natives. onboarding gas fees bridges, seed phrase Thirdly, the metaverse at that time wasn't built to scale. When hype happened, the platforms couldn't manage the influx of people so transactions were very slow, ruining user experience. wasn't built to scale. The metaverse people will actually use 1. Should start with a promise 1. Should start with a promise Whenever you're introducing people to something new, the promise must be clear. For Decentraland, the promise was that owners of the metaverse will have equal access to land in real life. This narrative brought in over 300,000 people. At that time, RWA sounded stupid . Now, such leverage can be used to help people own lands without being physically in the location. The brand message would center on three pillars: ownership, fun, and freedom of creative expression — the core tenets of decentralization in a gaming environment. ownership fun freedom of creative expression decentralization In web3, people buy promises, not just great products. In web3, people buy promises, not just great products. In web3, people buy promises, not just great products. In web3, people buy promises, not just great products. If a promise is made like “own a piece of land in your dream city anywhere in the world” (with RWA backing ofc) many will believe it if the narrative is well painted. The rest will join out of FOMO. The formula is: Promise → Narrative → Traction → Retention Promise → Narrative → Traction → Retention 2. Create defined value 2. Create defined value No value = No product = No longterm users No value = No product = No longterm users The metaverse that people will actually use needs to feel as real as real life. To break through, it must successfully transfer real-world behaviors and systems into the virtual space. From a branding perspective, it should offer 3–5 core features that are hard to replicate elsewhere. A random internet user (not just a crypto enthusiast) should find it as engaging as doomscrolling on X, browsing Instagram, or maintaining streaks on Snapchat. Even if similar features exist on other platforms, they should come with trade-offs like higher costs, wasted time, or less enjoyment. The metaverse must position itself as the only place where these benefits are accessible without compromise. Features a global metaverse should have: Features a global metaverse should have: Blockchain abstraction: Signing up should be as simple as using an email with wallets and social accounts onboarded automatically. The blockchain network(s) used should be shadowed so users don't have to pay gas fees in the middle of a chat or while or while playing games.
Built-in SocialFi: Social + payments in one place. While doom scrolling, pay for anything without leaving the metaverse.
Fun first gaming economy : The virtual world should be built on fun, not tokens or speculation, with a progressive storyline, interoperable assets, and a marketplace with deep liquidity.
Marketplace opportunities : Any internet user provided they have an email address should have access to trading anything on the metaverse including digital assets, land, goods, and services like event tickets.
Top notch real life design : To capture people, the design should mirror real world environments that feel natural.
Instant monetization: Liquidity should be instant. With multiple marketplaces, DePIN networks, LPs, and other earning opportunities, users can earn in the metaverse and convert it off-ramp easily.
Virtual events : Host and attend concerts, movie premieres, conferences on the metaverse. NFTs would be valuable in this context for gate pass or ticket types.
Royalties: Fixed reward systems for creators and businesses to earn a percentage whenever an item is resold.
Creator opportunities : The creator economy is exploding. The metaverse will bring in tools and systems that lets anyone build, customize, and monetize experiences, assets, and content inside the metaverse.
AI integration: AI agents to help users automate tasks and personalised experiences. Blockchain abstraction: Signing up should be as simple as using an email with wallets and social accounts onboarded automatically. The blockchain network(s) used should be shadowed so users don't have to pay gas fees in the middle of a chat or while or while playing games. Blockchain abstraction Built-in SocialFi: Social + payments in one place. While doom scrolling, pay for anything without leaving the metaverse. Built-in SocialFi: Fun first gaming economy : The virtual world should be built on fun, not tokens or speculation, with a progressive storyline, interoperable assets, and a marketplace with deep liquidity. Fun first gaming economy Marketplace opportunities : Any internet user provided they have an email address should have access to trading anything on the metaverse including digital assets, land, goods, and services like event tickets. Marketplace opportunities Top notch real life design : To capture people, the design should mirror real world environments that feel natural. Top notch real life design Instant monetization: Liquidity should be instant. With multiple marketplaces, DePIN networks, LPs, and other earning opportunities, users can earn in the metaverse and convert it off-ramp easily. Instant monetization Virtual events : Host and attend concerts, movie premieres, conferences on the metaverse. NFTs would be valuable in this context for gate pass or ticket types. Virtual events Royalties: Fixed reward systems for creators and businesses to earn a percentage whenever an item is resold. Royalties: Creator opportunities : The creator economy is exploding. The metaverse will bring in tools and systems that lets anyone build, customize, and monetize experiences, assets, and content inside the metaverse. Creator opportunities : AI integration: AI agents to help users automate tasks and personalised experiences. AI integration: So I’ve got this beautiful idea, how do I get users for v1? Start with gaming Start with gaming Start with gaming There’s a popular belief that gaming is the pathway to mass adoption. Before the full picture of the metaverse comes to life, a solid gaming-focused version will be built with a captivating storyline and continuous user progression. For v1, the vision and roadmap outlined above must be clearly communicated so users can trust the broader direction of the brand. Let the community decide Let the community decide Let the community decide Run polls where users vote on the features they want to see next. Is it the marketplace? Once the chosen feature is ready, launch a community-led campaign around it. This amplifies its impact, gives users a sense of ownership, and naturally turns them into brand ambassadors. Reward contributions Reward contributions Reward contributions Spot those naturally building, sharing, or promoting the platform without an organised contest or incentives and make them manage community activities. This reduces reliance on a single community manager and will make the community feel truly decentralized. Introduce mini games Introduce mini games Introduce mini games As traction increases, there will be a need to appeal to more gaming niches. The mini-game marketplace should focus on casual, casino, and strategy games. These genres have high demand and will help drive even greater engagement. Integrate on social platforms Integrate on social platforms Integrate on social platforms Let people jump straight into the metaverse from their existing social accounts like Facebook or Instagram. No extra steps, no friction. That's a smooth onboarding path and doubles as a marketing strategy by meeting users where they already are. Create exclusivity and FOMO

Introduce gated access into specific worlds in the metaverse with free NFT mints or shareable badges.
Reward active users with exclusive badges.
Incentivize long-term behavior with streak-based rewards, contribution-based perks, and progressive unlocks.
Launch leaderboards tracking top creators, businesses, players, and contributors.
Tie referral links to badges and points, this allows users to level up their rank transparently
Recruit active contributors to become in-house KOLs. This is more effective than paying off random people. Create exclusivity and FOMO

Introduce gated access into specific worlds in the metaverse with free NFT mints or shareable badges.
Reward active users with exclusive badges.
Incentivize long-term behavior with streak-based rewards, contribution-based perks, and progressive unlocks.
Launch leaderboards tracking top creators, businesses, players, and contributors.
Tie referral links to badges and points, this allows users to level up their rank transparently
Recruit active contributors to become in-house KOLs. This is more effective than paying off random people. Create exclusivity and FOMO Introduce gated access into specific worlds in the metaverse with free NFT mints or shareable badges.
Reward active users with exclusive badges.
Incentivize long-term behavior with streak-based rewards, contribution-based perks, and progressive unlocks.
Launch leaderboards tracking top creators, businesses, players, and contributors.
Tie referral links to badges and points, this allows users to level up their rank transparently
Recruit active contributors to become in-house KOLs. This is more effective than paying off random people. Introduce gated access into specific worlds in the metaverse with free NFT mints or shareable badges. Reward active users with exclusive badges. Incentivize long-term behavior with streak-based rewards, contribution-based perks, and progressive unlocks. Launch leaderboards tracking top creators, businesses, players, and contributors. Tie referral links to badges and points, this allows users to level up their rank transparently Recruit active contributors to become in-house KOLs. This is more effective than paying off random people. Boost the creator economy Boost the creator economy Boost the creator economy Host contests for developers to build SDKs, gamers to create new worlds, and community members to write guides or host events. This will create a cycle of user-generated content and activity that keeps the ecosystem alive. Define how the tokens will be used for:

Rewards and incentives
Staking
Upgradable NFTs and badges
Land and asset purchases
Governance Define how the tokens will be used for:

Rewards and incentives
Staking
Upgradable NFTs and badges
Land and asset purchases
Governance Define how the tokens will be used for: Rewards and incentives
Staking
Upgradable NFTs and badges
Land and asset purchases
Governance Rewards and incentives Staking Upgradable NFTs and badges Land and asset purchases Governance Final thoughts Final thoughts A useful metaverse will make the internet a much better place with deeper liquidity, VR experiences and a boosted creator economy.
It's important to build with v1 users and the brand’s vision in mind.
More value = strong community.
Strong community = less KOLs and more unpaid PRs.
Value translates into everything else, including the economic value of a project like its token.
When long term behaviour is incentivised people will keep coming. It shouldn't be a one off, which is why points, levels, badges etc suffice.
The brand's narrative should be worth buying into, that's what will bring acquisition and meticulous craft will sustain retention.
People are more likely to keep coming back to a platform that tracks their behaviour and issues points with a leaderboard. E.g, the world's largest decentralised perpetual trading market - Hyperliquid.
The future is omnichain. A useful metaverse will make the internet a much better place with deeper liquidity, VR experiences and a boosted creator economy. It's important to build with v1 users and the brand’s vision in mind. More value = strong community. Strong community = less KOLs and more unpaid PRs. Value translates into everything else, including the economic value of a project like its token. When long term behaviour is incentivised people will keep coming. It shouldn't be a one off, which is why points, levels, badges etc suffice. The brand's narrative should be worth buying into, that's what will bring acquisition and meticulous craft will sustain retention. People are more likely to keep coming back to a platform that tracks their behaviour and issues points with a leaderboard. E.g, the world's largest decentralised perpetual trading market - Hyperliquid. The future is omnichain.

This story contains new, firsthand information uncovered by the writer.

The Sandbox

Decentraland

Ditch KOLs: 4 Reasons to Build Communities Instead

Monkeys Will Own NFTs in a Decentralized Internet 

I help Web3 projects create the best marketing strategies and tell simple stories. Send an email to Web3.talez@gmail.com to get started.

Work with me 🤝

Too Long; Didn't Read

Boost your HackerNoon story @ $159.99! 🚀

If I Had to Build a Metaverse People Actually Use, Here's How I'd Crush it

About Author

Comments

TOPICS

THIS ARTICLE WAS FEATURED IN

Related Stories

Untitled Story

Are We Doomed? The Current State of Web3

The Open Metaverse: A Definitive Guide to Zero and Wilder World

We Keep Reinventing CSS, but Was Styling Really the Problem?

Zero-Knowledge Proofs: Questionnaire Result Verification in Smart Contracts

06/03/2018: Biggest Stories in the Cryptosphere

Are We Doomed? The Current State of Web3

The Open Metaverse: A Definitive Guide to Zero and Wilder World

We Keep Reinventing CSS, but Was Styling Really the Problem?

Zero-Knowledge Proofs: Questionnaire Result Verification in Smart Contracts

06/03/2018: Biggest Stories in the Cryptosphere

Light-Mode

Classic

Newspaper

Dark-Mode

Neon Noir

Minty

HN StartUps