Mostafa Salem
Head of Gaming Research
Introduction
There is no denying Decentraland and The Sandbox Game built a dominance and instant relation to the word metaverse. Their common shortcomings are the onboarding experience and entry barriers, and REALM addresses both perfectly.
REALM is a cross chain, community driven open-source project that encourages collectors and creators to express their artistic vision in the purest form: their own magical virtual realm.
Gameplay
Players in REALM can create unique and customisable virtual ecosystems filled with NFTs. Not only that, you can raise digital pets, travel between realms, and use live audio streaming to connect with friends and fans. All through augmented reality to fully immerse its users into its colorful and vibrant world.
REALM puts emphasis on the way everything is presented in-game, whether it is a character or even a regular piece of art. The game pushes players to present their creations in innovative new ways, allowing its users to hold auctions on the moon or an underwater art gallery where others can directly buy the NFTs on display through their Opensea and other marketplace integrations.
Unlike Decentraland where owning land is a prerequisite to creating an experience, it allows you to create as many realms as they like using the REALM suite of builder tools. Once they are in place, players can decide whether they want it to be gated behind a paywall or owning certain NFTs or even free for everyone to try out. All of these creations can be freely traded across the game’s marketplace for people to buy, sell, or trade between themselves.
A nice and unique gesture is REALM’s commitment to transforming certain creations into positive environmental initiatives. Whenever you plant a tree, raise sea corals, or clean the oceans in-game, the studio will match your actions in the real world for a better place for everyone to live in.
REALM Review
6.5/10
REALM brings a metaverse experience to everyone through an app that can be downloaded any mobile device. This alone opens the door to so many people to explore what it means to explore the metaverse, create NFTs, engage with other creators, create their own content, and be rewarded for their creativity as well. REALM is enjoyable whenever it doesn't feel like a ghost town. Its support programs for original content creators can definitely be upgraded to be more rewarded and more inviting for players to try their hand out with the game's tools.
6.5
Pros
Mobile accessibility
Plethora of building tools
Vibrant color scheme
Events are more alive and interactive
Cons
Lack of PC version (for now)
More support towards community creators
Lack of players
