A metaverse collision: Star Atlas and The Sandbox collaborate for the first time
Gamers can be rewarded for bringing their favorite faction from the leading Solana metaverse to The Sandbox on Ethereum via the Star Atlas VoxEdit Contest
MIAMI and HONG KONG – April 27, 2022 – Star Atlas, a next-gen metaverse with triple-a game design and Unreal Engine 5 graphics built on the Solana blockchain, and The Sandbox, a leading decentralized gaming metaverse and subsidiary of Animoca Brands, today announced the first step in revolutionizing gaming interoperability between the Ethereum and Solana blockchains. The relationship between the two metaverse environments launches with the Star Atlas VoxEdit contest which opens for submissions on May 2 at 00:00 a.m. (UTC) and runs until May 15 at 23:59 p.m. (UTC).
The Star Atlas VoxEdit Contest gives players the opportunity to act as an envoy from The Sandbox with the task of visiting one of the three main galactic factions in the Star Atlas metaverse – the ONI, Ustur, and MUD. Envoys are then tasked with creating a report on what they find by designing a portrait of one of the faction’s inhabitants using The Sandbox’s free VoxEdit software. Winners will be voted on by the teams of both The Sandbox and Star Atlas with the results being announced on June 11. The top four winners will split 50,000 in SAND, The Sandbox’s in-game currency, and a fleet of coveted Star Atlas spaceship NFTs.
The VoxEdit Contest is also joined by BLOND:ISH, the renowned producer, DJ, and sustainability activist, who has an existing presence in both metaverse ecosystems. Envoys exploring the Star Atlas metaverse are invited to get inspired by the cosmic sounds and create a headpiece for an intergalactic Star Atlas faction member by designing it with VoxEdit. The entry that can best immerse and entertain a space traveler will be selected by BLOND:ISH and receive lustrous Star Atlas spaceships when the Contest concludes on June 11.
"We're excited to announce the first of many cross-platform integrations, connecting the ecosystems of Star Atlas and The Sandbox," said Michael Wagner, Co-Founder and CEO of ATMTA, Inc., the principal development studio of Star Atlas. "We share ambitious goals with respect to our developments within the broader metaverse, and we see this relationship as a pivotal moment to demonstrate the potential of interoperability of both game environments and blockchain protocols. The bridges we build today will serve as infrastructure of the future in seamless exploration of the infinite experiences digital world builders will create in the years to follow."
Star Atlas is a next-gen metaverse that looks to take the best of blockchain technology and real-time graphics technology to build a gaming experience built to last millennia. Since last year, the company has brought many unique NFT products to market, including playable spaceships, that have allowed Star Atlas to generate nearly $200 million in revenue to date.
As the metaverse’s leading decentralized gaming virtual world, The Sandbox fully embraces the idea of the metaverse as a continuous shared digital space where worlds and brands collide to make magic and create real utility and economies. StarAtlas joins over 200 existing partnerships including Paris Hilton, Snoop Dogg, Adidas, Gucci, Warner Music Group, Ledger, HSBC, Ubisoft, The Walking Dead, Deadmau5, Steve Aoki, The Smurfs, Care Bears, Atari, ZEPETO, and CryptoKitties, all following The Sandbox’s vision of empowering players to create their own experiences using both original and well-known characters and worlds.
“We are proud to be partnering with Star Atlas and are excited to develop new projects with the franchise,” said Sebastien Borget, COO of The Sandbox. “This contest is the beginning of a new bridge linking metaverses to each other, with the goal to bring more content and cross-platform integration to both of our audiences. We can't wait to see the amazing assets that our communities will create!”
“The coming together of metaverse ecosystems opens up a new world of possibilities for artistic expression. This innovative and collaborative Star Atlas and The Sandbox partnership is exactly what web3 is about and has the potential to create fully sustainable NFT future experiences while rallying the worldwide community around a message of creativity, curiosity and boldness to dream of what we might become. I am thrilled to activate my entire community and see what fantastic creations this contest will bring. LFG!” – BLOND:ISH
BLOND:ISH is a Canadian producer, DJ solo act, and sustainability activist represented by Vive-ann Bakos. She has collaborated with Star Atlas on augmented reality NFT experiences as well as with The Sandbox on bringing her brand to the metaverse. Her music collaboration acts include Depeche Mode, Pete Tong, and playing at festivals such as Coachella, Burning Man, Ultra Music Festival.
Star Atlas has several major feature releases scheduled for 2022, including a web-based mini-game and a full production release known as the Volant Studio Showroom, which will present cinematic quality video game visuals using Unreal Engine 5’s Nanite technology. This VoxEdit Contest is just the first of many integrations that both Star Atlas and The Sandbox have planned to increase the interoperability between their metaverse environments and the respective blockchains they’re built on for the betterment of the budding metaverse ecosystem.
ABOUT STAR ATLAS
Star Atlas is a next-gen gaming metaverse emerging from the confluence of state of the art blockchain, real-time graphics, multiplayer video game, and decentralized financial technologies. Real-time graphics technology using Unreal Engine 5's Nanite allows for cinematic quality video game visuals. Blockchain technology using the Solana protocol establishes a largely serverless and secured gameplay experience. Non-fungible tokens obtained and traded within Star Atlas creates an economy that replicates the tangibility of real world assets and ownership.
To learn more, visit StarAtlas.com, join a faction at Play.StarAtlas.com and send your spaceships to the stars.
ABOUT THE SANDBOX
The Sandbox, a subsidiary of Animoca Brands, is one of the decentralized virtual worlds that has been fueling the recent growth of virtual real-estate demand having partnered with major IPs and brands including Adidas, Gucci, Ubisoft, Square Enix, Snoop Dogg, The Walking Dead, Deadmau5, Atari, Rollercoaster Tycoon, Care Bears, The Smurfs, and more. The Sandbox metaverse offers players and creators a decentralized and intuitive platform to create immersive 3D worlds and game experiences and to safely store, trade, and monetize their creations. For more information, please visit www.sandbox.game and follow the regular updates on Twitter, Medium and Discord.
ABOUT ANIMOCA BRANDS
Animoca Brands, a Deloitte Tech Fast winner and ranked in the Financial Times list of High Growth Companies Asia-Pacific 2021, is a leader in digital entertainment, blockchain, and gamification that is working to advance digital property rights. It develops and publishes a broad portfolio of products including the REVV token and SAND token; original games including The Sandbox, Crazy Kings, and Crazy Defense Heroes; and products utilizing popular intellectual properties including Disney, WWE, Snoop Dogg, The Walking Dead, Power Rangers, MotoGP™, and Formula E. The company has multiple subsidiaries, including The Sandbox, Blowfish Studios, Quidd, GAMEE, nWay, Pixowl, Bondly, Lympo, Grease Monkey Games, and Eden Games. Animoca Brands has a growing portfolio of more than 170 investments in NFT-related companies and decentralized projects that are contributing to building the open metaverse, including Axie Infinity, OpenSea, Dapper Labs (NBA Top Shot), Yield Guild Games, Harmony, Alien Worlds, Star Atlas, and others. For more information visit www.animocabrands.com or follow on Twitter or Facebook.
For all media inquiries about Star Atlas, The Sandbox, and Animoca Brands, please contact:
M Group Strategic Communications (for Star Atlas)
Kevin McGrath
The Sandbox Media Contact
Marion Choufa
Animoca Brands Media Contact
