Metaverse Trends to Look at in 2022

"You may even create an entire universe just for you, where there are hundreds of millions of galaxies, in which there are hundreds of millions of planets, on which you'll find different worlds you either desire or dare not desire!"

​- Immigrants of Time, by Liu Cixin

A metaverse is a collection of 3D virtual environments designed to foster social interaction. It is sometimes defined as a hypothetical iteration of the Internet as a single, worldwide virtual environment that is assisted by the usage of virtual and augmented reality headsets in futurism and science fiction. It usually combines social media, online gaming, AR, VR and cryptocurrencies, allowing users to interact virtually.

As the metaverse expands, it will develop online places that allow for more multidimensional user interactions than present technology allows. Users in the metaverse will be able to immerse themselves in an environment where the digital and physical worlds collide, rather than only watching digital material.

So, let's take a look at some metaverse trends that could possibly happen in the year of 2022.

- The Rise of Blockchain Gaming

Many experts feel that the blockchain will be critical in establishing a secure and equitable metaverse. The blockchain is also assisting in the formation of a new metaverse economy, one defined by artists' ability to sell their work and earn sufficient remuneration for their efforts.

Non-fungible tokens, or NFTs, for example, are an interesting component of the metaverse because they allow individuals to sell everything from data to services and experiences while benefiting the artist or creator behind each asset.

Many existing blockchain games have a high barrier to entry for uncertain players, which is the polar opposite of what drives so many gamers to free-to-play experiences. Developers will continue to enhance the first-time user experience of their blockchain games in 2022, lowering these hurdles. As a result, such games will be more accessible to gamers.

- Growing Metaverse Investment Activities

The metaverse, which is made up of the words "meta", which means "beyond", and "universe", has quickly become a big trend for businesses all over the globe, propelled by the worldwide pandemic, lockdown measures, and the cryptocurrency boom.

As Fazzaco reported earlier, HSBC​ ventured into the game by acquiring virtual real estate in the Sandbox, the Ethereum blockchain-based game in which you can buy, sell, and trade virtual plots of land. In addition, Siam Commercial Bank (SCB), is joining the list of major financial institutions that enters the metaverse by setting up headquarter within the Sandbox, following JP Morgan who last month has opened its Onyx lounge in Decentraland, a digital ledger that permanently records cryptocurrency transactions across a network of computers.

In 2022, larger investments and possibly outright acquisitions are expected. Companies currently engaged in the metaverse will, unsurprisingly, pursue strategic acquisitions to bolster their leadership positions, following the pattern of consolidation observed in the larger gaming business.

- Fading Meme Stocks Turning Retail Traders into Metaverse

In early 2021, millions of retail traders banded together to drive massive rallies in stocks like GameStop, AMC Theaters, and BlackBerry, which were all heavily shorted. Over the course of the year, day traders created a new asset class called "meme stock" and added new companies to the basket on a regular basis.

According to a survey released by Apex Fintech Solution, meme stocks began to lose traction around the end of 2021, with several well-known brands dropping down the list of top stock holdings. Meanwhile, metaverse stocks have piqued the interest of millennial investors, with businesses such as Facebook parent Meta, metaverse platform Roblox, and Nike climbing the rankings.

- What will Happen after the Russia-Ukraine Conflict?

Russian government has always been unfriendly towards metaverse before the Ukraine crisis. In February this year, regulators in Russia were looking into the possibility of new restrictions on virtual reality, saying they are worried that it could enable illegal activity.

In addition, a poll carried out in the same month shows that more than a third of Russians think that the creation of metaverses will do more harm than good, and only 9% of respondents are convinced of the opposite.

Andrew Sheng, a columnist for Asia News Network, expressed his concerns in his "Is Ukraine a Metaverse Nightmare", quoting "we should not kid ourselves that Metaverse VR or self-deception is the real world. We either sleepwalk to war, or have the courage to opt for sustainable peace."

On the other hand, Guy Goldenberg, a Ukrainian who left the country last minute before things kicked off there, also the founder of MultiNFT, a metaverse-entertainment platform, shared a bit of his mind in an interview, stating that metaverse is the "next medium of entertainment", and no one can censor metaverse, not even Putin.

However, the fact that Goldenberg himself is the founder of a metaverse platform makes him somewhat lose credibility on his statement, and of course, one should always bear in mind that the black-or-white fallacy is not the right way to ruminate on any situation as complicated as this.

Conclusion

Trading experts have varied opinions on where metaverse is going. Despite the fact that our current values teach us to embrace reality, love real things, something like metaverse seems inevitable in some's eyes, and it could be the next stage of human evolution. Some believe that it has the potential to be massive from a trading standpoint. It has the potential to be the iPhone of 2007, the dot-com boom of 2000, and the internet of the late 1990s all rolled into one. People already stare at their phones for hours each day. It gets much more immersive when used with a virtual reality (VR) headset.

Some said that they wouldn't be surprised if the world goes full "Ready Player One". It might not happen in 2022, but in five to ten years, it's a real possibility.

On the other hand, some other people tend to believe that metaverse is not going anywhere far.

"When we look back, it wouldn't surprise me if Facebook's metaverse announcement was just a way to direct attention from the whistleblower movement. I'm sure they're working on the metaverse, but my guess is that it'll probably be useless for the next two to three years. It's just a new way of getting money out of people and spinning technological hype to nerds."