Sandbox Metaverse Alpha to launch Nov. 29 after four years in development

SAND prices have surged to a new all-time high as The Sandbox announces its highly anticipated play-to-earn metaverse event.

Animoca Brands’ virtual property and gaming firm The Sandbox is opening up part of its metaverse to players for the first time via a multi-week play-to-earn (P2E) Alpha event.

But only a handful of lucky players will get to enjoy the full experience.

The Sandbox’s virtual gaming world enables users to monetize their time spent in the metaverse via a play-to-earn model. Players can purchase land and create nonfungible tokens (NFT) within the game and earn the Sandbox token (SAND) by completing various quests. They can also stake the token.

According to a Wednesday announcement from the firm, the event will start on Nov. 29 at 1 pm UTC and will run until Dec. 20. A select group of just 5,000 users will have the chance to earn up to 1,000 SAND (worth around $3,500 at current prices) and three exclusive NFTs via time spent across 18 experiences developed by The Sandbox teams.

Get ready for The Sandbox Alpha!
Launching November 29th
Anyone can experience the Alpha hub and three experiences
5,000 Alpha passes giving access to content, NFT, and 1,000 SAND!

Get all details below https://t.co/63iAl5MMmS pic.twitter.com/OiXmbAWYN2

— The Sandbox (@TheSandboxGame) November 16, 2021

The three exclusive NFTs will only be available during the event. They will depict a medieval-style gate, a blue-and-black dragon and a longsword, all of which are usable in The Sandbox metaverse.

Exclusive Alpha NFTs. Source: The Sandbox

The Alpha Pass is an NFT ticket that grants full access to the event to 5,000 individuals. One thousand are up for grabs in a raffle for Sandbox Landowners, and 2,250 more will be given out to Sandbox account holders via daily social contests over a three-week period. These golden tickets will also be on sale on OpenSea’s secondary market between Nov. 29 and Dec. 19.

Players without the pass will be able to access three experiences and the Alpha Hub, a multiplayer gaming mode that features a range of locations and quests, but they will not be eligible for P2E rewards.

According to data from OpenSea, the floor price for Sandbox NFTs sits at around 1.019 Ether (ETH) worth $4,284 at the time of writing. Total trade volume stands at 39,700 ETH ($165.3 million) since late 2019.

For new users who are champing at the bit to enter the virtual game, Animoca Brands co-founder and chairman Yat Siu told Cointelegraph that people should take the time to carefully experience The Sandbox before snapping up tokenized land:

“I would recommend for people who want to experience it, you know, just go to the places, experience them, join the community on Discord, have a chat with them. See what it’s all about before you make the plunge to buy land because, you know, it’s like buying real estate anywhere in the world.”

“I mean, you’re not going to just fly over to New York and say, ‘I’ll take that,’” he added.

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At the start of this month, The Sandbox closed a $93-million Series B funding round led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2. The firm stated that the project has been in development for four years and will launch its metaverse in “phased stages” moving forward. The funding will reportedly go toward scaling The Sandbox via developing new games and live experiences and seeking out additional partnerships with popular brands and intellectual properties.

According to data from CoinGecko, the price of SAND hit a new all-time high of $3.42 earlier on Tuesday. SAND has been on a meteoric surge in 2021, gaining 8,663.5% over the past 12 months.