Real-World Use Cases – Gaming, Digital Land, and Social Experiences

• Blockchain Gaming and Play-to-Earn: Gaming is one of the most active use cases for Web3. In traditional games, the game company owns all the in-game items and currency. In contrast, blockchain games give players true ownership of game assets as crypto tokens or NFTs. This not only means you own your sword or character skin outside the game, but you can also trade or sell it in secondary markets. Some games even pioneered a “play-to-earn” model, where players can earn real income through gameplay. A famous example is Axie Infinity, a Pokémon-style game where each cute creature (Axie) is an NFT owned by the player. Players battle their Axies to earn tokens that can be exchanged for real money. At one point, especially in 2021, some players in countries like the Philippines were making a living income from Axie Infinity by breeding and battling Axies – essentially getting paid to play. Although the hype for Axie has cooled and it illustrated the risks (when the game economy falters, earnings can drop quickly), it showed the potential of virtual economies. Beyond Axie, there are numerous blockchain games across genres – from trading card games to MMORPGs – where players truly own items. For gamers, this is exciting because time spent in-game can translate to tangible rewards, and your achievements (like a rare item) are actually yours. As of 2025, millions of people are engaging with blockchain games daily, and big gaming companies are also exploring how to incorporate Web3 elements into their titles.
• Virtual Land and Real Estate: Buying virtual land might sound crazy at first – why spend money on “land” that only exists as pixels? But in many metaverse platforms, digital land has become a hot commodity. Owning land in a virtual world gives you a space to build experiences or rent out to others. For example, in Decentraland, landowners have created things like virtual art galleries, casinos, clubs, and storefronts on their parcels. Brands and businesses are also getting involved: we’ve seen companies purchase virtual land to set up virtual shops or promotional events, anticipating that these worlds could attract big audiences. The prices of prime virtual real estate have surged during metaverse hype cycles. We mentioned earlier an estate in Decentraland’s Fashion District sold for about $2.4 million. In another case, an investor bought virtual land next to a celebrity’s property in The Sandbox (Snoop Dogg has a mansion there) for a hefty sum, simply for the prestige or potential access. These are extreme cases, and certainly speculative. But even on a smaller scale, people buy $10 or $100 parcels of land in newer metaverse games, hoping to build something cool or just to be early in a growing world. It’s akin to buying domain names or investing in real-world real estate, but in a virtual context. The big idea is that if a metaverse platform becomes popular, the locations within it (just like popular locations in a city) could become very valuable. While it’s too early to tell which platforms will succeed long-term, this virtual land rush underscores how Web3 allows digital property rights: you can own a piece of the world and do what you want with it.
• Avatars and Digital Fashion: In any metaverse or virtual world, you’ll have an avatar – your digital persona. Dressing up avatars and personalizing their look is a huge part of the fun (just like choosing an outfit in real life can be a form of self-expression). Web3 takes this to the next level through NFTs and digital fashion. Instead of being limited to the avatar skins provided by one game, you can buy or mint unique avatar items on the blockchain and potentially use them across various platforms. There’s a growing industry around digital fashion – designers creating virtual clothing and accessories that exist only as NFTs. It might sound far-fetched, but people are indeed spending money on outfits for their avatars! For example, Decentraland held a Metaverse Fashion Week event where major brands and independent creators showcased virtual apparel, which users could buy as NFTs for their avatars to wear. Some of these were limited-edition drops, creating a bit of a collectible frenzy. Owning a rare avatar outfit NFT can be like owning a limited sneaker in the real world – a status symbol for your online self. Even profile picture NFTs (like CryptoPunks or Bored Ape Yacht Club images) tie into this idea: many owners use them as their virtual identity on social media, and those NFTs have their own exclusive communities. In metaverse platforms, an avatar itself can be an NFT you own and take from place to place. The overarching theme is that our digital identities are becoming assets we control. As more of our social life moves online, spending on digital fashion and avatar customization is becoming as normal as buying skins in Fortnite – except now you truly own the item and could resell it.
• Social Experiences and Events: One of the most promising use cases of the metaverse is hosting social gatherings that are not possible (or as convenient) in the physical world. We’ve already seen virtual concerts where millions of people attend via avatars. In the crypto-metaverse space, Decentraland has hosted virtual music festivals and art shows. For instance, Decentraland’s Fashion Street (where that pricey land was sold) is used to host digital fashion events and sell virtual clothing for avatars. There have been virtual conferences and trade shows in blockchain-based worlds, where people network via avatars. During the pandemic especially, interest in these kinds of meet-ups grew, since people couldn’t always gather in person. Another example is virtual sightseeing or hangout spaces: imagine a beautiful zen garden in a virtual world where you and a friend across the globe can meet up and catch up, feeling a sense of place even if it’s digital. Some platforms focus on social VR, like VRChat or Meta’s Horizon Worlds (not blockchain-based), where the main activity is just hanging out and exploring user-created rooms and games together. The Web3 twist on this is that users can own the environments or items involved. For example, a user could create a cool club space on their parcel of land and charge an entry fee in crypto, or sell NFT tickets to a comedy show in a virtual theater. Communities are forming in these spaces, just like forums or social networks in Web2, but with the added immersive layer and actual user ownership of the space and its content.

These use cases show that Web3 and the Metaverse are not just lofty concepts – they’re enabling new behaviors and markets. Gamers are earning money and keeping their hard-won items. People are investing in virtual property and building attractions. Fashionistas are designing and trading virtual outfits. Friends or fans can gather virtually from anywhere in the world to share experiences. We’re essentially watching the early stages of a digital society take shape, with its own economy and culture. Of course, with opportunity comes risk and challenges – and that’s exactly what we’ll cover in the next module.