Bored Ape hosts ‘First Trip’ into Otherside Metaverse

Yuga hosted 4,500 members of the Yuga community to a private demo of 'Otherside'. The trip was dubbed the 'First Trip'. The demo lasted an hour and was meticulously programmed. 

One Bored Ape, although a very huge one by the name of "Curtis," was all that could be seen directing the thousands of players through the adventure that demonstrated controls and gave them a first feel of the Otherside interface. The users were all decked out as colorful robot avatars.

All 4,300 gamers who participated in Saturday's virtual trip to the "Biogenic Swamp," which is located in the middle of Otherside, were holders of "Otherdeeds," which are titles to virtual properties on the platform. Only Otherdeed owners and chosen third-party developers will be allowed to take part in the game during its initial stage, the developers of Otherside stated in a litepaper that was published immediately after the First Trip.

“We believe in the extraordinary power of community and have seen firsthand how it can be a significant force for good in this industry,” the litepaper carried. “We aim to incentivize, empower, and recognize the expression, creativity, and ingenuity of Otherside’s community of contributors.”

Following the early peek into the Otherside metaverse, the price of ApeCoin increased by more than 22%.

ApeCoin has increased by 30% in the last week and is currently trading at over $6.

Back in May, when more than $157 million worth of Ether was spent on gas fees, the Otherdeed mint momentarily drove Ethereum gas prices higher.

Some claimed to have spent more than $5,800—roughly double the retail price of 305 ApeCoins (APE)—just on gas fees, while others said that their transactions had failed but they had still been charged for gas. The mint was responsible for about 56% of all Ether burnt between April 25 and May 2, according to Decrypt.

Voyager's Journey, a narrative game centered around a "mysterious Obelisk" will be played during "Phase 1," the litepaper states. Through the Otherside Development Kit, the platform's set of creative tools, Otherdeed owners will be able to participate in Phase 1 of the platform's development and help determine its fundamental features.

The litepaper reinforced Otherside's dedication to interoperability, which refers to the freedom with which digital assets can move across the various online gaming environments that may one day make up the avatar-navigated metaverse. Interoperability is essential to the ethos of a future internet that is more accessible and democratized. These proponents have been outspoken against the danger posed by large companies like Meta (previously Facebook), which may try to keep its metaverse offerings tightly delimited in order to maintain control over users' data and statistics.

Similar to Roblox or Meta's fledgling Horizon Worlds, Otherside will be a platform for game makers which allows users to create and sell experiences in the virtual world.

Success for Otherside would mean a great deal to Yuga's investors, who valued it at an unprecedented $4 billion at the seed stage. However, it could also mean a great deal for the fundamental concept of web3 "ownership" at a time when tech's top dogs, led by Meta, are predicting a metaverse revolution.