What Is Decentraland (MANA)?
Users of the Ethereum-based platform known as Decentraland (MANA) may not only build their virtual worlds but also earn money from the experiences they share with others.
It’s a digital environment where land may be bought and then explored to make a profit or construct something new. It debuted in 2017 with an ICO that raised $24 million. The platform’s beta version debuted in 2019, and the full release followed in 2020. The accessible LAND has been used to host a diverse array of activities throughout time. These might be anything from games to simulations to expansive 3D environments. The network uses the LAND and MANA tokens. A MANA token, an ERC-20 token, must be burned to purchase a LAND token, an ERC-721 token. Avatars, names, and accessories in the Decentraland (MANA) marketplace may all be purchased using MANA currency.
What Sets Decentraland (MANA) Apart?
- Businesses, artists, and people in search of fresh markets and creative inspiration will find a home at Decentraland MANA.
- Decentraland is a growing project that is run by a DAO.
- The citizens of Decentraland are the holders of MANA coins, and they run the show.
What Is Sandbox (SAND)?
In 2011, Pixowl introduced a blockchain-based virtual environment called The Sandbox (SAND), where players may produce, trade, and sell digital goods in the context of a game. It has built a strong online gaming community by combining the benefits of decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) with NFTs. Sandbox cryptocurrencies are designed to normalize the use of the blockchain for gaming. Users may make money while having fun thanks to the platform’s innovative “play to earn” methodology. The SAND coin (SAND) is the platform’s utility token, used for making purchases on the network.
Arthur Madrid is a major driver behind the Sandbox platform and is the CEO and co-founder of Pixowl. Sebastien Borget, the company’s other co-founder and current chief operating officer (COO), has been at the helm of the Sandbox initiative. These two men have been working together on various projects since they co-founded Pixowl in 2011.
Unique Characteristics Of SAND
- Users may produce, trade, and sell digital assets in the virtual world powered by the blockchain.
- Blockchain technology is first introduced to the gaming sector.
- Putting an emphasis on user-generated material and building a Metaverse of active participants who contribute to its growth.
- An increasing number of NFT thefts has prompted the Sandbox development team to form a partnership with a security business named BrandShield. This demonstrates their dedication to assisting victims of theft and making reasonable efforts to protect their property.
What’s the Difference Between Decentraland (MANA) and a Sandbox (SAND)?
Purpose
Decentraland is an online community where people may interact virtually in an effort to simulate everyday life in the real world. Sandbox, on the other hand, seeks to foster the growth of a game environment that is entirely the product of its users. However, as both initiatives develop and mature, their respective goals are likely to converge.
Decentralization
Decentraland has a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) running the show, but Sandbox still maintains a centralized authority. Sandbox, though, plans to make the switch to decentralized government in 2022.
Acquiring Land and Land Supply
The number of available land parcels in Decentraland is 90,601, whereas in Sandbox it is 166,464. In addition, in Sandbox, you may buy virtual land on both the Sandbox marketplace and OpenSea (the biggest NFT marketplace), but in Decentraland, you must purchase virtual property from the Decentraland marketplace.
Age
Decentraland, which has been live since 2017, is the longest-running Metaverse project. In comparison, Sandbox was just introduced to the public in 2021 and is currently in the Alpha stage.
Collaborations
Collaboration with established initiatives is a wonderful approach for new cryptocurrency projects to get traction and build their own user bases. That’s why Decentraland has the backing of Polygon, Cyberpunk, and Atari. On the other hand, Sandbox has worked with several industry giants, including CryptoKitties, Snoop Dogg, The Walking Dead, OpenSea, and many more.
Compatible Wallets
When comparing the two metaverse systems, wallet compatibility is the next most important consideration. In this respect, Decentraland outshines Sandbox. Since ERC-20 wallets work on both platforms, you may be wondering how this is possible. Despite this, Decentraland has now introduced a new feature that opens the platform to users of Polygon.
Scalability
Since both Sandbox and Decentraland run on the Ethereum blockchain, scalability is a concern. Both networks have limited scalability, but Ethereum in particular is unreliable and has outrageously high gas prices. This might slow down the widespread adoption of both platforms.
Innovation
How quickly these projects are progressing is another point of inquiry. Both Decentraland and Sandbox have been rapidly developing and adding new capabilities to the platform in this area.
Accessibility of the Platform
Accessibility is another factor that may be used to contrast the two projects. Sandbox is preferred by most users since it simplifies platform access and interaction. Connecting using your Metamask wallet, email, or social media account, for instance, grants you access to The Sandbox. However, entering Decentraland requires linking a cryptocurrency wallet.
Price Prediction Of Decentraland (MANA)
After forming a descending triangle, the price of MANA has finally broken out and held above the triangle’s key support trendline. The cryptocurrency’s near future seems promising as a result. Even if everything goes well, it might take MANA 4-5 months to break out of the strong resistance zone around $1.8, where it is now trading. A breakthrough above that level, which corresponds with the 200-day moving average, would turn the long-term trend positive and allow for additional gains above that point.
If the MANA price continues to rise, the Relative Strength Index for the chart would confirm this by sitting at a robust 53. If this doesn’t occur, investors may start taking profits before the next upward movement. If this trend continues, MANA might reach a sustainable price of $3.5 within the next year. You can use an auto trading bot such as 1k Daily Profit to keep track of the price fluctuations of MANA. It brings fresh future updates and news about the market and notifies its users about existing and future price fluctuations.
Price Prediction Of The Sandbox (SAND)
Among the two tokens, SAND is clearly the weaker one. A longer-term look at the SAND price daily chart reveals that, despite the token’s minor increase in value, it is confined to a band of $0.9-$1.4. This range has been maintained for almost two and a half months, making an exit unlikely.
The next level of resistance for the SAND cryptocurrency would be between $3 and $4 if it were to successfully break out of the current accumulation zone during the next month or two.
What Are the Pros And Cons of Decentraland?
Pros
- It has proven successful and has been ongoing for a while
- The pioneer in its field, with 300,000 regular customers.
- Decentralized entirely and operated by a DAO
- The biggest and most well-known crypto venture in the Metaverse.
Cons
- No clear plan for the future.
- Competes with a slew of other initiatives, both in the crypto and conventional tech spheres, for market share in the Metaverse. Examples include Sandbox and Meta (previously Facebook).
- Since Ethereum is used to power Decentraland, gas costs are high.
- Not enough interesting or fun stuff to read.
What are the Good and Bad Things About Sandbox?
Advantages
- Powered by a solid leadership group and well-defined strategy
- is the Metaverse’s largest and most well-known cryptocurrency gaming project.
- with 165+ brand names on board, including significant financial institutions like Softbank
- Taking advantage of the gaming industry’s growth and prosperity
Disadvantages
- Still not decentralized
- Still in the immature Alpha stage, lacking in maturity
- Faces stiff competition from both conventional gaming platforms like Roblox and cryptocurrency-based ones like Decentraland.
- High costs due to Sandbox’s reliance on the Ethereum network for its functionality.
Also Read, Introduction to Blockchain Application Development
The Verdict?
What’s the best option? Everything is subject to the individual investor’s choices. It is evident that both have benefits and drawbacks. As a result, it’s difficult to predict a victor in this struggle for control of the metaverse. Your final decision on who to root for is entirely up to you. The Sandbox is an option for users who want to generate their own content and take charge of their digital world. Decentraland may be a better fit for you if you like a more organized setting or are seeking growth chances.