Pets are such an integral part of the human experience. The connection between human and animal predates history and we simply couldn’t live without them. They’re there with us through all of life’s ups and downs and their simple affection and mere presence provide more comfort than we could possibly express.
It only stands to reason then, that just as person to person connections have become increasingly digital and virtual in the age of the internet, that connections with our pets should follow suit. Of course digital pet ownership isn’t a new concept. In the 80’s we carried around little digital pets on our keychains and we were responsible for their virtual health and happiness. Digital pet ownership has also been a significant part of particular video games and online experiences.
One of the shiniest new toys in the virtual world today is the new MetaVerse, in which Mark Zuckerberg assures us we can do just about anything imaginable, and this naturally involves pet ownership, along with many more pet related activities.
As we delve into our virtual lives, alleviating the stresses and heartaches of real life is certainly one of the main goals. With the various pet platforms available in the MetaVerse, we will be able to do just that. For those who have lost a beloved pet, they can now create a reasonable facsimile in the virtual world and they’ll be able to care for and interact with this virtual lookalike, which may soften the blow of losing a real pet.
For others who always wanted to own a pet could couldn’t because of allergies or other reasons, the MetaVerse virtual pet option allows them to experience pet ownership without any of the real life complications. These virtual pets are avatars that are created through holographic and 3D technologies, and chipped pets can even be monitored remotely.
There are currently four main pet platforms for MetaVerse. MetaPets allows users to create and design their own pets. They are responsible for their care and well being, just as with real pets. They can train and dress their pets, have them participate in dog shows, and even generate revenue from their virtual pets.
The MetaGochi platform harkens back to the pre-internet Tamagochi pet days and is branded as the biggest MetaVerse pet platform. Users can train their pets to compete in Gochi Games, earn NFTs for in-game use, and even breed Metagochis.
Axie Infinity is another Metaverse pet platform in which users can breed virtual pets for game advancement and earn revenue such as Bitcoin. This platform is extremely popular in the Philippines as daily usership rose to over .5 million in 2021 with 60% being located in the Philippines. In July of 2021, they collected over $30 million in fees.
