TOKENS 
August 6, 2024 
27 min. 
There’s been an increased interest in cryptocurrency in the last decade or so. It’s after people started to see the potential these digital assets have. There were only a few people who believed in these currencies and invested in them and are now richer than ever. However there were also a few who thought it was just a scam.
You might have heard of the story where a person in 2010 bought a box of pizza for 10,000 Bitcoin tokens. He might be regretting his decision every day of his life now.
Now the problem with the traditional gaming industry was that they allowed gaming enthusiasts to own in-game content and participate in the gaming world. However they weren’t incentivized for it. Then came Decentraland which enabled the players to own the digital currency and earn money through blockchain technology.
According to sources, the monthly active users of Decentraland were 300,000 in 2023. This shows the growing interest of people towards such VR projects which provide a sense that you’re actually inside the digital world.
With that said, let’s see what the Decentraland and MANA token is all about.
What is Decentraland?
Decentraland is a virtual world hosted on the Ethereum Blockchain. It is a shared and co-created platform developed by a decentralized network of peers. What this platform has done is it has boosted the gaming industry by providing players with plenty of opportunities to earn while playing.
Inside the Decentraland Metaverse the players can purchase a digital space called LAND. This space can then be used for various developmental purposes. The landowners can create anything they want with their imagination and the tools given by the platform.
How Decentraland Works?
Decentraland is like a virtual world where you can explore, create and interact with other people. It’s a digital version of the real world.
Now the way it works is that Decentraland is a huge digital world made up of lots of smaller pieces known as Parcels. Each of these parcels is a piece of virtual real estate which you can buy, sell or build on. You can build anything you want on these lands.
For instance if you want to set up a gaming area you can go to that. There’s no restriction on your imagination and that’s what makes Decentraland incredible. Now to make all this happen the users need to take the utility token of the ecosystem which is the MANA token.
You can interact with Decentraland through the web browser. You can literally walk around, talk to other people and participate in events and activities. Everything you do in Decentraland is powered by the blockchain. This is done to ensure that your transactions and ownership are safe.
For those interested in exploring more about other blockchain technologies and tokens, check out our comprehensive guides on:
- Exploring Solana: A Complete Guide to the High-Performance Blockchain
- Earn Crypto Browsing with Basic Attention Token (BAT)
- Stellar Coin: Connecting Economies with Ease
- Chainlink: Decentralized Oracle Network Explained
- NEAR Protocol: Scalability Through Sharding
Tokens in Decentraland Ecosystem
The Decentraland ecosystem works on two different utility tokens. Let’s look at both of them ahead:
LAND Token
The very first token in the Decentraland ecosystem is the LAND token. It’s a crucial part of the virtual ecosystem created by Decnetraland. Now to make things more interesting, these LAND tokens are like NFTs. And as you might know NFTs are usually in a limited supply and each one is unique to the other.
The uniqueness of LAND tokens is due to its features that include size and location. The size of each parcel is set at 256 square meters to ensure a fair distribution of virtual lands. Only 90,601 LAND NFTs are available for purchase to increase their value significantly.
Now by owning a LAND NFT, the buyer opens up new opportunities to earn income. For instance you bought a parcel in Decentraland’s Metaverse. Now you work up some magic and build a gaming arena where people can compete and win rewards after paying an entrance fee. This will attract a lot of users and you’ll make real money through the tickets that you will sell for your gaming arena.
MANA Token
The other token on the ecosystem which is actually the cryptocurrency attached to Decnetraland. It’s the MANA token which you already know is an ERC-20 token. When the project was launched, 2.1 billion MANA tokens were created. However according to CoinMarketCap, only 1.9 billion MANA tokens are in circulating supply.
Now why is the MANA token so important? It’s because it facilitates all the transactions on the Decentraland ecosystem. Even to buy a LAND token, you need to have MANA tokens in your possession. Also if you want to buy any avatars or in-game items, you’ll need MANA tokens for it.
The holders of MANA crypto are also benefited as they get the right to vote on important matters like upgrades and any necessary changes. Also, if you’re interested in earning passive income with MANA you can stake your MANA tokens and you’ll be given a fixed percentage as a profit in the next months or the time you’ve chosen for it to be fixed.
The Role of MANA Coin in Decentraland
MANA is the native token of Decentraland and it is used exclusively in the Metaverse. It is used as a payment source for all the activities occurring in the Decentraland. One must have MANA in the cryptocurrency wallet to participate in Decentraland’s activities.
Digital players can also acquire MANA in-game through various exchanges. Some of these exchanges include Kyber Network exchange or centralized exchanges like FTX. It allows the Decentaland’s players to create and earn while also facilitating transactions of NFT items on the Ethereum blockchain.
Decentraland’s Architectural Layout
Decentraland’s virtual reality platform is built on three main layers. We’ll discuss these layers individually ahead. However, apart from these layers the platform also has a payment channel and an identity system which makes the platform safe and authentic.
Consensus Layer
So the first layer is the Consensus layer. This layer keeps a record of the people or addresses that own a piece of Land in the Metaverse. It uses the Ethereum smart contract and saves everything on a distributed ledger. This way each land is securely recorded and protected.
Land/Content Distribution Layer
After that there’s the Land or Content creation layer. You can also refer to it as a storage system. All the files like audio files, textures and all other details are stored in this layer. This layer also includes a scripting system that manages how land parcels are placed and how they operate.
Real-time Layer
In the end there’s the Real-time layer. This is where all the live interactions happen. This layer is responsible for peer-to-peer (P2P) transactions and interactions between users. This way landowners can host servers which anyone can join without needing any special permission.
The History of Decentraland
If you’re new to cryptocurrency you might not know that Decentraland is the first ever project to introduce a 3D virtual reality world in the cryptocurrency space. It has been a revolutionary idea which has now been copied by many new projects like the APE token. Let’s break down the years in parts.
Early Development
The concept of creating a 3D world came from Ari Meilich and Esteban Ordano in 2015. Initially the idea was very simple. It was based on a simple grid where users can buy or sell virtual real estate through a ledger backed by Blockchain technology.
After a couple of years in 2017 the first ICO of Decentraland was conducted in which the project accumulated $26 million. This fund was then used to make the platform much more efficient and add a few more attractive features for the users.
The First Land Auction
After the ICO their team was motivated to build the infrastructure and tools needed to handle the Parcels efficiently. After much effort they launched their first city by the name “Genesis City”. This virtual city has 90,601 parcels of LAND which were originally sold at $20 a piece.
Now that the City was built and a demand was created, Decentraland held their first auction. Due to high demand the prices went up considering as people bid on their favorite pieces of LAND. The users were required to use MANA tokens only which also increased the token’s value. This whole event was known as the Terraform Event. All this happened in the year 2017.
Development of Decentralized Platform
Now in 2018, the team decided to make it a decentralized platform. For that they created the Decentralized Software Development Kit (SDK). This kit allows developers to create anything they can imagine on the LAND that they own and rent it out to earn passive income.
Then in 2019 the team released their first Marketplace where anyone can buy or sell LAND, wearables or any other virtual asset that someone would be willing to buy. This marketplace helped the economy of Decentraland a lot.
Official Public Launch
Now all this time the project was in Beta stage. So in February 2020 they officially opened the virtual world for the public after which the prices of LAND NFTs skyrocketed. Now all their team does is improve the overall efficiency of the system and add new elements to the virtual world so the demand for LAND doesn’t fade away.
Features of Decentraland Ecosystem
Decentraland offers various features for both participants and creators. Because of these features this virtual world is still in demand. Stay tuned as you’re about to find why Decentraland is so popular.
Virtual Real Estate
This is something we have been talking about from the beginning. On the Decentraland’s Metaverse anyone can buy a piece of LAND which is represented by an NFT which is like a certificate of ownership.
After the purchase, the user, which could be you as well in the future, can create anything they want with their creativity and use it to earn income. You can create art galleries, offices, and concerts. There’s no limit to what one can imagine.
Content Creation Tools
Decentraland don’t just ask the developers to come and create anything they want. They also provided them with SDK and drag-and-drop builder tools so that they can create anything they want and with ease. The users can add multiple elements on their LAND like games and events. This increases the engagement and value of their parcel.
Marketplace
Now the place where all the buying and selling occurs is the Decentraland’s Marketplace. From here you can even buy wearables or any other digital asset which would be useful in your virtual space. It’s the main hub through which MANA crypto generates most of its revenue. Users can also buy clothing and accessories for their Avatars from this marketplace.
Avatars
To interact in the Decentraland’s Metaverse you need an Avatar. You can customize this avatar however you like. For instance you can buy clothes and accessories that match your style and make your Avatar wear it so it could actually be your reflection in the virtual world.
Virtual Events and Interactions
There are thousands of virtual spaces and most of them are already sold out. This means that users have already built something on their spaces so they create events that people can join and lighten their mood.
These events include art exhibitions, music festivals, conferences and even general social gathering. Decentraland makes it easier for people to communicate via chat, video and emotes. You as a user can also create or join different communities like clubs, groups and forums.
Benefits of Decentraland
There are multiple benefits to being part of the Decentraland’s community. These include:
True Ownership
The individuals who buy LAND NFTs have complete and true ownership which is embedded on the Blockchain ledger. This means that they can rent it out or create events to earn from. The point being that they can do whatever they want with their parcel and nobody would question why.
Creative Freedom
The best thing about this whole virtual world is that you have the creative freedom to build anything that comes to your mind. The virtual world is like a 3D model which you can customize in a way you want.
As a user the platform provides you with certain tools that help you create a dream world. If you’ve got the resources, you should definitely buy a Land and start building.
Economic Opportunities
With LAND there are endless opportunities of making money. You can monetize your creations and earn MANA tokens as money which you can then exchange for fiat and use in the real world. The various ways by which one can earn including business deals, events and selling digital goods.
Interoperability
Decentraland has the ability to integrate with any other blockchain project which increases its functionality. This Metaverse can also be connected to other Metaverse projects. By doing so users can even interact with people having real estates in other virtual worlds.
Drawbacks of Decentraland
The drawbacks always follow the benefits. However they can be handled with proper instructions and care. So the things that make Decentraland not worthy are:
Technical Barriers
Understanding how to use Decentraland can be difficult for people who are new to the cryptocurrency space. Also, users need a decent computer with good graphics to load and use the Decentraland’s Metaverse. These are the technical barriers because of which this project hasn’t had much success as it should have.
High Costs
As you already know that there’s only a limited supply of LAND. Because of this the price of each parcel goes really high and out of the reach of a normal trader. Plus the project is based on Ethereum which means you’ll have to pay a high fee for transactions.
Content Moderation
Decentraland provides freedom to build anything which is a plus point. However it also means that users can make anything, even something that’s offensive to people. It’s really challenging to moderate the content on the Metaverse without a centralized authority. This means you might encounter something that’s inappropriate.
How to Join Decentraland
To join Decentraland go to their Website and click on “Jump In”. You can also download their app on your PC if you want the best performance. For now let’s discuss the web version. Now you can either explore the Metaverse as a Guest or can log in via Google or Metamask.
Let’s just explore it as a guest for now. After entering your name and agreeing to their terms and conditions the web interface will take you into the Metaverse as you can also see below. As a guest you’ll only be able to interact with non-monetized events but you could roam around and complete some tasks to have a different experience.
If you’re enjoying it too much, you can add your Crypto wallet and start participating in monetized events and even buy a LAND for yourself to build something crazy.
Decentraland’s Virtual Landmarks
There are so many exciting places that you can visit inside the Decentraland MANA crypto Metaverse. Let’s take a look at a few of them.
- Genesis Plaza: It’s the heart of Decentraland from where the journey of new users begins.
- Crypto Valley: This is the hotspot for tech enthusiasts and innovators.
- Virtual Casinos: For a bit of fun and excitement you can also check out virtual casinos.
- Shopping Districts: If you’re in the mood for some shopping, you can visit the shopping district.
- Adventure Games: If you’re into gaming, this is the best place for you. You can complete quests and solve puzzles here.
Decentraland vs The Sandbox
So here’s the difference between Decentraland and its competitor The Sandbox.
| Feature | Decentraland | The Sandbox |
| Platform Type | Virtual Reality Platform | Virtual Gaming World |
| Token | MANA (ERC-20) | SAND (ERC-20) |
| Land Parcels | 90,601 parcels, each 256 square meters | 166,464 parcels, each with varying sizes |
| Creation Tools | SDK and Builder tool for creating interactive content | Game Maker for building games; VoxEdit for creating assets |
| Focus | Social experiences, virtual real estate, and content creation | Game creation, user-generated content, and virtual real estate |
| Economy | Users can monetize land by creating and selling experiences, services, and digital goods | Users can monetize by creating games, assets, and selling experiences |
| Launch Date | Public launch in February 2020 | Alpha launch in November 2021 |
| Events | Hosts virtual events, art exhibitions, music festivals, and conferences | Hosts gaming events, contests, and virtual exhibitions |
Summing Up
If we look at how the world is evolving around the digital world and virtual experiences then Decentraland’s future looks promising. As more users, developers and brands join this platform there will be more diverse and immersive experiences.
If you’re someone who enjoys creating and would like to earn from it, Decentraland is the best option out there. All you need is a PC, a little investment and your creativity to start earning passive income on this platform.
FAQs
What tools are available for building in Decentraland?
Decentraland offers an SDK and a Builder tool. The SDK is for advanced creation, while the Builder is a drag-and-drop tool for easier use. By using these tools you can create an interactive virtual experience for other users and even earn from it.
Can I make money in Decentraland?
Yes, that’s literally the whole point of this ecosystem. You can monetize by selling digital goods, creating paid experiences or renting out LAND. There are various opportunities for earning MANA that you can explore. If you’re creative, you can definitely earn a lot from this platform.
How do I start exploring Decentraland?
Visit Decentraland’s website, create an account, and set up an Ethereum wallet. With MANA, you can buy land or items and start exploring. The platform is accessible through a web browser or you can also download their interface if you’ve got a dedicated graphics card.
Can I rent out my LAND in Decentraland?
Yes, you can rent out your LAND to other users. This allows them to use your virtual space for their projects or events. This provides you with a way to have a passive income stream while keeping ownership of the LAND.
Can I create and sell my own NFTs in Decentraland?
Absolutely! If you’re capable of creating your own NFTs like digital art, wearables or other virtual items, you can sell them on the Decentraland’s Marketplace. This way the creators can monetize their digital creations.
