The Nemesis: an Italian metaverse is being born

The Nemesis

Five years ago, before the global pandemic, before the very word "metaverse" invaded our vocabulary, before some companies decided to invest millions of dollars in the purchase of plots of virtual land, in Italy the idea of create an interactive and shared world, a dimension that the creators had framed as "the future" of communication.

This was the genesis of The Nemesis, a project officially born in 2019 with the aim of changing the rules of sociability contemporary, planting the foundations on which, in the future, gamers and digital users could gather, communicate with each other, take part in events, virtual challenges, perhaps build a refuge on the other side of the screen, on one of the planets that act as background to the digital solar system.

The inspiration drawn from the novel Player One by Ernest Cline, from which the Ready Player One by Steven Spielber was later adapted g, it is quite evident. Obviously, the technology necessary to realize the full vision of the creators of the metaverses is far, indeed, very far away, since the integration process of virtual reality intended for entertainment is on the high seas and proceeds against the wind. The sidereal technological distance, however, did not prevent some early birds from planting the first seed of a hypothetical future beyond the screen.

The Nemesis, created in Unity, can be used via browser also as a guest and via app -mobile. However, the features reserved for guests are limited. This is precisely the purpose of The Nemesis, the metaverse founded by Alessandro De Grandi and Riccardo Zanini. "A common ground destined to host shared experiences in order to revolutionize the world of gaming, social media and entertainment through the blockchain". These are the words that sit at the bottom of the "blank sheet" of the initiative.

Words that could trigger more than one alarm bell in the gamer community, because when we talk about blockchain, NFT and cryptocurrencies, associating them with the medium risks squeezing lemon over a still open wound. In fact, many giants in the sector have issued great proclamations regarding the implementation of the aforementioned technologies in the future production of the industry, only to then - in most cases - make clear reverses after having received cascades of complaints.

So much therefore, it is worth talking immediately about the elephant in the room: yes, the metaverse The Nemesis relies on the Ethereum blockchain, offers full support to NFTs (which also constitute, but not only, the "lands" present in the metaverse) and provides a lot of a stable currency (Coins), as much as a cryptocurrency (NEMS) that can be used inside and outside the virtual ecosystem.

As Riccardo Zanini (Founder) and Deborah Martino (NFT Ambassador) explained to us, However, The Nemesis was not built with the blockchain in mind: this came later, when its characteristics proved to be almost indispensable for the construction of an effective "metaverse". A word that was not initially even foreseen by the project, aimed instead at identifying a hypothetical formula of "web 3.0" consisting of the mixing of the social structure with the architecture of gamification.

The idea is to concatenate different metaverses with a maximum size of 1500 square meters in which to compose your own virtual world. "We have a large part of the community that is crypto-passionate", Deborah Martino explained to us, "but the idea behind The Nemesis, and the thing that differentiates us from the rest of the competitors, is to have made it immediately usable, accessible to anyone from browser and smartphone, playable without requirements ". "If other great metaverses", added Riccardo Zanini, "have bet everything on that showcase and are now trying to decline it in such a way as to make it persistent and interesting, we are focusing on creating a functional and captivating experience to which it then goes to add everything else ".

In fact, the early access version of The Nemesis is already present on the app-stores, it is possible to access the first metaverses (ie the" Land "corresponding to NFT on which a 3D Set aimed at giving it a precise identity) directly from the browser of any PC, and there is no need to log-in to take the first steps in the virtual structures created through Unity in the pursuit of an "interactive product placement ".

The focus of the operation is indeed quite clear from the first access to the application of The Nemesis, and it is a focus of which Riccardo Zanini makes no secret: to create a persistent universe supported by a a series of digital worlds in which players can dedicate themselves to tackling challenges or mini-games, participate in "live" events or simply share their free time.

In short, create a platform that, ideally, could adapt to the needs of any brand to put the ambitions of the shared environment and the inclination to gamification at the service of new communication strategies, as opposed to the classic "static" of traditional social networks. You enter, play, earn rewards (often Coins with a flat value), visit metaverses, perhaps buy digital items, or get prizes in the real world.

Owners own Land plots on to place 3D assets and then customize the experience and open it to visitors, or keep it private. The definitive vision of the founders, however, is still a long way off, and it will take time and support to turn it into a concrete reality. If in the current iteration of The Nemesis, starting from a hub, it is possible to reach different metaverses composed of assets handcrafted by internal developers - as are the challenges present within them - the most important goal to achieve is to completely hand over the reins of architecture in the hands of users.

When the various editors dedicated to 3D structures, gameplay and templates will be released, it will be the owners and inhabitants of the various metaverses who will give life to one's own imaginary of the virtual world, creating games, challenges, villages, shops and any other element that can contribute to increasing the scale of the experience. This, of course, would also open the gates on an internal market aimed at buying and selling these resources in exchange for Coins, which could then be exchanged for NEMS and subsequently sold via wallets like any cryptocurrency.

The "final form" "of The Nemesis, if we want to call it that, is a system composed of different planets on which the Owners, after purchasing Land plots, can stage original and customized metaverses, be they art galleries, digital locations of existing businesses, live events, community hangouts and anything else you can imagine to bring the pixels to life and breath. "In the end we are only at the beginning, I would say 1% of the idea in the mind of CTO Alessandro De Grandi", declared Deborah Martino.

The first session is expected to start in the first quarter of 2022 of sale of Land in the confines of The Nemesis, a very important step that will represent the opening of the metaverses to possible investors and above all to the public, who will present themselves not as a participant in an event or as a simple visitor, but as an active part in the " first planetary colonization.

On Valentine's Day a concert by Valerio Mazzei was held on the virtual stages of The Nemesis. If you don't know this tiktoker you are probably boomers just like us. "In 2019 we obviously didn't have a precise picture of what the platform would become, but the vision was to create a metaverse that everyone could use, without any kind of barrier to entry: just have a smartphone or an internet connection. Obviously the potential arrival point is far away, just think about what it will be possible to achieve when even internet connections reach above-average standards for the majority of users ".

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"We must consider", concluded Riccardo Zanini, "that the current idea we have of metaverses comes from the hype that has enveloped projects such as Decentraland or The Sandbox, so it is difficult for the public to imagine something different. For us, instead, it is important to propose a virtual experience that has a purpose, and not just a showcase useful to say: here, now we too have the metaverse. Paradoxically, not having had so many funds helped us, because it gave us the opportunity to study a growth path of experience instead of focusing on the wow effect ".

The truth is that even the founders of the major metaverses are navigating on sight, unaware of the direction that this kind of platform is destined to take: beyond the ocean could discover America or come across new waves made of NFT. According to Deborah Martino, in fact, "the 'real' fields of application of NFTs, on a global level, have not yet been really identified". Without a crystal ball it is impossible to hypothesize what the Nemesis of tomorrow will become, but it is undoubtedly interesting that among the pioneers of the new market there is also a company founded by Italians.

The one between hard and pure videogames, metaverses , blockchain and NFT seems like a marriage that has not yet been done, since products like Fortnite and Roblox represent the most widespread incarnations of the original vision behind the shared digital universe, remaining more than firmly anchored to a vertical interpretation of the medium. Perhaps a vision that is more linked to the concept of "social gamification" than to that of gaming represents precisely the future that this dimension needs.