The metaverse is still in its infancy, but that doesn’t mean that innovative companies like Highrise World aren’t already developing the future of the metaverse by structuring a digital economy utilizing blockchain technology. So what is Highrise World?
Highrise World is the leading mobile-metaverse built on the Avalanche blockchain subnet. You can create rooms and assets, style avatars, host unique experiences, chat with people, make new friends, and even earn a living selling digital goods and experiences.
I had the opportunity to speak with Highrise’s CEO & co-founder, Anton Bernstein, to learn all there is to know about Highrise World. Below you will find an in-depth guide to the wonderful world of Highrise.
What is Highrise World?
In 2020, Pocket World managed to raise more than $7 million to expand Highrise World into one of the greatest metaverse experiences available today. However, considering the platform’s success—already reaching over $30 million in revenue in 2021—there has been no need to touch the money that they initially raised.
Highrise World is a virtual world created by Pocket Worlds that enables you to build your own community. Currently, Highrise is made up of a digital continent that contains parcels that are available to own in the form of LAND. You can use LAND to build your own towers that also host your own rooms and experiences.
We see a future where every brand or community has a Reddit, a Discord, and a Highrise. This Highrise will be their own interactive virtual world with virtual goods and a rich economy, all operating on an Avalanche subnet we’re calling the Highrise Blockchain.
CEO & co-founder of Pocket World, Anton Bernstein
The LAND in Highrise exists on the Ethereum blockchain as NFTs (ERC-721 tokens) and are visible on the map. Each LAND has a pre-determined size and location. As a landowner, you can build your own nations, create unique experiences, rent and giveaway your rooms, and ultimately create the exact community you envision. Highrise is a true metaverse built by its users.
At the center of the Highrise World exists the community called Highrise 101 (named after Taipei 101). 101 serves as a model from which you can build your own nation and community.
What can you do in Highrise World?
Highrise is a world full of endless opportunities. There is no lack of things to do or interactions to be had when exploring this magnificent virtual space. Highrise World enables you to make games, create, buy, and sell NFTs, post to your story, and live a completely virtual life.
Make games
Using the Highrise Gamemaker, you and your community have the ability to create your own experiences in the Highrise metaverse. You can import digital assets, write scripts, and utilize the in-game tools to create unique experiences that can be monetized. From real-time games and competitions to podcasts—your imagination is the only limit.
Create, buy, and sell NFTs
Of course, it wouldn’t be a true metaverse without having the ability to create your own NFTs. To ensure your NFTs function properly, each creation is overlooked by the Highrise platform. Once created, you can take your NFTs to the Highrise Marketplace where you can sell them for real money.
Post to your story
The Highrise metaverse isn’t simply a game, it’s an entire virtual community that enables you to venture into an immersive social experience. You can chat one-on-one and in groups or you can share your thoughts, gain followers, and follow others using the Highrise News Feed. With that, you can foster your own community, comment, make posts, and vote on other users’ content.
Essentially, the Highrise metaverse is the future of social media that offers users a completely new and immersive experience, allowing you to grow your brand and have a more personal connection with your consumers.
Live a virtual life
Ultimately, Highrise World allows you to take social activities to the next level. You can take on the role of avatars and interact with in-game items and other assets that can be resold and traded with other citizens of Highrise World.
Just as you do in real life, you can make new friends, have conversations, build houses, and decorate your space the way you want to. Moreover, you can attend virtual events and forge strong relationships with virtual characters. You could say this is the Oasis, or at least, it’s beginning to feel like it has the potential to be.
How does Highrise LAND work?
LAND is the starting point to creating and accessing your community tower. So, how does LAND work? There are three parcel types that exist on the map:
PARCEL
LAND is individual interactive parcels where a landowner can create their own tower. Each tower is composed of rooms. As the landowner, you get to decide how to distribute rooms to your community. You can either charge people or offer rooms up for free. Moreover, you get to decide what tax to collect on experiences in each room.
ESTATE
ESATEs are larger lots composed of multiple LAND parcels owned by a single person. Estates allow you more customizability, vast experiences, and higher revenue shares with the Highrise platform.
DISTRICT
A DISTRICT is an even larger lot composed of multiple LAND parcels owned by multiple users. Districts can be governed as decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), and come equipped with governance tools that allow owners to make important decisions regarding a DISTRICT.
Owning LAND in the form of ESTATES and DISTRICTS gives you more opportunities to design complex systems for gaming, social, and creative experiences.
What can you do with Highrise LAND?
LAND is how community builders can create their very own versions of Highrise 101 (called towers). These NFTs allow you to build your own community, with its own collection of rooms, items, experiences, and more.
Build and rent rooms, LAND, and ESTATEs
Each LAND comes with its own tower that contains numerous rooms. Both the rooms and LAND can be rented out to others. Additionally, other users can build on your land if you give them permission to do so.
Create and play games
Both landowners and anyone who owns room on your LAND have the ability to create games and experiences. Utilizing the developer tools, you can play, host events, and hang out. Also, you can choose to charge a fee for the experiences you host, and landowners define the fee they will take for such experiences. However, you don’t have to charge a fee if you don’t want to.
Earn an income
As a landowner, you have the ability to use your LAND to earn an income by monetizing your audience in a number of ways including:
- Charge people to visit your LAND
- Charge fees to play games
- Rent your rooms
- Sell your NFTs
- Sell your LAND
Govern your community
A number of landowners can come together to form a DISTRICT. To govern a DISTRICT, DAOs have been implemented to govern the underlying LAND. The DAO is used to manage the communities that emerge in a DISTRICT.
Brand your ESTATE and DISTRICT
If you are an owner of an ESTATE or DISTRICT, then you can brand your community with unique URLs (e.g. yourbrand.highrise.game), a branded page, and even a stand-alone app that opens to your ESTATE and also contains customized branding and design.
How do you buy LAND in Highrise World?
LAND is sold in several phases. The first phase was exclusive to holders of the Highrise Creature Club tokens. Currently, there is a very limited supply of only 160k parcels, so now might be a good time to get your dream location. Upon purchase, your LAND will be minted onto the Ethereum blockchain as an NFT.
Check out the site to view all available LAND.
What do you need to join Highrise World?
To join Highrise, simply download the app or visit the website to create your account. However, to take full advantage of the Highrise metaverse you will need to get yourself a Web3 wallet such as Metamask. This will allow you to buy, sell, and create NFTs.
Is Highrise World VR compatible?
According to the co-founder, Anton Bernstein, Highrise is not yet VR compatible. However, he plans to integrate VR technology in the near future. Until then, you can enjoy Highrise on your mobile device and soon, your desktop computer.
Is Highrise World safe for kids?
You must be at least 13 years old to create a Highrise account. Rooms in Highrise may contain explicit content including songs, chats, and suggestive themes. Everskies—an online pixel doll community owned by Highrise’s parent company Pocket Worlds—is rated 12+ & better suited for teens.
Although there is a lot of good that comes from platforms like Highrise, you should always teach your kids how to be safe online when using social media apps.
The Highrise World Roadmap
As with any successful company, Highrise World wasn’t built overnight. The team has been hard at work for years developing what’s known as the greatest mobile-metaverse experience to date. Below is Highrise World’s complete roadmap.
2013
- Pocket Worlds is founded by Anton Bernstein and Jimmy Xu
2014
- Highrise 1.0 launches on iOS with 500k installs in the first year
2015
- Highrise surpasses 1M installs and $5M in revenue
2017
- Highrise surpasses 2M installs and launches user-generated content
- Highrise releases game engine 2.0
- Highrise reaches 10,000 items on the platform
- Pocket Worlds raises $3M from YCombinator, Bessemer Venture Partners, Maveron Capital, Canaan Fund, GFR Fund, BoxGroup, and Sweet Capital
2019
- Highrise released on Android with game engine 3.0
2020
- Highrise surpasses 5M installs
- Pocket Worlds raises $7M from Bitkraft and Everblu
2021 (H1)
- Highrise surpasses 12M installs
- Everskies surpasses 2M users
- Everskies launches on January 23
- Total of almost 200,000 tradable & UGC items in the Pocket Worlds metaverse
2021 (H2)
- Highrise launches the Highrise Creature Club NFT collection
- Highrise achieves $30M in revenue
2022 (Q1)
- Pocket Worlds hits 80 employees
- Everskies launches mobile app
- Highrise breaks into mainstream fashion with a feature in Hunger magazine, bridging the virtual and physical worlds
2022 (Q2)
- Highrise launches an in-game crypto wallet
- Highrise launches first land sale (Creature Island)
- Highrise launches a marketplace for buying/selling NFTs
- Highrise included in the official schedule of London Fashion Week
2022 (Q3)
- Pocket Worlds launches a token
- Highrise releases game engine 4.0 (with 3D support)
- Highrise releases World Builder v1
- Highrise launches several LAND pre-sales
- Highrise partners with high-profile fashion designers to launch their visions into the virtual world
- Brand collabs with LAND and NFT Launchpad
- Continued development of World Builder & Engine
- Continued LAND pre-sales
2022 (Q4)
- Launch of LAND-owned Highrises
- LAND public sales
- Launch of the DAO with the ability to stake and provide liquidity to earn yields
2023
- Cross-platform game engine launched on multiple platforms
- World Builder V2+ continues to evolve
- Launch of Highrise asset store for designers and builders
- Event: regular events in Highrise worlds
What started out as a seemingly simple mobile app has grown to be the greatest mobile-metaverse social platform. With the ability to create your own rooms and assets, style avatars, host unique experiences, chat with others, make new friends, and earn a living, Highrise World is at the forefront of metaverse technology.
To learn more about Highrise World, make sure to check out the official Discord and give them a follow on social media.