It’s no secret that Paris Hilton loves the metaverse.
Now, she wants fans to find love in it, too, via her dating experience in “Parisland,” launched inside The Sandbox game.
Beginning February 13, players entering Parisland will be able to virtually meet five other players, complete quests, and ultimately choose a partner.
According to a statement, the gamified experience is being billed as an “imaginary reality show” in the metaverse. Besides hitting on random strangers online, activities in Parisland include shopping for outfits, selecting wedding rings, investigating a secret inside a burger (yes, really), and “rescuing a castaway.”
In a statement, Sandbox COO and Co-Founder Sebastien Borget said that Parisland’s landscape was designed to foster genuine relationships and connections between players.
Parisland was developed in conjunction with Hilton’s 11:11 Media. The firm’s Web3 and metaverse strategy lead Cynthia Miller hopes users will be able to make real romantic connections during the experience, saying in a statement that the mission of Parisland is “to help people find love.”
The Sandbox is built on Polygon and has seen many celebrities—like rapper Snoop Dogg and electronic musician deadmau5—buy up pricy virtual land in its metaverse. It’s also worth noting that while a virtual “sandbox” might sound like something for kids, The Sandbox’s Terms of Use restrict its platform to adults over the age of 18.
The platform operates using its native ERC-20 token SAND, which is down 85% in the past year but has rebounded 42% in the past month, according to CoinGecko price data.
Web3 dating in Parisland might be an appealing alternative to swiping on Tinder for some, but it’s not without its risks. A barrage of reports from the New York Times, CNN, and the MIT Technology Review warn of the already-widespread harassment that occurs and can occur in metaverses (for example, the Center for Countering Digital Hate estimates a “violating incident” occurs in VR Chat once every seven minutes).
Representatives for The Sandbox, whose parent company is Animoca Brands, have not yet responded to Decrypt’s request for comment on how it handles such issues.
Prior to Parisland, Hilton collaborated with Roblox to create Paris World, a virtual space decked out for Hilton’s Halloween event she called “Cryptoween” and allowed users to try out virtual makeup looks provided by L’Oréal’s Urban Decay brand. Hilton also released a Cryptoween experience in The Sandbox.
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