Emirati studio Roar has announced that it is expanding its interior and architecture design business to the metaverse, and that it has purchased land for its new showroom within the space.
Roar purchased two plots of digital land in Decentraland and it intends to turn these lands into Roar Meta Space – a studio that’ll design and develop properties for the virtual environment.
Founder and creative director Pallavi Dean commented, “The metaverse is clearly a lasting commercial phenomenon, not a passing fad, so we want – and need – to be there. By launching Roar Meta Space, we’re creating a one-stop shop to design and develop property in the virtual realm. We’re already in advanced discussions with several clients about really exciting projects.”
Situated in close vicinity to the desirable fashion district, Roar aims to develop the plots into a multi-functional space, which will include a selling art gallery, a furniture showroom and store as well as a creative and business event space and an experimental hotel of the future.
Dean added, “The metaverse has been in the making for decades: I’m 40, and I grew up playing computer games like Sim City; my kids have been building in Minecraft and Fortnite for years – we just never used the word ‘metaverse’ before.”
She also encouraged designers and architects to view the metaverse as a fine extension of their current practice, rather than a disruption.
“This is not unchartered territory for us. Designing with AR and VR is second nature, it’s how we work, they’re the tools of our trade. Traditionally we would hand the designs to engineers and builders to create a physical space – the metaverse simply cuts out that part of the process”.
Roar bought its plots in Decentraland for 18,600 Mana (the platform’s cryptocurrency token) or approximately US$36,000 (£27,000). The studio says the land is situated in a desirable area close to the fashion district.
Vancouver-based TerraZero also plans to use metaverse mortgage loans to collateralise every transaction with the underlying NFTs as digital assets.
Decentraland recorded its largest metaverse land acquisition after Metaverse Group purchased a plot of digital land for $2.43 million. The land comprises of 116 parcels, making it a total of 6,090 square feet of land.
Roar has joined the list of architects and designers to join the metaverse. Enthusiasts believe will form an increasingly relevant part of our work and personal lives.
Isa Muhammad is a writer and video game journalist covering many aspects of entertainment media including the film industry. He's steadily writing his way to the sharp end of journalism and enjoys staying informed. If he's not reading, playing video games or catching up on his favourite TV series, then he's probably writing about them.
