Entropia Universe

Entropia Universe
Former logo
Developer(s)MindArk
Publisher(s)MindArk
Designer(s)Multiple
EngineCryEngine 2
Platform(s)Microsoft Windows
ReleaseJanuary 30, 2003
Genre(s)Massively multiplayer online role-playing game, first-person shooter
Mode(s)Online multiplayer

Entropia Universe is a massively multiplayer online (MMORPG) virtual universe designed by the Swedish software company MindArk, based in Gothenburg.

Entropia uses a micropayment business model, in which players may buy in-game currency (PED - Project Entropia Dollars) with real money that can be redeemed back into U.S. dollars at a fixed exchange rate of 10:1. This means that virtual items acquired within Entropia Universe have a real cash value, and a participant may, at any time, initiate a withdrawal of their accumulated PED back into U.S. dollars according to the fixed exchange rate, minus transaction fees. The Entropia Universe is a direct continuation of Project Entropia.

Entropia Universe entered the Guinness World Records Book in both 2004 and 2008 for the most expensive virtual world objects ever sold. In 2009, a virtual space station, a popular destination, sold for $330,000.[1] This was then eclipsed in November 2010 when Jon Jacobs sold a club named "Club Neverdie" for $635,000; this property was sold in chunks, with the largest sold for $335,000.[2][3] The game has been described as dedicated to capitalism rather than quality of gameplay, and connecting the in-game labor with real world profits, in which sense it can be seen as a spiritual precursor to the play to earn model.[4]

  1. ^ "Man buys virtual space station for 330k real dollars". Retrieved 2010-06-23.
  2. ^ "Planet Calypso Player Sells Virtual Resort for $635,000.00 USD" (Press release). Retrieved 2010-11-13.
  3. ^ "And the asteroid goes to". Retrieved 2010-11-20.[permanent dead link]
  4. ^ Ong, Alexis (2021-11-06). "Before blockchain and NFTs, there was the real-cash MMO Entropia Universe". PC Gamer. Retrieved 2021-11-13.