Quick take:
- The Smurfs are coming to the metaverse via The Sandbox, nearly two years after signing a partnership deal.
- The popular animated film series is expanding its adventures by getting a village in the immersive 3D virtual space.
- Players will be given a mission to help the Smurfs in the metaverse whilst also being able to buy a Smurfs avatar.
The Smurfs are coming to the 3D virtual space. The popular animated film series revealed on Thursday that it is launching its Smurfs village in the Sandbox’s metaverse this summer.
The Smurfs comic book series has gained popularity over the years culminating with a creation of an animated film series and Tv show. The film series generated more than $1 billion in box office sales worldwide, making it one of the most popular animated film series originating from Belgium.
In the new metaverse game, players will take on missions to help the Smurfs whilst also being able to buy a Smurfs avatar. Those without Smurfs avatars will still be able to access the game in the Sandbox, but IMPS, the organisation behind the project is encouraging them to use avatars with Smurfs traits. IMPS is owned by Veronique Culliford, daughter of the Belgian Smurfs creator, Pierre Culliford.
Guillaume Boudol, Head of Licencing at IMPS and the owner of the intellectual property rights to the Smurfs lauded The Sandbox team’s creativity in building the project so fast. “Every day they added new layers to the virtual world, it was almost like seeing the village prosper and grow in an organic manner,” he said.
Boudol said the avatars are there to be used in gameplay, rather than for reproduction purposes and trade. He couldn’t hide his excitement about how the avatars will appear in the virtual world. “Trees that will seem normal to humans will look giant for Smurfs,” he added.
Pierre Culliford created the comic book series of the small, blue, human-like characters in 1958. There are over 100 characters with names that match their characters like ‘Jokey Smurf’, who makes fun of other Smurfs.
Recently, film and TV show creators have been leveraging NFT characters to create new shows. The Smurfs is taking the opposite route, as it expands its entertainment ecosystem to Web3.
The Sandbox co-founder, Sebastian Bourget, a big fan of the Smurfs couldn’t wait to bring the characters into the rapidly expanding 3D virtual world.
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