FaZe Clan Announces Partnership With Gaming Platform The Sandbox to Develop & Host Virtual Metaverse World
2023 Launch
Exclusive news released by American online and print magazine The Hollywood Reporter (THR) yesterday announced that FaZe Clan, a digital-native lifestyle and media platform rooted in gaming and youth culture, has picked gaming platform The Sandbox to develop and host a virtual world that will be the gaming company’s home in the metaverse, with an expected launch date set for some time next year.
Known as “FaZe World,” the virtual platform will feature a variety of digital goods, events and experiences to connect FaZe Clan creators with fans.
Following the path of American audio company iHeartMedia, which has launched its own virtual world in gaming platforms like Fortnite and Roblox, for example, FaZe Clan’s CEO Lee Trink said FaZe selected The Sandbox as its partner in part due to its creator revenue share model, where creators who sell their NFTs on The Sandbox’s marketplace receive 95 percent of the proceeds.
The partnership with The Sandbox — a community-driven platform where creators can monetize voxel ASSETS and gaming experiences on the blockchain — FaZe plans to sell the digital real estate surrounding FaZe World — a 12×12 plot of digital land in The Sandbox, allowing fans to become virtual neighbours to one of the largest and most well-known esports brands.
Three Gamers
Based in Los Angeles, California, FaZe Clan was founded in 2010 by three Call of Duty players, Eric “CLipZ” Rivera, Jeff “House Cat” Emann (now known as “Timid”) and Ben “Resistance” Christensen, but since then has grown into a major organization across entertainment and gaming. This March, Snoop Dogg joined FaZe’s board of directors and client roster, which has now over 100 members.
“First Big Swing”
In July of this year, Trink told THR that the brand was looking to expand its presence into Web3 and the metaverse, and in a conversation this week, the executive described the Sandbox partnership as FaZe’s “first big swing” in the metaverse.
“We’re very simpatico in how we view the world,” said Trink. “It seems like a very creator-friendly environment, before adding: “Gaming is so foundational to every description of essentially every metaverse. Who better to usher in gaming creators and the gaming community [into the metaverse] than FaZe Clan?”
