Championing Environmental Awareness and Gender Equity in Blockchain Gaming
SINGAPORE, August 26, 2024 /
EINPresswire.com/ -- Wasfia Nazreen, an internationally renowned mountaineer, activist and National Geographic Explorer and Adventurer, has been appointed as an official ambassador of Smobler, a leading Metaverse and Web3 architect. Nazreen is collaborating with Smobler on its groundbreaking, popular game, 3VEREST, in The Sandbox open metaverse.
Scaling New Heights in Digital Exploration and Gamefi
3VEREST, a unique and immersive adventure created by Smobler, invites players to experience the thrill of summiting Mount Everest from the comfort of their homes. This Metaverse experience, set within The Sandbox, offers a breathtaking and gamified journey that captures the essence of the climb while educating players about the history, culture, and environmental challenges of the Himalayan region. It also pays tribute to the Sherpa people who are often hired as guides and porters to escort foreign mountaineers.
The game's first chapter, Khumbu Icefall, saw a remarkable collaboration with Kenton Cool, a British adventurer renowned for his impressive expeditions including 16 summits of Mount Everest. Cool also leads and guides celebrities, royalty and other high-profile clients to the peak.
During the 2023 climbing season, Kenton executed a groundbreaking phygital activation for Smobler by minting a Climber avatar at Everest Base Camp, 5346 meters above sea level, thereby creating the world’s highest NFT.
3VEREST quickly gained traction, with 1953 avatars minted - reflecting the year Sir Edmund Hillary first ascended the famed mountain. Since its launch, 3VEREST has seen over 40000 visits, acquired 17000 unique players, with more than 5000 hours played.
Building on this momentum, the second chapter, The Summit, is further enhanced by Wasfia Nazreen’s appointment and ambassadorship. Nazreen was a choice candidate given her dedication to furthering the message of empowering local communities, crediting Sherpa and other high-altitude guides from different ethnicities of Nepal, as well as her strong advocacy for environmental conservation. All of these causes are foundational pillars of Smobler’s ethos and pivotal in amplifying the 3VEREST core themes,
Says Loretta Chen, Founder and CEO of Smobler, “I met Wasfia at an International Women’s Day event and was immediately struck by her eloquence, resilience, determination and deep sense of service leadership. Her athleticism, courage, physical and mental agility is surpassed only by her conviction of supporting causes that matter to her. We are honored that she sees the importance of extending her reach to a digitally savvy demographic and appreciates the power of gaming to build community, camaraderie and creating awareness and education outreach through 3VEREST. It helps too that her avatar is so cool and simply adorable!”
Lifelong Advocacy for Meaningful Causes
Indeed, Nazreen is the first and only Bangladeshi of any gender to scale all of the highest peaks in seven continents, or “Seven Summits” alongside K2, the most treacherous mountain on the planet. Beyond her mountaineering feats, the National Geographic adventurer is celebrated for her unwavering commitment to empowering women through adventure and education. Nazreen has won numerous national and global awards for her activism, including being named by Outside magazine as one of the top 40 women in the last 40 years to have advanced the outdoor sporting arena through her innovative leadership and athletic feats. Men's Journal also recognized her as one of the 25 most adventurous women in the last 25 years. She is also Founder of Osel Foundation and empowers girls from Bangladesh and Nepal through outdoor education and now through gaming in the open Metaverse,
“I am so excited and honored to be part of this monumental project and proud of the work put in by Smobler and The Sandbox in building 3VEREST. As someone who has considered Everest region a homebase for two decades, I am proud to see the cultural accuracy, representation of local values and traditions incorporated in the game, and awed at how educational the game is and so much fun at the same time! I am looking very much forward to building this community with like-minded gamers. See you at the summit!”
Builders’ Challenge in The Sandbox
Nazreen will be there to guide and accompany the players through The Summit where players can test their skills and luck to reach the summit of Mount Everest inside The Sandbox metaverse. There are 2 separate games in this chapter, The Wall and The Edge. In The Wall, players face extremely low oxygen levels and need to fight to survive, while The Edge will be the last push to reach the summit.
The games are currently live in The Sandbox Builders’ Challenge 2 and Lion City Legends till 31 August. The former is an event that encourages innovation both in gameplay and engagement strategies, while the latter is an event to celebrate the Lion City neighborhood inspired by the city state of Singapore where Smobler is headquartered. Players who complete the quest objective stand to win 30000 SAND.
To explore 3VEREST, log on to
3VEREST | The Wall and
3VEREST | The Edge.
For more information about 3VEREST and Smobler’s upcoming projects, visit
www.smobler.io.
About Smobler
Smobler is a leading Metaverse architect and a portfolio company of Animoca Brands, The Sandbox, Brinc, supported by Enterprise Singapore, IMDA Singapore, and Plug and Play. Smobler has created a suite of world’s first such as a phygital wedding, Tools of Rock concert venue, a disability-led accessibility park and BhutanVerse.
Working with legacy brands such as Airbus, BMW, DBS, GoPro, Mahindra and Meta, Smobler creates innovative projects such as Metaverse for Good and has been featured by Forbes, Vogue, Channel News Asia and more.
Smobler initiated the inaugural cross chain project with Clay Nation, Cardano and Polygon and curated a series of proprietary Gamefi IPs - Ichorium, Cobbleland as well as signature event NOVA.
The company has been acknowledged as a top tech startup at SelectUSA, Inventures Canada and VIVATech Paris and is a proud alumni of ScaleUp inBrazil and Plug and Play’s Global Innovation Alliance. Smobler’s CEO, Loretta Chen has been awarded numerous Top Female Founder Awards from UBS, AWS, Forbes amongst others. For more information, visit
www.smobler.io.
About Wasfia Nazreen
Wasfia Nazreen is a trailblazing force of nature who has shattered countless barriers, scaling the highest peaks on every continent, earning her the esteemed titles of being the first Bengali and the only Bangladeshi to scale the Seven Summits, alongside the treacherous K2, the world's most unpredictable & deadly mountain. Born in Bangladesh, and abandoned by her mother at the age of 13, Wasfia’s early life was marked with tragedy. Wasfia graduated from Agnes Scott College in 2006 with a major in Studio Arts & minor in Psychology. In her early twenties, she was blessed with the friendship of HH the 14th Dalai Lama, whose compassion and guidance altered the entire course of her life. She immersed herself in meditation, initiations, and practice under the direct guidance of HH Dalai Lama, HH Karmapa, Kyabje Khyentse Yangsi Rinpoche, and Kyabje Mingyur Rinpoche for two decades.
As an Expeditions Expert, Wasfia leads transformative journeys into nature, forging connections with self, humanity, and the Earth, catalyzing positive change for our planet. A passionate advocate, Wasfia has been a vocal proponent of human rights and environmental causes since her late teens. Her dedication transcends boundaries, making her a symbol of empowerment and change in South Asia. A writer, educator, pilot, and producer, she dons many hats, all anchored in the profound practices of meditation and self-realization. She's a groundbreaking explorer and adventurer, having the distinct honor of being the only woman to hold the simultaneous titles of National Geographic Explorer and Adventurer. Currently, she's working on her memoir and a film on her K2 conquest based out of Los Angeles. For a glimpse into her extraordinary life, watch the award-winning short film 'Wasfia' on National Geographic and more at
www.wasfianazreen.com.
About 3VEREST
3VERST is a groundbreaking metaverse game created by Smobler that takes players on an immersive adventure through the Himalayan mountains. Combining breathtaking visuals with gamified educational elements, 3VERST invites users to explore the rich history and culture of the Sherpa people while raising awareness about global warming.
As a unique blend of adventure, education, and environmental advocacy, 3VERST offers a compelling experience that encourages community engagement and a deeper understanding of mountain climbing and its challenges.
Since its launch in May 2023, 3VERST has rapidly become a premier example of gamified learning and environmental awareness, attracting over 40000 visits, 17000 unique players, and 5000 hours of gameplay.
About The Sandbox
The Sandbox, a subsidiary of Animoca Brands, is one of the decentralized virtual worlds that has been fueling the recent growth of virtual real estate demand, having partnered with major brands including Warner Music Group, Ubisoft, The Rabbids, Cut the Rope, Gucci Vault, The Walking Dead, Invincible, Snoop Dogg, Adidas, Deadmau5, Steve Aoki, SM Entertainment, The Smurfs, Care Bears, and Atari.
Building on the existing The Sandbox IP that has more than 40 million global installs on mobile, The Sandbox metaverse offers players and creators a decentralized and intuitive platform to create immersive 3D worlds and game experiences and to safely store, trade, and monetize their creations.
For more information, visit
www.sandbox.game.
To connect with Smobler, please contact:
Gianna Bui
Head of Communications @ Smobler
gianna@smoblerstudios.com
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