The Sandbox

Simon · Chief Gaming Officer
Covering blockchain games since 2022 · checked October 2026

Do you enjoy building games and virtual worlds rather than just playing them? The Sandbox is a creator-focused metaverse platform where players own plots of virtual land and use browser-based tools to build and publish their own experiences. Developed by Pixowl and backed by Animoca Brands, it runs on Ethereum with its own SAND token economy and has accumulated over 8 million registered users since launch.

What is The Sandbox?

The Sandbox is developed by Pixowl, a subsidiary of Animoca Brands, and started as a mobile game before becoming a blockchain-based metaverse. The platform raised $115 million across five funding rounds and counts Warner Music Group, Ubisoft, Gucci, Atari, and Snoop Dogg among its 400+ brand and IP partners. Animoca Brands now runs it more directly, with Robby Yung as CEO.

Content arrives in seasons with SAND rewards, and a growing share of featured experiences comes from player-built submissions through Game Jams and VoxEdit competitions rather than in-house or brand productions. Select experiences also run in the browser, so you can try them without a download.

How Does The Sandbox Work?

Three tools form the creation layer. VoxEdit is a free 3D modeling application for building voxel-based characters, items, and environments, which can be minted as NFTs and listed on the marketplace. Game Maker is a no-code game development environment where creators design interactive experiences using drag-and-drop logic, publish them to their LAND, and make them accessible to other players. The Game Client is what players use to explore and play published experiences across the map.

LAND is the core asset type: a fixed-size plot in a map of 166,464 total parcels. Players build on their LAND or lease it to other creators. During Alpha Seasons, featured experiences are spotlighted across the platform and come with SAND rewards for players who complete quests inside them. Past seasons featured brands like Jurassic World, Atari, Terminator, and Black Mirror alongside player-made experiences.

Game Maker supports dynamic NPCs, matchmaking lobbies, and cross-platform multiplayer logic, giving creators the tools to build competitive game modes rather than just exploration experiences.

Digital Collectibles in The Sandbox

LAND, ASSETs, and Avatars are all ERC-1155 NFTs on Ethereum, tradable on the Sandbox marketplace or OpenSea. LAND parcels vary in value by location and proximity to high-traffic areas or brand estates. ASSETs are the individual voxel items creators build in VoxEdit, which can be sold directly or bundled into experiences.

SAND is the native ERC-20 token on Ethereum, with a secondary presence on Polygon and on Base, Coinbase’s L2 network. SAND powers marketplace transactions, staking, governance through The Sandbox DAO, and creator grants. The DAO also funds creator grants.

SANDchain is a dedicated Layer 2 network built on ZKsync. It supports SAND, SAND Points, Creator Points, and Creator Tokens, designed to make transactions cheaper and faster for creators building and monetizing at scale.

Getting Started in The Sandbox

Download the Game Client free at sandbox.game for Windows or Mac. Selected experiences also run in-browser with no account required, which is the lowest-friction entry point available. To join season quests and their rewards, create an account during an active season. VoxEdit and Game Maker are free to download separately for creators. LAND ownership is required to publish experiences; parcels are available on the Sandbox marketplace and OpenSea. Connect a MetaMask or other Ethereum-compatible wallet to manage NFTs and SAND.

Watch The Sandbox in Action

Here’s The Sandbox 101, a quick overview of how the platform works, from LAND ownership to building and playing experiences.

Where to Go Next

• Explore more metaverse games.
• Learn about blockchain gaming in our FAQ Library.
• Browse all NFT games.