See in 2023 for free at an out-of-this-world virtual party hosted by heiress Paris Hilton.
We joined thousands of revellers who accepted the invitation and sent avatars of themselves to Midnight in The Metaverse on New Year's Eve.
An avatar of Paris, 41, greeted fans from a DJ booth, with hearts behind her, at Club XYZ. And she told guests: “Yeah, like ... this is the place to be. I hope you have an amazing year.”
Smurfs, Care Bears and avatars of various celeb DJs feature in the cyber party, which runs until Tuesday.
Revellers wandered from space to space for free or, using cryptocurrency, bought anything from a virtual banana for their avatar for around £10 to a virtual VIP supercar, for over £9k.
Does this look like a good party? Have your say in the comments below
Sebastien Borget, co-founder of gaming platform The Sandbox which put on the event, said the parties were good exposure for stars taking part.
He said: “If you cannot see your favourite artist perform in the real world, you can still go and dance with your virtual self next to them.
“From the comfort of your home, maybe with family or alone, you can feel like you are enjoying a party from anywhere in the world with your favourite artists.”
Organisers say the virtual parties are attracting people aged between 25 to 45.
But IT professor Dr Victoria Baines, of London’s Gresham College, said such events are nothing new and warned: “We see from games like Fortnite how persuasive and immersive it can be.”
She said of socialising on Zoom during pandemic: “You could feel like you were in the same room.
“But it wasn’t enough and we needed something more.”
