The Sandbox opens pre-registration for playtesting The Sandbox NEXT, new mobile game
LOS ANGELES, March 18, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The Sandbox, an immersive gaming platform and subsidiary of Animoca Brands, today opened pre-registration for the playtest of The Sandbox NEXT, marking for the franchise a going back to its roots after 40 million historical downloads on mobile. The Sandbox NEXT is built by Unreal Engine, a significant technical shift for The Sandbox, which has historically run on Unity. Register for free at sandbox.game/next.
The Sandbox NEXT offers a multiplayer extraction and survival mobile gameplay in which players carry over their identity, progression, and all the voxel assets from The Sandbox game platform, including UGC and branded ones. The Sandbox NEXT provides players with a fast-paced, replayable PvP experience that connects intense and skill-demanding gameplay with the broader player-driven ecosystem of The Sandbox, where player avatars from over 56 collections of branded Avatars (Snoop Dogg, Attack on Titan, Smiley, Steve Aoki, Paris Hilton, Smurf, etc) extend beyond a single match.
Players of The Sandbox NEXT are dropped into the Desert, an open-terrain environment built around sightlines and long-range combat, or the City, a vertical, close-quarters map that rewards adaptability. Matches support solo play or multiplayer groups of up to 20 players per instance.
The Sandbox NEXT will serve as a new entry point into The Sandbox, where playing, collecting, and expressing identity all converge. The mobile launch represents a major step for one of web3’s most established entertainment brands, with more than 400 brand and IP partners spanning gaming, music, fashion and culture, including Warner Music Group, Gucci, Ubisoft, Snoop Dogg and Lacoste.
Season 7 of The Sandbox, which is currently ongoing, introduced three browser-based games as a frictionless entry point to The Sandbox ecosystem. Now, with The Sandbox NEXT playtest, The Sandbox is taking steps to integrate additional experiences via mobile.
“Like our recent launch of WebGL games, The Sandbox NEXT is part of our plan to increase the reach of The Sandbox so players can discover, play and come back more often, whether they’re on desktop or on their phone,” said Robby Yung, CEO of The Sandbox. “The goal is to meet people where they spend their time. A native mobile experience in addition to the desktop version makes that possible in a way browser access alone can’t.”
Registration for The Sandbox NEXT playtest is now open until 25 March 2026 at 2 p.m. (UTC), with limited spots assigned on a first-come first-served basis. The playtest begins on 26 March, with additional features rolling out as The Sandbox NEXT evolves. Register now at sandbox.game/next.
For more information about The Sandbox NEXT mobile app playtest, visit sandbox.game/blog and follow The Sandbox on X, Discord, and Instagram for regular updates.
About The Sandbox
The Sandbox, a subsidiary of Animoca Brands, is an immersive metaverse platform in which users play, create, and monetize unique experiences alongside their favorite brands, IPs, and celebrities across gaming, entertainment, music, art, and more. The Sandbox leverages web3 technologies to fully enable end-user creation and creator economies, disrupting existing platforms by providing both Players and Creators with true ownership of their assets, creations, and rewards as non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Over 400 partners have joined The Sandbox, including Warner Music Group, Gucci, Ubisoft, Paris Hilton, Attack on Titan, Snoop Dogg, Lacoste, Steve Aoki, The Smurfs, and many more. For more information, please visit www.sandbox.game and follow the regular updates on X, Medium, and Discord.
About Animoca Brands
Animoca Brands Corporation Limited (ACN: 122 921 813) is a global digital assets leader building and investing in impactful technologies and ecosystems to reimagine future economies. It has received broad industry and market recognition including Fortune Crypto 40, Top 50 Blockchain Game Companies 2025, Financial Times’ High Growth Companies Asia-Pacific, and Deloitte Tech Fast. Animoca Brands is recognized for building digital asset platforms such as the Moca Network, Open Campus, Anichess, and The Sandbox, as well as institutional-grade platforms; providing digital asset services to help Web3 companies launch and grow; and investing in frontier Web3 technology, with a portfolio of over 600 companies and digital assets. For more information visit www.animocabrands.com or follow on X, YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and TikTok.
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