First created in the 1940s to nourish Pennsylvania bar patrons, Slim Jim beef jerky arose as an alternative to snacking on pepperoni in public, eventually becoming synonymous with road trip culture and a nationwide favorite at gas stations across the country. 

More than 70 years later, Slim Jim is still here and still relevant. 

On Tuesday, the snack brand announced its foray into Web3 by announcing the launch of its “Meataverse” – its first-ever digital membership club and digital collectible experience that is free to all who want to participate.

It's 11:69 with a forecast of MEAT so we bring you the MEATAVERSEhttps://t.co/K8YEJlVB8a pic.twitter.com/MgX7G6xP0l

— Slim Jim ? MEATA (@SlimJim) June 20, 2023

“The cornerstone of our Metaverse is a rich offering of 10,000 unique, dynamic digital collectibles (NFTs) that can be evolved by scanning products and engaging with the brand on social media,” the website reads in part. 

The NFTs, known as “GigaJims,” were made available on a first-come first-serve basis, free to mint on Polygon. 

It All Starts With M.E.A.T.

Inspired by Slim Jim’s brand mythology and lore built up over five years on social media, its “Meaterializer” feature that “is suddenly back online after laying dormant for over 30 years.”

Only by combining the Slim Jim Meat Stick with the base S.A.U.C.E. left behind by Dr. Slender James, can fans access the Metaverse for the first-time and summon their very own GigaJim.

In 1969, Brilliant theoretical mathematician Dr. “Slender” James is recruited by Slim Jim Industries to head their experimental Mechanics Engineering and Technology (“M.E.A.T.”) initiative. 

Five years later, an exploration of Meta Meat Mechanics was published, containing Dr. James’s proposal of “Quantum Stick Theory” and the existence of “alternate meat dimensions” which he characterizes as a “metaverse.”

S.A.U.C.E.

During his research, he discovers “S.A.U.C.E.”, powerfully excited subatomic particles which catalyze extraordinary transformative effects in meat that stands for “savagely augmented user controlled energy” that serves as Slim Jim’s native digital currency. 

Wanting to harness the power of S.A.U.C.E. and prove his theories correct, Dr. James devotes the next decade to engineering the Meaterializer – an interdimensional device that makes passage between digital, physical, and metaphysical worlds possible. 

However, while conducting a preliminary safety check of the device, Dr. James mysteriously vanishes. Feared lost forever, James’ experiments are shut down and his lab decommissioned. 

The Long Boi Gang

A group of passionate Slim Jim fans calling themselves “The Long Boi Gang” uncover archival information of Dr. James’ research online, joining together to discover the whereabouts of Dr. James. 

By synthesizing complex data scraped from the far reaches of the internet and Slim Jim’s comments on social media, The Long Boi Gang is able to get a lock on Dr. James’ location and slide into his virtual DMs – reactivating the Materializer. 

To evolve the GigaJims, The Long Boi Gang just needs to scan Slim Jim products and interact with the brand on Discord to collect S.A.U.C.E. from IRL to dial into new experiences and benefits from the snack brand. 

While there isn’t much explained in the brand’s roadmap on its website, it does state that it will be releasing additional enhancements and features over the next seasons. 

In other news, read about Fortnite and Nike’s collaboration that merges Air Max IP.

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