Written by: Lattice
Translated by: MetaCat
We live in many different worlds, each with its unique customs, rules, histories, and accepted truths. Some worlds are serious, while others are full of fun. Think of the worlds in your favorite science fiction novels, any mainstream religion, or (World of Warcraft). Entering one of these worlds feels incredibly real. Various worlds take on different forms, each with its self-consistent rules and entities.
These worlds are full of vitality. If a world is successful enough, millions will pay attention to it, immerse themselves in it, and integrate it into their daily lives, generating dramatic conflicts and other sparks of life.
These worlds are vividly presented through various media. These media can be films and science fiction conventions, as well as (the Bible) and places of worship, or even Blizzard's game servers.
These worlds also have their owners. Authorities, authors, institutions, etc., determine the rules of the game. Owners record the history of the world while defining what is possible and what is not in the world. Owners are trusted.
But owners can also undermine trust by arbitrarily changing the rules. Especially in digital worlds, server owners can rewrite operations, delete achievements, or even alter or erase history.
What if we could create the same 'vitality' in a world that belongs to no one? What kind of emergence and creativity would be sparked in a world where anyone can build freely?
Some games and online spaces are self-contained, developing rich backstories, histories, and cultures, as if they have always existed. We believe these digital worlds can be as meaningful, impactful, and resonant as the real world. We refer to these digital spaces as 'autonomous worlds.'
Autonomous worlds introduce a reality without owners. They are viable in the digital realm, especially finding an ideal medium on the blockchain. The blockchain ensures the long-term existence and autonomy of these worlds, while also promoting creations that transcend the original designers by showcasing and executing their internal logic.
'Autonomy' does not mean the absence of humans or participants, but rather that the existence of this world does not depend on any specific individual or institution. There are no owners, and no institutional limitations, allowing anyone to freely build upon the autonomous world.
Blockchain provides a new trust mechanism for the birth of autonomous worlds: no longer needing to trust institutions, the residents of the world (or anyone who cares about this world) can run consensus algorithms to achieve consensus on the world's history automatically through computers. There is no need for an owner to determine what is part of the universe and what is not.
Blockchain also possesses high composability and modifiability; as long as the rules are followed, anyone can deploy code that interacts with other parts of the world: just like the pieces on a chessboard have limited ways to move (but a game can have millions of possible positions).
Worlds with owners resemble theme parks, highly controlled and meticulously designed environments. In contrast, autonomous worlds are more like an ever-evolving city, where anyone can introduce new customs, cultures, political systems, or economic rules and feel the widespread impact they create in the world. They may be somewhat chaotic, but they are self-consistent.
As autonomous worlds are built on blockchain as the underlying infrastructure, their residents can be assured that their actions and modifications will exist forever.
Each autonomous world has a kind of digital physical law: immutable rules that impose constraints. Perhaps contrary to intuition, these limitations are precisely what fosters the creativity of the world's inhabitants. Simple and fixed rules provide space for people to build original and creative things upon them.
Autonomous worlds, driven by new computational methods, create a persistent, multi-author participatory virtual domain that can collaboratively evolve and transcend traditional digital space experiences.
At Lattice, we are interested in the emergence and unforeseen behaviors that may arise in the digital realm. We provide infrastructure and tools for developers, creators, storytellers, and disruptors to help them realize autonomous worlds.