I’ve been with The Sandbox since 2020, running a studio called FACBROS and creating numerous experiences.
Currently, I work alone—but to be honest, it has become extremely difficult to make a sustainable living through The Sandbox ecosystem.
The core problems are clear:
Game versions become outdated quickly, and maintaining experiences requires additional resources.
The development speed is too slow to keep creators engaged.
Creator funds and game jams are not sufficient to build sustainable income.
And most importantly, there’s a lack of fun.
Players don’t play because they’re paid. They play because it’s fun.
We need to stop paying people to play and start building experiences people want to play.
Why do we need to pivot now?
No generative tooling
Creators need AI-assisted tools for maps, logic, and quests. Without them, productivity dies.
SAND / LAND / GEM structure is outdated
There used to be staking mechanisms—now, there is no clear economic vision.
We need a Whitepaper 2.0.
DAO has no clear revenue model
DAO is meant to be the backbone of the ecosystem.
But it lacks incentives, rewards, and a sustainable participation structure.
Fun must return to the center
Players respond to experiences, not just rewards.
Without engaging, viral gameplay, both DAO and SAND will struggle to survive.
What needs to happen:
Public roadmap for generative tools
Simplified, incentivized DAO onboarding & UX
Rework LAND and SAND utility
Publish a clear Whitepaper 2.0
In Closing
I say this not as a critic, but as someone who truly loves this ecosystem.
Even if I sound slightly negative right now, I genuinely believe SAND will rise again—there’s no doubt about that.
However, until we see proper generative creation tools, I’ve decided to pause any new creation efforts.
Now is the time for DAO to re-prioritize and pivot boldly, not slowly.
I really appreciate your honesty and the love you clearly have for this ecosystem. I hear you, and I agree with many of the points you’ve raised.
That said, I don’t think the execution is as simple as it sometimes seems. In some DAOs, there used to be a saying: “You can propose anything, as long as it’s something better—and you’re willing to lead it.” What I often see is that while the ideas are solid and the direction feels right, there’s often a gap when it comes to real ownership and follow-through.
And I do think part of the reason things haven’t moved forward falls on us and the lack of DAO expertise on the broader community.
So the my question is: how can we better support each other to actually bring these ideas to life—and help Sandbox become what we all know it can be?
Rather than jumping directly into action plans or structures, I personally believe it’s more important—at this moment—to be honest and clear about where we currently stand.
The reality is: most of us in the community don’t have full visibility into what The Sandbox is planning for this year. We don’t know the internal roadmap, nor the full priorities or upcoming releases beyond what’s publicly announced. And because of that, we can only make suggestions based on what we do know.
I believe the API release, for example, is already partially planned internally—but without clarity on what that includes or when it will be available, it’s difficult for us to make truly aligned and constructive proposals.
If more of The Sandbox’s direction could be openly shared, even at a high level, it would allow the DAO and creators to build much more targeted and impactful initiatives. Right now, that level of alignment feels like something only a select few have access to.
So before we build momentum on larger community-driven efforts, I think it’s crucial we first acknowledge this information gap—and seek better visibility to support our contributions more effectively.
I feel like discussing API access and structure is very much within the scope of what the DAO can and should handle right now. It’s a concrete need, and there’s already partial movement from the team around it.
But I’m wondering if things like a “Generative Tools Working Group” or a “Whitepaper 2.0 Task Force” might be a bit too early at this stage?
I personally think those are super important topics — but maybe they require clearer signals from The Sandbox team first, or at least some foundational progress (like API access) before they can be tackled meaningfully.
Curious to hear what others think:
Is now the right time to form working groups around these?
Or should we focus on smaller, more actionable areas first — like API specs or DAO UX improvements — and revisit bigger structures later?
Many DAOs use working groups for certain topics, and they usually work well. We personally prefer when the working group is tied to a specific activity, with a clear obligation to turn that into something actionable that the group itself is responsible for driving forward.
Otherwise, it’s hard for it to create real value beyond a good debate or a research paper.
From my perspective at least, the timing works fine.
I think since TSB DAO came into being since May 2024, it has already evolved TSB Company into a more openly shared environment. We’ve already passed 2 feature request SIPs into GM, Vox Edit, Game Client that TSB Product Team accepted, and a Roadmap is now available with some pretty neat specifics.
These are things I wish I had when I still was actively creating experiences the past couple years. Before the DAO, we didn’t have a way to accomplish this. Now, we already have. I’m working on the API SIP as we speak and I agree with you that it’ll be another big step forward.
The core problems are clear:
Why do we need to pivot now?
What needs to happen:
In Closing