Leading metaverse adds award-winning reality show IP as its first-ever virtual restaurant and chef-themed game experience

he Sandbox, a leading decentralized gaming virtual world and a subsidiary of Animoca Brands, announced today that it has partnered with ITV Studios to bring Gordon Ramsay’s award-winning reality show Hell’s Kitchen to The Sandbox metaverse. Hell’s Kitchen has travelled to 24 territories globally and the show will air its 21st season in the US starring multi-Michelin Star chef Gordon Ramsay on FOX starting on 29 September.

Through the partnership, Hell’s Kitchen restaurant experiences designed with input from Ramsay will be hosted on ITV’s LAND in The Sandbox. Additionally, Hell’s Kitchen-themed assets, including limited edition Gordon Ramsay avatars, will be available down the line for players and creators to include in their own original experiences.

Hell’s Kitchen is a five-time Emmy-nominated reality show in which aspiring chefs compete for the opportunity to run one of Ramsay’s eateries. The Hell’s Kitchen restaurant setting, seen in a new teaser video released today, will represent the first experiences based on cooking themes to appear in The Sandbox:

“We’re shaping the metaverse to become an expansion of all real world activities through the creative possibilities offered by technology – and who better than Gordon Ramsay and Hell’s Kitchen to bring our first restaurant culinary and social experiences to The Sandbox,” said Sebastien Borget, COO and Co-Founder of The Sandbox. “In this immersive setting, the show’s fans and community can bring their avatars into Gordon Ramsay’s world and be challenged to bring their creativity to new levels.”

“There’s nothing more exciting to me than chartering new territory, whether that’s creating a signature dish, a new restaurant concept, a new show, or now a virtual experience in The Sandbox,” said Gordon Ramsay. “I’ve been fascinated by The Sandbox and its offering in the metaverse. I couldn’t think of a better platform to bring the high energy of my Hell’s Kitchen restaurant and brand.”

“We’re right at the beginning of exploring the potential of entertainment brands in the metaverse so we’re very excited to bring Hell’s Kitchen to The Sandbox. Both are innovators in their respective spaces, which is why they make a great match,” said Neil Bowler, Controller of Games at ITV. “We think the show’s fans all over the world will enjoy interacting with experiences set in a virtual Hell’s Kitchen in The Sandbox metaverse.”

Part virtual real estate, part amusement park, The Sandbox fully embraces the idea of the metaverse as a continuous shared digital space where worlds and heroes collide to make magic. Hell’s Kitchen joins over 300 existing partnerships including Warner Music Group, Ubisoft, The Rabbids, Gucci Vault, The Walking Dead, Snoop Dogg, Adidas, Deadmau5, Steve Aoki, Richie Hawtin, The Smurfs, Care Bears, Atari, ZEPETO, and CryptoKitties, all following The Sandbox team’s vision of empowering players to create their own experiences using both original and well-known characters and worlds.

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