From creating digital twins to personalizing virtual rooms, Bondee provides an immersive experience that is as cute as it is entertaining.
Is it just us or have you also been flooded with colorful avatars and curiously looking QR codes on your feeds recently? Friends, family, and even strangers are sending invitations to be their virtual neighbor somewhere—like there’s a massive exodus happening from the physical to digital worlds, again. Remember when Animal Crossing used to be the ultimate pandemic game where we all reveled in our isolation? Well, it seems that the year 2023 is going to be the time where everybody is going full cyber citizens mode in Bondee.
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A BRAND NEW DIGITAL WORLD
Launched in Asia on January 17 by Metadream, an independent Singapore-based tech startup, Bondee is a next-gen social app that aims to redefine the immersive experience in virtual communities. Some of the novel features that you can enjoy in Bondee’s “virtual plaza” include making your own virtual twins that you can tweak countless times to your liking, personalize your own mini space, mingle with your other digital friends, or even have some “me” time if you feel like it.
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Depending on your generation, the new social software might remind you of the simulation and interactive vibe from The Sims and the open-world feels as that of Animal Crossing or Minecraft. One of Bondee’s features that proves to be delightful for many is how they can ace the looks of their virtual selves with the thousands-spanning selection of avatars, hairstyles, clothing, hairstyles, and accessories to choose from. And then there’s your virtual home—a space akin to a condo studio unit—that you can personalize; from the bookshelves and appliances to the wall posters, which you can customize with your own images.
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Guided by the principle, “live with your friends,” Bondee also allows you to invite up to 50 friends in your plaza and engage with them in many ways. You can chat with them via live messaging or express each other’s emotions and feelings via actions or animated emojis to foster rapport, see each other’s statuses and moods anytime whether it be feeling burned out by work or just angsty about life, and add Bondee buddies by either searching their usernames or scanning their profile’s QR codes.
If you’re feeling sentimental then there’s the “floating” feature where Bondee lets you set off and explore the unknown while on your own boat accompanied by the ocean and some relaxing music. While you’re at it, you can also leave messages in drifting bottles, meet new friends, and even win gifts.
While Bondee is now only available in the Asian region, it already is a hit amongst netizens. As of this writing, the free social app still holds the top spot of the most popular app lists on Google Play Store and App Store. It’s also noteworthy that Bondee is a metaverse application, which means it employs some Web3 technologies including blockchain, cryptocurrencies, and non-fungible tokens (NFT).
As stated in its privacy policy, Bondee will soon introduce the blockchain-based wallet feature where you can purchase “B-Beans” and use that currency to buy NFT products (e.g. limited free trial clothes) on the platform for yourself or for your friends. So, if you’re looking for the ideal social app where you can immerse yourself in the said technological features, then Bondee might be the one for you.
THE BONDEE EXPERIENCE
And yes, the trendy Bondee has spread like wildfire online, with netizens and even influencers jumping on the hype train and sharing their Bondee experiences online. Some users note how they’ve spent a whole hour or even skipped their lunch break just to perfect their Bondee rooms.
spent an hour decorating this basic ass room on bondee when i literally have so much more important things to do 🤭 pic.twitter.com/EriDyJWaOQ
— ♡ (@annemhstp) January 24, 2023
not me spending my entire lunch break doing my bondee room 💀 pic.twitter.com/Ct8kFrEXM7
— jinyoung ✨ (@MVLGR) January 25, 2023
While some Bondee-zens have really taken the time to make their own spaces fab and comfy, others settle with minimalist, institutional aesthetics. Twitter user @d0gwater, on the other hand, views their virtual home as a representation of their “wealth and mental health.”
bondee kong nakaconfine sa mental hospital pic.twitter.com/4M2jaN02Zi
— raiden shogun fans ph 🐀 (@femcelgender) January 25, 2023
my room in bondee is a visual representation of my wealth and mental health pic.twitter.com/sGMirs88AM
— marlin (@d0gwater_) January 25, 2023
Others have used their K-Pop and P-Pop mains as their pegs for their Bondee avatars and their rooms’ interior design. From ENHYPEN to SB19 and BLACKPINK, these stans nail it from the ‘fits down to the wallpapers.
bondee but make it #enhypen charybdis theme pic.twitter.com/e1BCJ0ndy5
— ya. (@fairyheetale) January 25, 2023
SB19 as Bondee characters. aliw na aliw ako sa app na to 😂 pic.twitter.com/UeaBn5YtF3
— phine ❄️🦇 | 🌽🌭🐣 (@phinexatin) January 26, 2023
BLACKPINK 🖤💖#bondee pic.twitter.com/R7HaKc2UlY
— คนเก่งของพี่น่อ (@iambiciybxitxng) January 25, 2023
Meanwhile, other netizens couldn’t help but notice the stark contrast between their real and digital selves.
buti pa yung character ko sa bondee nakaka 8 hrs of sleep… pic.twitter.com/PbIGvIyrFc
— lex (@f4ggotism) January 26, 2023
(sa bondee) https://t.co/vDbqH6Gqi0
— vico blanco (@vicentejian) January 26, 2023
@oussychan has also made a notable realization: that the Bondee plaza is a depiction of and serves as a commentary on the state of housing in Singapore. “This is so accurate, OMG,” they lament.
guys guys.. bondee is a commentary on housing in singapore.. this is so accurate omg.. we live so close together like this ??!!! 😨?? c? c’ pic.twitter.com/NfJYYmS2Ma
— ayo what (@oussychan) January 26, 2023
Some have also commended Bondee’s effective way of making the Southeast Asian market adopt the Web3 technology. I@0xKhat emphasizes how Bondee is “not so intimidating,” and it’s reasonable and true if you’ll compare it to its other counterparts like Decentraland, The Sandbox, or Cryptovoxels among others.
can’t believe mass adoption of web3 in southeast asia came in the form of bondee haha it won bec it’s cute pic.twitter.com/2EHlg1FCfr
— Lia Savillo (@liasavillo) January 24, 2023
I am loving my #Bondee condo so far! Haha. But srsly, if they push through with the web3 metaverse aspect of the platform, it’s a great way to onboard people into Web3! Coz it’s not so intimidating. What do you think?
— TS. Khitkhat.eth | FIN | SB 🌸 (@0xKhat) January 26, 2023
Add me: https://t.co/aKynoZC5qc pic.twitter.com/Qm7JsHB4cM
If you’re more of an introvert and enjoy spending time by your lonesome, then you’ll surely enjoy the “floating” feature like @waevdoodles_0.
To whoever thought of the idle floating screen for Bondee, me love u. I love how in you get a mini you just floating about and accompanying you while u finish tasks. You get nice, calm music while not feeling so alone 😀 pic.twitter.com/yQzUotGFEE
— not wally 🏵️ (@waevdoodles_0) January 24, 2023
Filipino model LA Aguinaldo is also a certified Bondee-zen. He even shares that like others, his virtual self is much better and productive than the real one. While fashionista photographer Shaira Luna takes on the challenge of recreating Bondee ‘fits in real life and as expected, she’s killing it.
spending more time fixing my room in Bondee than in real life
— L.A. Aguinaldo (@LAAGUINALDO) January 26, 2023
Challenge accepted 😂 #bondee IRL pic.twitter.com/d0yvMD1IEI
— Shaira Luna (@shairaluna) January 27, 2023
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