Game developer Epic Games and toy company The Lego Group are building a new, family-friendly virtual world. The companies have not revealed too many details just yet, though they plan to "shape the future of the metaverse to make it safe and fun for children and families," reports Engadget. The companies have agreed on three principles they will adhere to as they "build an immersive, creatively inspiring and engaging digital experience" for people of all ages to enjoy. According to the report, they have pledged to protect children's right to play by making safety and wellbeing a priority; safeguard children's privacy by putting their best interests first and empower children and adults with tools that give them control over their digital experience.
Epic and Lego did not announce a timeline for when their collective vision of a virtual world will open for business. Epic runs perhaps the foremost example of a kid-friendly metaverse in Fortnite, the report said. The battle royale modes, countless crossovers, concerts, movie nights and creative islands have helped Fortnite become a massively popular virtual space where people go to hang out. Lego has experience in virtual worlds as well. Along with its long-running series of licensed games (including one that just dropped this week in Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga), it was behind a sandbox game called Lego Worlds.