It is not the first time that there is talk of reviving Copito de Nieve, after genetics has not given results. The latest news spoke of a three-meter-high robot of which nothing more has been known. Now the resurrection seems more viable because it would take place in the metaverse, that fashionable digital universe that few know about but in which everything seems possible. The Metaofix company is negotiating with various entities with the aim of incorporating Snowflake’s avatar into its particular project: a zoo in the metaverse, the first to be created in Europe, less than an hour from Barcelona.
The estate that will house the Metapark project, located in the Monegre i el Corredor park
One of the great animals that the virtual zoo will try to recreate
Wolves, lions, giraffes, elephants and even an exact replica of Copito de Nieve will roam freely through this parallel reality. “We are talking to several entities about the possibility of reviving this icon of the city of Barcelona,” says David Castillo, CEO of Metaofix, the company behind this innovative project. So innovative that even the University of Barcelona has made them an object of study, says Castillo.
The experience proposes a real walk through the farm interacting with wild animals from several continents thanks to the use of augmented reality glasses that provide a very vivid sensation. A tour of approximately one and a half hours that would come to replace the traditional zoo through an “ethical alternative to captivity”.
Virtual reality glasses similar to the one that will be used
The first version of the zoo will reproduce 25 species of wild animals, virtually recreated in a “hyper-realistic way” using the “same modeling and animation techniques used in major Hollywood productions.” There will be no shortage of big cats or the kings of the savannah, but neither will animals from other continents, such as the wolf. The intention is to reach a hundred species, which would be the population of a zoo in a large city like Madrid or Paris.
The virtual zoo will open in mid-July for all audiences from 6-7 years old
The zoo opens this summer, in mid-July, and will be suitable for all audiences from 6-7 years. The farm has three farmhouses that will be converted into rural houses to offer accommodation, as well as a local gastronomic offer, which will revitalize the area. One of the farmhouses, with capacity for groups of 16 people, will be themed simulating a kind of forest house, which will be both accommodation and an augmented reality escape room where you never know what might happen, both during the day and at night. Other offers that will complete the zoo: artisan workshops, horse sanctuary, archery…
A pair of wolves watch a sunset in the Montnegre
The project will involve an investment of half a million euros and will be rolled out in different phases. David Castillo says that by 2023 they are already working on a second zone, Jurasic, which will be dedicated, as its name suggests, to the world of dinosaurs. Fantasy, unicorns, fairies, gnomes and other mythical beings from the woods will star in the theme of a third phase. The fourth phase of the project will perhaps be the most daring, since it plans to convert a space on the farm into a large marine ecosystem where we can see large cetaceans and other marine animals submerged and free. Finally, the medieval world will inspire the last phase of this ambitious project.
Plan of the space where the activities will take place
