> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.beamable.network/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.beamable.network/project-documentation/readme/the-direct-from-imagination-era.md). # The Direct-from-Imagination Era Metaverse platforms and generative AI show us where we’re heading: a world in which if you can imagine it, you can get it onto the screen. However, current metaverse platforms are highly centralized, have high rents, are subject to top-down censorship, and are ultimately limited in their expressiveness. We are in a transformational process—one in which the tools are becoming interoperable, extensible, and democratized. As we move into the Creator Era, the most significant opportunity for the broadest number of developers will arise as games become primarily a creative task rather than a technical one.

### **Backend Technology has Lagged Behind** Developers are caught between difficult choices for making a Live Services game: * Buy commercial 3D engines + build expensive/risky backend * High-rent, limited-expression platforms such as Roblox * Buy commercial 3D engines + buy (license) a backend The latter option—buying the technology—appears to yield the most economic and risk-adjusted return for most developers. However, two reasons stand out for why they might build anyway: a lack of functionality and the risk of relying on a particular vendor.

### **The Problem of Trust** Live Services technology is a trust business: these products can control the destiny of a game. Even small amounts of downtime can result in massive losses, and an outright failure to scale can be catastrophic to a new launch.

As noted above, platforms can come and go. Even a large platform owner like Amazon does not guarantee continuity, as thousands of games learned when GameSparks was discontinued. --- # Agent Instructions This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com. ## Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter, and the optional `goal` query parameter: ``` GET https://docs.beamable.network/project-documentation/readme/the-direct-from-imagination-era.md?ask=&goal= ``` `ask` is the immediate question: it should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. `goal` is optional and describes the broader end goal you are ultimately trying to accomplish on behalf of the user. GitBook uses it to tailor the answer towards what is most useful for that goal. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.