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Xbox, Roblox, and New York Liberty create gaming-inspired court for WNBA

By Cristina Alexander August 2, 2022

Xbox collaborated with Roblox and WNBA team New York Liberty to create the WNBA’s first gaming-inspired basketball court at Barclays Center. The court was constructed at Barclays Center and inside Roblox for the New York Liberty’s August 2 and August 3 home games against the Los Angeles Sparks.

In addition to being the first video game-inspired court for the WNBA, the Xbox and Roblox-themed court is also the first secondary court among the current teams. While we don’t know if the court will be there temporarily or permanently, Xbox and Roblox integrated it into Dunking Simulator with features like fireworks, fan chants, and pyrotechnics. It even includes guidance from 11-year-old sports journalist and broadcaster, Pepper Persley.

.@Xbox has helped us create a very special basketball court IRL and in-game for the first time. Please visit Dunking Simulator and create an account on @Roblox.@xbox #Xbox #Poweryourdreams pic.twitter.com/Phfi2a0WuN

— New York Liberty (@nyliberty) August 2, 2022

Those who play on the Xbox basketball court in Dunking Simulator will be able to score some virtual gear for their avatars to wear and show off to other players, including the New York Liberty jersey, an Xbox belt bag, and Xbox shutter shades. These items are not exclusive to Dunking Simulator, as they can be unlocked in other Roblox games.

To commemorate the announcement of the Xbox-themed basketball court, Microsoft will also donate $10 to the Mamba and Mambacit Foundation and Girls Who Code for every dream submission to the Power Her Dreams website.

The integration of the Xbox-themed basketball court into Roblox is one of the WNBA’s first independent attempts at highlighting its teams in a metaverse game. Hopefully, designing the court in the real world and in-game will inspire Roblox players, regardless of gender, to watch more WNBA games.

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Cristina Alexander

Gaming/Mobile Writer

Cristina Alexander has been writing since 2014, from opining about pop culture on her personal blog in college to reporting…

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https://twitter.com/nytimes/status/1546845595972866048

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https://twitter.com/powerlanguish/status/1488263944309731329
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