“Bondee: Asia’s Trending Metaverse App – Lasts Only a Week”

I’m 22 years old and live in Singapore, the city where the tech company behind Bondee is based.

I lived a virtual life for one week in Bondee.

Reena Koh/Insider

What’s Bondee? One might ask. And rightfully so, as this new viral social networking metaverse app was just released last month. But it’s already topping app store and Google Play charts across Asia and growing at a faster rate than Instagram did back in the day.

After coming across a few of my friends’ Instagram stories, filled with cute avatars and QR codes, I was curious what all of the hype was about. I decided to give it a go and downloaded the app. 

For someone with little patience, the sign-up process was relatively easy, and within a couple of minutes, I got started on designing my very own avatar. From facial features and hairstyles to a ton of different outfits, I was excited about all of my options. The people behind Bondee seem to have perfected the Y2K aesthetic.

There were items noted as being available only as a free trial, but I had plenty to play around with already. I didn’t have to share any credit card details to download, despite the “in-app” purchase tag displayed. There is talk that B-Beans are going to become the in-game currency, according to CNA. We’ll see how that goes for them.

I spent a good 10 minutes creating a simple preliminary design as I was eager to check out the other features of the app.

Some of the outfits the author really liked.

Reena Koh/Insider

After completing my avatar, I was given a series of avatar posters to save. I assume that these were for me to share on my socials later on. 

Finally, I was in the “lobby” of the app, where all my friends would be walking around once I added them. For now, my avatar stood alone in the empty space. I continued exploring other parts of the app. 

On the homepage, there’s a small button at the top left corner, and clicking it led me to an open ocean with my avatar in a tiny boat.

The set sail function sort of has a calming effect, and the status update features are sweet.

Reena Koh/Insider

There was also the option to “set sail”, but the concept confused me so I decided to move on.

I snooped around on Twitter later on and found out that you could pick up random message bottles from other Bondee users, and sometimes you may chance upon a funny one. 

The app also features the standard chat and status update features expected of a social networking app, so I went on to check out the final tab.

The final tab is where I ended up spending almost two hours. I had tons of furniture and home decor options to fill up my rooms.

The writer used to spend hours on Minecraft, so lazing on the couch didn’t come as a surprise.

Reena Koh/Insider

I used the lighting and ambience option to pick warm lighting and the thunderstorm option to score a cozy vibe.

Sprawled out on my sofa without taking a single break, I went on to create room after room. At the end of my interior-designing frenzy, I had decked out a living room, bedroom, music and games room, study, and gym. I don’t even go to the gym, but my avatar was keen to get on the treadmill I had set up. The red punching bag was also a great addition to my living room.

Getting my avatar to interact with all of the new home accessories was the best part. When I figured out I could make my avatar play the keyboard and run on the treadmill, the real-me let out a little squeel — luckily I was alone in the room. 

 

 

Bondee was exciting for someone currently living with her parents, as I’ve always dreamed of decorating my own place. The app let me live out my little fantasy world.

Bondee’s features don’t seem like much, but there’s a nice feeling of solitude.

Reena Koh/Insider

With my avatar and room all glammed-up, I decided it was time for me to post the QR code on my socials and add my friends.

Over the following week, I would occasionally check in on my avatar and update my status. Trying out the different statuses that would show my avatar doing something new kept me entertained for a bit, but eventually that too became dull. 

Besides status updates, creating new outfits for my avatars, or using the “set sail” feature to collect lucky items in the “sea”, there was nothing much to do in the app. And soon even those features started to seem dull and mundane. 

 

The novelty had worn off after a week. Apparently I wasn’t alone in my takeaway and spotted several tweets expressing a similar sentiment.

Bondee’s aesthetic is still undeniably adorable.

Bondee/Metadream Tech

—rian (@luviyanaa) February 4, 2023

 

For me, the status and chat features didn’t serve a significant purpose, as I already have a variety of other social apps that let me do the same. The purpose of the “sea” feature left me confused, but I’m starting to think this is a problem of personal preference. I was over the avatar and room decorating features, with nothing new to play around with, I had no interest in going back to the app. 

—doggo (@louminousdarren) February 6, 2023

 

Needless to say, I no longer use Bondee. The first few hours after downloading the app took up the majority of the time I spent on the app overall.

I haven’t deleted it as it’s still fun to occasionally pop in to see if my friends — each user is allowed up to 50 — have any updates, but I imagine that curiosity will fizzle out soon too.  

I’ll keep checking on my avatar and stylish rooms for another couple of weeks tops.