The world first metaverse platform built publicly by a city government. "Best Invention" selected by TIME magazine in 2022. These are the titles attached to "Metaverse Seoul." Service termination was declared 1 year and 10 months after making its debut in January 2023. The failure analysis: Seoul City in January 2023 introduced "Metaverse Seoul" announcing it would provide a new citizen communication channel for future-oriented new concept public services. The platform offered virtual citizen services (consultations, civil complaint processing, information provision) accessible through a web browser. Why it was discontinued: (1) Low actual usage -- despite high initial media attention and public investment, daily active users remained very low; citizens found traditional digital channels (website, app, phone) more convenient than a 3D virtual environment; (2) Content insufficiency -- the platform launched with limited interactive features and did not develop a content roadmap that gave citizens reasons to return; (3) Technology mismatch -- the platform required specific device/browser configurations that many citizens found difficult to access; (4) Post-hype environment -- the platform launched during the 2021 metaverse hype peak and discontinued during the post-hype correction; the public narrative shifted from "innovative" to "wasteful." The enduring legacy: the Metaverse Seoul experiment, while discontinued, generated valuable public sector data about what urban metaverse services citizens actually want versus what seemed innovative to technology enthusiasts; the provisional standards system and Virtual Convergence Promotion Act that followed are more carefully designed based partly on lessons from Metaverse Seoul; the author argues the experiment was necessary even though unsuccessful -- public innovation requires testing ideas that may fail.