Weekly Digest

September is a blaze with gaming goodies as Konami enters Web3 gaming, Honda teams up with Animoca, while Pagani, Subarau, and McLaren commit to car racing franchise Auto Legends. Immutable is to attract esports players via EMERGE Group, Enjin blockchain is pushed live, mobile gaming gets a treat via Blankos Block and Aavegotchi introduces Game Center catering for both users and developers. WAGMI Games enters the world's first-ever crypto reality TV show and the biggest airdrop in gaming history by Earn Alliance proves it’s never winter in Web3 gaming. Amidst these Web3 gaming milestones, which game-changer are you rooting for?

Also in our weekly digest:

• Unity CEO cancels meetings amid credible death threats

• My Pet Hooligan is now available on Epic Games Store

• My Neighbour Alice announces Alpha Season 3

• Legends of Mara season 1 open beta launch

• Merit Circle DAO creates BEAM a new blockchain for gaming

• Blockchain Capital raises $580M for Web3 gaming investments

• AR and wearable technology are to dominate metaverse use cases

The most comprehensive look at the Gala Games ecosystem and its future!

Next spotlight is very soon!

Web3 Gaming News 🎮

• Konami has announced its entry into blockchain gaming with Project Zircon, aiming to create a "new co-creation experience involving NFT trading

• Honda Motors, Gryfyn, and Animoca Brands have partnered to offer fans exclusive membership and limited-edition digital collectibles during upcoming FORMULA 1™ events in Tokyo and Suzuka

• Unity CEO John Riccitiello cancels meetings amid a credible death threat following last week’s controversial fee policy announcement where Unity is proposing to charge developers for every game install

• My NFT Wars: Riftwardens, a collaboration between PlayToEarn Ltd., iLogos GameStudios, and Blockchain Cuties, is set to join the thriving Immutable ecosystem

• EMERGE Group partners with Immutable Games, best known for esports commercialization that partnership is to promote Web3 gaming and create engaging digital content

• Milk Partners, the operator of MiL.k, has signed a memorandum of understanding with Agate, the largest game developer in Indonesia, to expand the Web3 ecosystem

• WAGMI Games has entered the world's first-ever reality TV show dedicated to crypto, The Next Crypto Gem the show reaches over 600 million households worldwide

• Gala Games and Elixir are partnering to expand their Web3 games, Town Star and Spider Tanks to more players worldwide

• Good Gaming has partnered with ViaOne Services to expand its mobile gaming offerings, including Assist Wireless and enTouch Wireless

• NEON, the studio behind AAA first-person shooter Shrapnel, has unveiled GameBridge, a Web3 game dev platform, however it restricts US-based players from cashing out of Shrapnel due to US securities regulations

• Auto Legends, a car-racing franchise, combines car culture with competitive edge, securing licenses from major brands like Pagani, Subaru, and McLaren, aiming to celebrate car culture

• Enjin blockchain, developed by Maxim Blagov and Witek Radomski, is now live for users to create Web3 products like games and NFT-based platforms

• Mythical Games is bringing its Web3 PC game Blankos Block Party to mobile gamers, following its success with its NFL Rivals game on iOS and Android

• Xsolla Mall is an online platform for video games, offering developers and publishers a new distribution channel. It allows games to host landing pages for exclusive in-game items and discounts

• GameOn has partnered with Spanish football league LALIGA to develop Web3 fantasy soccer games for US and Canadian players

• KryptoGO has unveiled its "Soul-cial" function for GameFi enterprise and community at the Token2049 conference in Singapore. The technology, showcased in KryptoGO Studio V1.1

• The Web3 Gaming Hackathon 2023, co-hosted by ABGA, Klaytn, Iskra, and CESS, took place in Singapore on September 11, 2023. Over 100 game projects competed

• My Pet Hooligan public early access is now available on the Epic Games Store will you be downloading and joining the rebellion?

• The HV-MTL Forge introduces a new phase called The Hunt, allowing players to explore The Rift and craft items for their HVs. Players can now choose from four biomes and difficulty levels

• Axie Infinity launches Lunalog, a store of information including the badge leaderboard, Hall of Fame, and axie part/class information. Axie Game Jam 2023, was also announced allowing game devs to create a playable Axie-based game with an unrevealed theme

• My Neighbor Alice has announced the integration of Venly with Alpha Season 3. The integration enables players to create individualized NFTs through activities like fishing and farming

• Aavegotchi has introduced the GAME CENTER, a new feature in their Dapp. This platform not only allows users to explore Aavegotchi games but also offers an opportunity for developers to list their own games

• Blockchain Brawlers, a strategy game developed by WAX Studios, has rebranded to Brawlers to draw in a larger audience and focus less on blockchain aspects

• Rise of Elves was officially launched in the Philippines, partnering with Filipino personalities like Manny Pacquiao and featuring 200 different styles of NFTs

• Clix, a renowned esports Fortnite player, showcased a $1300 Shark Pudgy Penguin in his latest house tour, the video quickly gained traction with 100k views in just 10 hours

• Mighty Action Heroes has released a major update, 'Mighty Road', which includes a player leveling system, a season pass with rewards, quests, new heroes, and the ability to buff them with Perks

• NFT Gaming Company, Inc. has launched its second game, Brawl Bots, for Android and iOS platforms with high-octane battles in real-time against other players in solo play or teams

• Get ahead in Splinterlands the deck-building strategy game with quick-fire battles is unleashed with this insider’s guide

• Wreck League is launching its inaugural leaderboard tournament, Mez'i's Mayhem with over 1.4 quadrillion possible Mech parts. Players can assemble their Mechs and compete in PvP matches

• Legends of the Mara Season 1 open beta launches on September 26, offering Mara hatching, farming Fragments, and hunting Shattered, with mintable loot at season end

• Kangamoon, the play-to-earn gaming project, aims to bring practical utility to meme coins through a boxing P2E game that allows players to accumulate tokens while competing globally

• Hashflow has launched a competitive gamified financial experience called the Hashverse, offering narrative and educational quests around DeFi activities

• Artist and musician Heno has created a pixel game called RELIEF which combines music, storytelling, and interactive gaming

• Shardbound Game has attracted 40,000 pre-registrations and 1,000 alpha players, indicating a high likelihood of all pre-registered users playing the game upon its full release

• Star Atlas has partnered with Buddy Link to launch a revolutionary Web3 reward program called Starpath. Starting on September 20th, the system offers a 10% referral discount for new users

• SAGE Labs is introducing a thrilling opportunity for Star Atlas players with $1.2 MILLION worth of loot up for grabs via Golden Tickets! Players can craft these Golden Tickets starting September 21st

• Moonfrost is launching a limited closed alpha playtest, offering players 45 minutes to explore the farming feature. VIP or Golden Ticket Holders will automatically receive spots, but others need to apply

• Pre-registration for the Hytopia Beta is now open, allowing early access to the beta test, registering a unique username, and receiving an NFT lootbox

• The Everseed alpha is nearing its end, but the development team continues to provide regular updates, bug fixes, and quality-of-life improvements

• Earn Alliance, the largest Web3 game aggregator, has launched the largest Web3 game Mint Marathon event, offering users the chance to mint free NFTs from 16 games across three blockchain networks: Binance, Polygon, and Immutable

Web3 Gaming Trends 🚀

• Blockchain gaming has had a challenging year, but there are signs of progress. The main challenge is reputation, which requires long-term solutions and better crypto behavior

• Web3 gaming has been a work in progress for years, with challenges such as gaining trust and image issues from the "play-to-earn" era

• Nolan Bushnell believes that the future of Web3 gaming lies in creating immersive virtual worlds using VR and AR technologies

• Merit Circle DAO is developing Beam, a gaming-focused blockchain for hosting its own products and third-party games

Do we need another gaming blockchain?

Beam's blockchain, which champions user privacy, has rolled out its mainnet, setting the stage for the debut of Lords of Light, a fresh crypto-driven online game. It's the first game built on Beam's platform. What sets Beam apart? It's their focus on user privacy, ensuring confidential transactions. Lords of Light players get private, uncensored ownership of in-game goodies. Plus, Beam boasts quickness, scalability, and low transaction fees, making gameplay and asset transfers a breeze. Unlike others like Ethereum, which displays all transactions, Beam's privacy is built-in. They've crafted a blockchain that in their eyes, is perfect for gaming, addressing common issues like scalability. The team's goal is to have a gaming-optimized blockchain with fast transactions, low fees, and flexible rules.

Many businesses craft their own blockchains for specific needs. While existing blockchains are great, they might not fit every company's demands. Having a custom blockchain can cut costs, especially during traffic spikes. It also offers more control over rules, opening doors to innovative business models and decentralized platforms. In such a move, Beam is not the first to adopt this approach in fact, Ubisoft is developing a platform called Ubisoft Scalar, which is a blockchain-based platform for managing digital assets and in-game economies. Whilst Electronic Arts has filed several patents related to blockchain technology, and is also rumored to be developing its own blockchain-based games.

This seems like the trend for now, nonetheless, if companies make the ecosystems interoperable whilst hiding the tech, blockchain gaming could really be the way for a unified gaming future.

• Com2uS' XPLA has partnered with Nefta, a Web3 ad and tool provider, to provide tooling for Web3 gaming. The toolbox will offer user onboarding, NFT creation and distribution, and customizable marketplaces

• AI Meta Club CEO, Mr. Aloysius, discussed the importance of Blockchain in Web3 Gaming, highlighting its potential without GameFi integration

Web3 Funding News 💸

• Blockchain Capital has raised $580M to fund gaming and decentralized finance initiatives. The firm's largest raise since 2013, it has invested more capital in Web3 efforts over the past 20 months

• Freatic, a decentralized technology company, has secured a $3.6 million seed round led by a16z crypto. The funding will be used to build a decentralized ecosystem for information exchange

Exploring the Metaverse 🛸

• South Korean game studio Krafton Studio is set to launch an NFT-inspired Metaverse game, Overdare, previously known as Project Migaloo

• Darewise Entertainment has partnered with Web3 tool provider Horizen Labs to launch a metaverse token for the Bitcoin ecosystem using zero-knowledge cryptography and Web3 features

• Major League Baseball is set to host its first live game in a virtual stadium on Wednesday, with the Tampa Bay Rays hosting the Los Angeles Angels

• CryptoChronic, a free-to-earn cannabis-themed gaming metaverse, is now available for free online play on its website

• Seracle, a leading Web3 infrastructure provider, has expanded into Saudi Arabia with the launch of Marhabaverse, a platform focused on digital innovation in the Metaverse and Web3 Gaming domain

Alpha Test, Early Access & Hands-On Gaming ⚒️

Wreck League box open and game launch, 14th September

Last Expedition 14th September

Meta Toy DragonZ Saga launches open beta, 20th September. Available through Google Play and App Store.

Star Atlas’ onchain economic sim Sage Labs launches, 21st September

Colonize Mars and Alien Worlds joint experience Cosmic Salvation begins, 25th September

Angry Dynomites Lab demo #5 launches, 28th September

Fableborne pre-sale starts, 29th September

Zeedz public alpha launch, 5th October

Upcoming Free Gaming Mints ⚒️

Cross the Ages TBC

Rise of Elves September 15th

Fight Me! TBC

TTT TBC

Age of Dino 19-26th September

Block Games 21st September

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^{"Difficult to see. Always in motion is the future”}
-Yoda

See you same place same time next week!

❤❤❤

Yoda Labs team