👋 Web3 Gaming Recap — April 28 to May 4

💎 Gaming Spotlight 🥜
• Research on Node Sales: What is it, when investors can get their capital back, who benefits the most from this meta, and what can be improved going forward — Read More

🔄 Gaming Updates
• Illuvium — Launched Private Beta 4 Testnet (April 30 - May 28)
• Blade Games — Dune Factory Alpha Test (May 1 - 12)
• METALCORE — Closed Beta 2.5 (May 1 - 14)
• Sky Strife — Season 1 Launch on Redstone Mainnet (May 1 - 31)
• Wanderers — Launched First Jump Closed Beta on Epic Games (May 3)
• Mixmob — Coming to Android/iOS (May 7)
• Crypto Unicorns — XAI Migration (May 7)
• THE WATCH — Potential public alpha launch (May 8)
• Paradise Tycoon — Beta Snapshot 2 (May 8)
• EFAS — Citizen Passport WL (May 10)
• Fusionist — ACE Arenas launch (May 15)
• Worldwide Webb — Game playable now as PWA (play.webb.game)
• Fantasy Top — Mainnet Launch
• AI Waifu — Game launch on Base (Free until May 14)
• Rumble Kong League — Partnered up with with Gatorade
• zkCandy — Incentivized testnet coming soon

🔖 Gaming Reads
• Decentralised — Infinite Worlds: AI, IP Composability and Autonomous Agents
• Tax Cuts — The hit-or-miss nature of the gaming industry & why simply using crypto as a false solution to PMF will fail

▶️ Gaming Watch/Listens
• Blockchain Gaming World — Why Midnight is building its Evergreen multiverse one game at a time
• Game Economist Cast — Episode 25: The Veblen Goods Model that explains Web3 (w/ Dr. Sam Rosen)
• Doubl3Tap — Episode 17: Ben (Cambria)
• Naavik — Nyan Heroes: Cats, Mechs & Esports in Web3

💸 Gaming Fundraising
• Blade Games — Raised $2.4m Seed round led by PTC Crypto & IOSG Ventures
• Saltwater Games — Raised $5.5m Seed round led by Deus X & 4R Capital
• SHADOW War — Raised $5m Series A from Momentum 6, Cointelligence, Cogitent Ventures & Spicy Capital
• G4AL — Raised $3.2m Seed round from Supercell & Mitch Lasky
• XBORG — Raised $5.7m Pre-Sale from the public at $114m FDV

hope helpful wuwu 😆💞 — https://t.me/thecoreloopweb3

Look at Gaming #389 | 5.06.2024

GM! Happy Monday.

This week I want to kick it off with mobile games discovery, particularly under the current climate of Apple/Android app stores facing regulatory scrutiny.

Previously, game studios didn't have to worry too much beyond creating a fun game. But today the competition for customers is rough and the burden is on the game studios to acquire users.

Could there exist almost themed/genred-based app stores? A way for niches to shine without having to compete with the generalized market which is getting more and more expensive to operate in.

Second order effect from this line of thinking is who would then be the storefront builders and keepers and what novel methods would they adopt to win and retain users.

For example, Netflix could become a storefront. What would it offer? Just the existing and similar titles or would they engender to do more. How about LinkedIn, which recently launched games on their platform? Outside of just casual games, could core gamers recruit players via LinkedIn? Could players list their gaming achievements on their LinkedIn profiles?

These are exciting times, with the shuffling of titans and gatekeepers in the app store landscape. We have a shot to re-empower players and redefine the dynamics.

-----

⚡ Spotlight 🤩
The app store standoff is a chance to reshape mobile game discovery | GamesIndustry.biz


🌊 MARKET 📞
The Esports Future Summit: 7 things we learned | PGBiz

Meta loses another $3.8 billion on VR/AR | GamesIndustry.biz


💎 Deep Dives 🔎
Liftoff & GameRefinery: Casual Games in 2024 | GameRefinery

Infinite Worlds | Decentralised.co

The app store standoff is a chance to reshape mobile game discovery | GamesIndustry.biz


🌈 Platforms 🏠
Google objects to Epic's proposed changes to Play Store policy | GamesIndustry.biz


✨ Web 3⃣ + Meta 🌐
Over 127 Blockchain Games Now on Epic Games Store | Gam3s.gg

AnimeCoin Launches ‘Gacha Grab’ Game With Ethereum NFT Collection Azuki | Decrypt.gg

Redstone Network Launches to Power Fully On-Chain Ethereum Games | Decrypt.gg

Blockchain Gaming Makes Up 40% Of The Q1 Private Placements | Gam3s.gg


👾 Game & Stats Releases 📊
Manor Lords is slow and frustrating, and I can’t stop playing | The Verge


-----

⚠️ Beware of Telegram Ads

> The telegram's new policy allow Ads to be published on channels without owner's permission

> Scammers already taking advantage of this feature

> Please do not interact with these ‘pop up adds’!

Source: AlexClay

⚠️ BEWARE ⛔️

thecoreloop will never run any ads so please do not click or interact with any ads you see.

Please take a screenshot and dm any ads to me if you se them!!

Look at Gaming #390 | 5.20.2024

GM! Welcome back to another wonderful Monday.

There's been quite the development in the industry that I want to cover. The first spotlight is about Netflix and Roblox.

Introducing Nextworld. THe ultimate digital theme park on Roblox that brings all of your Netflix favorites to pixelated life. The first 3 activations are around Stranger Things, One Piece, and Rebel Moon, with an upcoming release of Jurassic World: Chaos Theory.

Imagine exploring the Upside Down with your friends or braving the open ocean with Luffy. All within a frictionless nested world.

I think this is more than just another example of content going transmedia. If these game experiences are operated like live service games then I expect the stickiness of these users to be quite high.

Plus, User A may have come for Stranger Things but then stayed to explore One Piece. This multi-IP amalgamation leads to numerous streams of inbounding traffic plus lengthening the user stickiness as demonstrated previously.

This represents a pivotal moment in film/movie IP as the "consumable hours" are no longer limited to the length of the show, season, or movie. The extension to live service games delivers continuous enjoyment and engagement for fans. I've frequently found myself at the end of a show going on to YouTube to search for cast interviews or breakdowns just to extend my enjoyment just a tad further.

Now, I can persist my escapism by diving into these imaginary worlds.

The second spotlight article is about YouTube being the dominant and most-trusted platform for game discovery.

A survey of 1000 gamers revealed that 64% of them discovered games via YouTube, with TikTok at 36%. Surprisingly (or perhaps unsurprisingly) Twitter is amongst the least trusted source.

Perhaps it's time for web3 games to expand beyond targeting just CT but then again, these web3 games would have to compete against the uber polished web2 games. Big fish little pond situation.

In other headlines we have Xbox closing down 4 Bethesda studios, a LiftOff report that shows CPI per ad type (avg about $2), and a bunch of fundraising announcements!


-----

⚡ Spotlight 🤩
Netflix and Roblox unveil Netflix Nextworld digital theme park on Roblox | GamesBeat

Study finds YouTube is the most popular and trusted platform for game discovery | GamesIndustry.biz


🌊 MARKET 📞
Xbox shutting down four Bethesda studios | GamesIndustry.biz

‘If Roblox and TikTok had a baby’: Supercell-backed HypeHype edges closer to launch | MobileGamer.biz

Stream Hatchet: Streaming Market Trends in Q1’24 | GameDevReports


💎 Deep Dives 🔎
Nintendo, Microsoft, Square welcome us to the era of fewer big video games | Game File

What's the state of Switch, leading into 'Switch 2'? | GameDiscoverCo

Is Strategy design due for a shakeup? | GameDeveloper

The rise of the audio-only video game | The Verge

GameDiscoverCo: Conversion benchmarks of Steam wishlists into sales in the first month | GameDevReports

From Hypercasual to Hybridcasual - The Supercent story | Brutally Honest

CPI and D7 ROAS benchmarks in Mobile Game | LiftOff


🌈 Platforms 🏠
Steam currently banned in Vietnam | GamesIndustry.biz

EA CEO wants games to be a platform for socialization and self-expression | GamesBeat

Netflix and Roblox unveil Netflix Nextworld digital theme park on Roblox | GamesBeat

Study finds YouTube is the most popular and trusted platform for game discovery | GamesIndustry.biz


✨ Web 3⃣ + Meta 🌐
Ethereum Game ‘Fantasy Top‘ Now One of Crypto's Most Profitable Apps | Decrypt.gg

Rug.fun Turns Minting Ethereum Meme Coins Into a Competitive Game | Decrypt.gg

Pixels Surpasses 1 Million Daily Active Users | Gam3s.gg


🧠 Knowledge Hub 📘
Narration Avenues in Multiverse Games | GameDeveloper

Game trailers and the art of storytelling | GameDeveloper


💲 Fundraising 🤑
Neurable raises $13M for brain-computer interface with everyday products | GamesBeat

Iconic Arts raises $3.1M to create original properties for games and Hollywood | GamesBeat

Jamango raises $2.5M to launch browser-based game maker this year | GamesBeat

Inco and Privy partner to enable safe gaming on Telegram Messenger | GamesBeat

Yellow raises $5M from A16z for Gen AI-powered 3D modeling tool | GamesBeat

Steel City Interactive raises £15m in funding | GamesIndustry.biz

Bladerite Game Developer Seeds Labs Raises $12 Million | Gam3s.gg

Galaxis Raises $10 Million to Expand NFT Community Empowerment | Gam3s.gg

Blade of God X Secures Multimillion Dollar Investment | Gam3s.gg


👾 Game & Stats Releases 📊
Zelda: Majora’s Mask is now a native PC game, and every N64 title could follow its lead | GamesIndustry.biz

Hades II is the perfect Steam Deck game | The Verge

Look at Gaming #391 | 5.27.2024

GM! Hope everyone had a good weekend. I sure did!

To kick off this week, I have a few spotlights for you. Let's start with how everything is an ad network.

Netflix announced that it's launching an in-house ad tech platform that's scheduled for a global rollout. But this shouldn't be a surprise to my readers. There were clear signs that an ad network was the attention aggregation and coordination layer that was missing in Netflix's ecosystem.

Per NBC news, as of March 2024 Netflix's ad tier has 40M MAU, double January's number. Late last year, Netflix reported that ~1% of its subscribers (so about 2.5M users) engaged with their mobile game offerings. Mobile user acquisition cost is expensive and rising, partly due to data protection and competition. But that won't be the case with Netflix.

I suspect that Netflix would have full visual into the data and preferential ad rates for its mobile games which would add to the broad goal of keeping its subscribers within the ecosystem more effectively. Not to mention the most recent expansion in the ecosystem with Nextworld, a Roblox experience created around key Netflix IPs.

If Netflix's ad network is able to tape directly into Roblox's ad system, then this is a complete game changer as this signifies the first time Roblox openning its ecosystem to an external ad network.

But we shall wait and see how this plays out.

In other news, GameAnalytics dropped some industry benchmarks for us to gobble up. For the mid-core category in North America, the average D1, D7, and D28 retention are 30%, 8%, and 2.5% respectively. On the other end with the casual category, we see a similar D1 at 30%, then D7 and 7%, and D28 at 2%. Frankly these figures surprised me a bit as I thought the core category would see higher retention rates. For Asia region, D1 is 25%. D7 and D28 is basically half of the US counterparts.

The median session time is 4 minutes 45 seconds across all regions and all genres. So keep that in mind when designing your game's core loop. Yes, even the core games like RPG and Strategy genre barely eek out 5 and a half minutes of session time.

Speaking of mobile, recall that Microsoft had plans to launch a mobile app store but they're not alone. Sony is also entering the mobile arena. I'm very keen to see what happens as Sony isn't particularly strong in the mobile space (given their current lack of mobile titles and mobile studios). But what they do have are a treasure trove of content and IP.

Another IP giant that you might have heard of called Disney will let Fortnite creators use its IP to make games. This is the UGC dream realized! When I was making Roblox games, I can't believe the number of Marvel super hero games I saw that I knew were NOT Disney-approved.

But but but... we all know how protective Disney is of their IP so I anticipate this UGC leash to be quite short. Lessons to take from this is actually around Disney's policy on approving and policing UGC content using their IP. Games today are all aiming to create new IP that then turns into UGC platforms. All roads lead to that so it's shrewd to study the best practices by the biggest players.

I know that was A LOT to take in but we had a big week last week. I hope you guys learned something. I sure did this week.

Catch you next Monday!

-----

⚡ Spotlight 🤩
Netflix to launch in-house ad tech with global rollout set for 2025 | PG.biz

GameAnalytics: Benchmarks in Mobile Games for Q1’24 | GameDev Reports

Report: Sony planning mobile games platform | GamesIndustry.biz

Disney will let Fortnite creators use its IP to make games | PG.biz


🌊 MARKET 📞
FaZe, 100 Thieves, and OpTic Reveal The Founding Fathers LAN Tournament | The Fudge Retort

Judge orders Google to calculate the costs of Epic’s biggest Play Store demand | The Verge

Modders are Developers - It’s Time to Pay Them | GameDeveloper

IGN scoops up Eurogamer, Rock Paper Shotgun, and more | The Verge

💎 Deep Dives 🔎
GameAnalytics: Benchmarks in Mobile Games for Q1’24 | GameDev Reports

Mobile game publishers spend $21M on backend tech | Metaplay

Lower-cost regions are key to the industry's rebuilding | GamesIndustry.biz

Game Producer: The Role Everyone Loves to Debate | a16z Games

Mastering the Roblox Meta | Naavik


🌈 Platforms 🏠
Report: Sony planning mobile games platform | GamesIndustry.biz

Microsoft will integrate its Copilot AI into Xbox and PC games | GameDeveloper

Netflix to launch in-house ad tech with global rollout set for 2025 | PG.biz

Disney will let Fortnite creators use its IP to make games | PG.biz


✨ Web 3⃣ + Meta 🌐
Integrate Web3 into Any Game in Minutes | Gam3s.gg

Immutable Hits Over 1 Million Passport Signups | Gam3s.gg

What is ERC-5189 Account Abstraction | Gam3s.gg


🧠 Knowledge Hub 📘
Deep Dive: Harnessing the power of player feedback with Dying Light 2 | GameDeveloper


💲 Fundraising 🤑
Anomaly Raises $1.45M for AI-Driven Layer 3 Gaming Platform | Gam3s.gg


👾 Game & Stats Releases 📊
Famitsu: Nintendo Switch has become the best-selling console in Japan's history | GameDev Reports

Look at Gaming #392 | 6.03.2024

GM! Hope everyone had a great weekend. Let's talk about discoverability and platforms.

An article from PGbiz calls out the current state of app stores and how platform owners prioritize ads over useful recommendations.

The issue is obvious: too many games (and entertainment apps), and too little time/attention. Discoverability in mobile is worse because platforms offer prime locations to ad buyers. Additionally, Apple changed its App Store policy in 2017 to become more editorial-focus, like a magazine rather than a marketplace.

Steam's marketplace offers a more equitable and favorable display of games; for example, when searching for a game, users are shown the game and related DLCs, whereas, in the mobile app stores, the top placement is auctioned off to the highest bidder.

The author broke down the three distinct approaches as such:
• Steam = based on sales and user-driven recommendations
• Google = sponsored content upfront
• Apple = editorial content upfront

But don't worry, there's a shift coming. A new direct-to-consumer trend is emerging with the release of alternative app stores. Epic Games' and Xbox's mobile stores will set the benchmark for this new paradigm.

Although outside of the app stores and marketplace, there has always been a dominant discovery platform that no one in web3 talks about. A survey of 1000+ gamers shows that 64% learn about new games via YouTube, with TikTok in second place at 38%.

As if YouTube knew it was the place for discovery, it recently launched YouTube Playables with 75 titles. YouTube is expanding its role and function in a gamer's playflow. Although the titles are largely casual games, I suspect the YT Playable will soon offer more core offerings as that's usually the demographic who watches gameplay on YouTube.

Also, recall that Google owns YouTube. It's not inconceivable to see a future where watching gameplay on YT then launching a vertical slice or a lite instance of the game. At the end of the experience, a prompt to download the game that is launch-able on both YT and as an app on the phone.

Lastly, another platform I want to call out that's (re)making a big splash in gaming. Discord started as a place for gamers to congregate but has since expanded into many other verticals.

However, this return to gaming is notable because Discord sees an opening in the deplatforming of the incumbents. Discord is already home base to many gamers so refocusing its energy here makes sense. More recently, Discord added a questing feature that empowers games to activate their community base and to find new players.

There's a trend of games building atop Discord. I'm not only referring to the party games like Poker but full-blown double AA-quality games. Tatsumeeko is one such game. There was also another sandbox drag-and-drop builder that I saw on the timeline. Our friend Jon from Bitkraft recently wrote a piece on "the third place" — outside of our home and our workplace, there's a third place where we find refuge.

Discord is one of our third places but now with it doubling down on gaming, it might become the only third place.

That's it for this week! Before you go, check out the story on Embracer and Brutally Honest's 12 Tips for UA (Q2 Version). Oh and GameDiscoverCo's piece on Steam sales conversion decreasing over time.

-----

⚡ Spotlight 🤩
Mobile's broken app store discoverability | PGBiz

Big Games Machine: How People Discover New Games in 2024 | GameDev Reports

YouTube Playables are out now with over 75 games available | PGBiz

Discord’s turning the focus back to games | The Verge


🌊 MARKET 📞
Embracer Group's Breakup: What It Means for the Future of M&A in Gaming | GameMakers

Embracer's Lars Wingefors on the "brutal truth" of the AAA market | GamesIndustry.biz

Mobile's broken app store discoverability | PGBiz


💎 Deep Dives 🔎
Big Games Machine: How People Discover New Games in 2024 | GameDev Reports

Virtual Pets | Konvoy Venture

Immersion interrupted | SuperJoost Playlist

Hyper casual games lead ad media buys at 34% share, with US at the forefront of ad spend | PGBiz

Are conversion rates dipping over time on Steam? | GameDiscoverCo


🌈 Platforms 🏠
Netflix announces Minecraft animated series | GamesIndustry.biz

Discord’s turning the focus back to games | The Verge

YouTube Playables are out now with over 75 games available | PGBiz


✨ Web 3⃣ + Meta 🌐
How Immutable Nexus is Enhancing Gaming with Dedicated zkEVM Chains | Gam3s.gg

This Week in Crypto Games: 'Notcoin' Hits $1 Billion, 'Hamster Kombat' Token, Tickle-to-Earn | Decrypt.gg

‘Final Fantasy’ Maker Square Enix Moves to Arbitrum for Ethereum Game NFTs | Decrypt.gg

Mythical and Pudgy Penguins Reveal Mobile Party Game | Gam3s.gg

Arbitrum Is About to Unlock $250 Million in Funds for Ethereum Games | Decrypt.gg


🧠 Knowledge Hub 📘
Game audio overview: Sound effects for games | GameDeveloper

11 tips for killer mobile User Acquisition (Q2 version) | Brutally Honest


💲 Fundraising 🤑
Anomaly's AI-powered gaming platform attracts $1.45 million in funding | PG.biz

Gamefam Launches $5 Million Fund for UGC Creators | Gam3s.gg

Play AI Raises $4.3 Million at $70 Million Valuation | Gam3s.gg

Look at Gaming #393 | 6.10.2024

GM! Rise and grind. Welcome back to another wonderful week.

Keeping this one short today. I read an interesting opinion piece on how Sony may be wading into the live servicing of games.

Recall that Sony is known for their immersive, story-rich single-player games. And you will pay $70 for the pleasure to experience one of these games.

Sony’s publishing of Helldivers II, a $40 paid-for game with some live service elements, could be telling sign of how the Japanese conglomerate is approaching live service games.

Their new game, Concord, is expected to follow the paid-for game model.

But this half-half, hybrid model is promising. Read the article for a deeper breakdown.



-----

⚡ Spotlight 🤩
Sony avoids F2P as its live service model takes shape | GamesIndustry.biz

As RPGs and casual genres drastically decline, Monopoly Go! gives casino a 34% revenue surge | PGBiz

Ad revenue has "seen better years" on iOS, but some ad formats still pack a punch | PGBiz


🌊 MARKET 📞
Asia & MENA gaming markets approach $100B, 2B players in 2028 | Niko Partners

As RPGs and casual genres drastically decline, Monopoly Go! gives casino a 34% revenue surge | PGBiz

Ad revenue has "seen better years" on iOS, but some ad formats still pack a punch | PGBiz

What do Apple and Google’s direct-to-consumer changes really mean for game developers? | GamesIndustry.biz


💎 Deep Dives 🔎
Mobile Gaming Post-IDFA Deprecation | Konvoy Ventures

Sony avoids F2P as its live service model takes shape | GamesIndustry.biz

The Next Era of Modding | Naavik

Sensor Tower: Mobile (Gaming) Market in Q1'24 | GameDev Reports

China Games Market Reports Series | Niko Partners


🌈 Platforms 🏠
Xbox Games Showcase 2024: all the news, trailers, and announcements | The Verge

Ikea will pay 10 Roblox players to roleplay as employees in its virtual store | The Verge

Samsung shows off new barrier-free games for Samsung Smart TV | GamesBeat

Discord is making it easier for app developers to make money | The Verge


✨ Web 3⃣ + Meta 🌐
Ethereum Network Ronin Launches ‘Forge’ Program to Onboard More Games | Decrypt.gg

McDonald's Just Launched Its Own Metaverse—And Grimace NFT Owners Are VIPs | Decrypt.gg

Ethereum Wallet MetaMask Now Lets You Launch Crypto Games—Here’s How | Decrypt.gg



🧠 Knowledge Hub 📘
Promoting Your Brand Through Live Streaming Events | StreamHatchet


💲 Fundraising 🤑
‘Xociety’ Developer Raises $7.5 Million to Launch Sui Shooter Game | Decrypt.gg

The Sandbox raises $20 million to empower creators in the open metaverse | PGbiz

Wevr raises $3.5M for spatial computing and game production | GamesBeat

Hypersonic Laboratories raises $7m for modding platform Helix | GamesIndustry.biz


👾 Game & Stats Releases 📊
Riot announces Valorant console beta test at SGF, starting June 14 | GamesBeat

Suicide Squad left a $200 million hole in WBD’s video game division | The Verge

👋 Web3 Gaming Recap — June 10

🔄 Gaming Updates
• MEGAWEAPON — Released May Update (Browser release, NewNet & LATAM marketing launch)
• Ember Sword — $EMBER Token Economy Overview
• Sipher — Play 2 Airdrop Season 1 (Still has room)
• Spellborne — May 2024 Update (Early access milestones & highlights)
• Heroes of Mavia — Phase 2: Next Fronter (Reveal on June 14)
• Pirate Nation — $PIRATE Token launch (June 13)
• Illuvium — Official Game Launch on Mainnet (July 25)
• Wanderers — Closed beta reopens (June 13)
• Unioverse — Litepaper release
• Desperado B218 — Android release
• BoomLand — $BOOM token launch (Q3 2024)
• Loot Realms — Launched Force Prime Season 2 Beta (June 6)
• Bitcraft — Closed Alpha 2 (July 8)
• Shrapnel — STX 3.1 Missions (June 24 - 28)
• Beacon — Frontiers Quest Play 2 Airdrop & Play 2 Whitelist (Starts June 10)

🔖 Gaming Reads
• BITKRAFT — How UGC can shape the future of gaming
• Arto (Rumble Arcade) — Are Idle Games Back?
• CryptoClash (EthGlobal HackFS Hackathon) — 3D Multiplayer Crypto Fighting Game
• Kaito AI — TLDR of Treasure DAO's Twitter Space about Arbitrum's $200m gaming fund
• AI-meda Research — Wayfinder: An AI Agent for Web3
• Sasha Fleyshman (Arca) — 2024 is the Cambrian Explosion moment for Web3 Gaming
• Sinjin (MAYG) — For Web3 Game founders, understand the meta, get the attention, be part of the discussion but keep your eye on the prize
• tamagucci — The game genre that benefits the most in the Web3 gaming space are MMORPGs

▶️ Gaming Watch/Listens
• Blockcrunch — Episode 257: YGG is Building the First Guild Protocol (Gabby Dizon)
• Stash (Justin Kan) — Go To Market in Games w/ Mitch Lasky
• Web3 Gaming Pod — Episode 12: Deconstructing Cambria
• donn — Good YouTube playlist doing a critical review of crypto games

💸 Gaming Fundraising
• Xociety — Raised $7.5m Pre-Series A funding round led by Hashed & Sui to continue developing their AAA third-person shooter game

• Sandbox — Raised $20 million in convertible debt at a $1 billion valuation. Currently, $SAND has a market capitalization of $942 million. Previously, Sandbox raised $93 million in a Series B funding round in 2021 and aimed to raise $400 million at a $4 billion valuation in 2022


✅ Gaming Projects
• Variance
• PlayMini
• Cryptara
• Market Wars
• Monark Games
• StarCrus
• GOAT Gaming
• Nowhere3
• Night Market
• Dappmon
• Jutsu World
• Gilded Honor
• Confiction Labs
• Atemu
• Permaverse
• Cyberseum
• Neuphoria

hope helpful wuwu 😆💞

✅ Gaming News
✅ Web3 Gaming Coverage

👋 Web3 Gaming Recap — June 11

🔄 Gaming Updates
• Heroes of Mavia — Phase 2: Next Fronter will include ability to convert Ruby to $MAVIA & $MAVIA to Ruby
• Gangster Arena — Gangster Arena 2 Launch Update (NFT holders can start staking + $GREED token airdrop claimable)
• Wanderers — Second Closed Beta (June 13 - 17)
• Crystals of Naramunz — Closed Beta (June 12)
• Sipher — Play 2 Airdrop now LIVE
• Pirate Nation — Start of Booty Season 2 (June 11)
• Beacon — New Frontiers Quest is LIVE

🔖 Gaming Reads
• Isaac (SNZ Holding) — What is Treasure ($MAGIC), Arbitrum's Gaming Catalyst Program (GCP), how are they linked & what to look out for in the coming weeks
• Aylo — Why Zentry is building a game of games and why you should pay attention if you play any games at all (Web2 or Web3)
• Crypto: The Game — Uniswap Labs is acquiring Crypto: The Game
• Gaming Chronicles — P2A Events, SocialFi, Market Narratives, and more in GC Alpha #1
• GamesTX — Contextualizing Arbitrum's $220 million gaming bet

▶️ Gaming Watch/Listens
• Into The Metaverse — E.L.F. Beauty's Roblox Domination: A Masterclass in Cultivating Community

✅ Gaming Projects
• Playtest AI
• Elixir DAO
• Azura
• Goose Agent

hope helpful wuwu 😆💞

✅ Gaming News
✅ Web3 Gaming Coverage

Look at Gaming #394 | 6.17.2024


GM! Happy Monday. Let's get after it!

First I'll take us down memory lane with a brief history of the mobile games industry.

Although there are linkages way back to 1990s with games like Snake, I want to start post-iPhone in the 2007/8s. (You can read this if you want to go all the way to the 90s)

In the beginning, there were premium games. Remember Angry Birds? What about Fruit Ninja? But those days were short lived as the Free-to-Play shift happened.

This change was hard on the dominant studios. Rovio (creator of Angry Birds) struggled to ship AB2 and even then had to rebuild the game post-launch. King was a browser-based games company that had to transition the whole studio to launch Candy Crush on mobile. Another was Zynga. FarmVille and Mafia Wars were games on Facebook.

Even now, mega studio/publishers like Activision and Take-Two are still feeling their way through mobile. Tencent is a slightly separate story as the company built its gaming initiatives atop the ubiquitous WeChat app. Plus mobile penetration was extremely high in China so the market and the fit was ripe for the taking.

In the mid-to-late 2010s, Hypercasual was at the forefront. These titles' revenue were largely driven by ads. So far we've seen the mobile industry go from premium games, to in-app purchases, then heavy ad monetizations. With nearly a decade and a half of experience, mobile publishers refined their user funnels to drive maximum LTV and conversion rates.

This crescendoed during the COVID lockdown. Gaming across the board hit all-time-highs on basically every metric that matters. What an incredible moment in video game history. Then the party ended.

Apple and Google effectively cracked down on privacy which kneecapped the mobile games industry. If we were to abstract away all of the art, core loop, narrative, mobile games are simply an arbitrage between CAC and LTV. When CAC exploded but LTV remained flat (if not decreased), the math just doesn't math anymore.

Fortunately another shift is underway — albeit a regulatory shift but still potentially good. The EU forced Apple and Google to allow for alternative app stores. Almost immediately companies like Epic Games announced that it would launch a store. Then Microsoft. Then Sony. Then hundreds of others.

The first app store called Aptoide just launched last week with 6 gaming titles. The store is slowly being released to the market with 500 to 1000 daily access codes distributed. There are 100+ developers and 20k users in the waitlist to deploy on the newest app store.

Apptoide is charging 20% for IAP. Additionally, it's reportedly paying $1-$2k to developers to launch a game on their platform. I suppose this is somewhat competitive? But I expect more choices to come to the market and thus the fees would keep compressing.

As an aside, this reminds me of Ben Thomspon (Stretchery) notion on bundling and unbundling. This is clearly an unbundling of the app store but the concept is that this cycle will repeat itself so I wonder if in the future, there were 1000+ app stores, would we need to bundle them up again?

In other news, there are more layoffs in 2024 (as of May) than all of 2023. Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo all stop supporting X (Twitter) as a source to share content. Yet all of us are still on Twitter.

Oh and Bethesda accrued $80M+ in incremental revenue from the TV show. Bullish on transmedia.

Catch y'all next Monday!

-----

⚡ Spotlight 🤩
A brief history of the mobile games industry | PGbiz

Aptoide becomes first non-Apple iOS store | The Verge

All three game console makers have now abandoned X integration | The Verge

There have already been more layoffs in 2024 than in 2023 | Game Industry Layoffs


🌊 MARKET ☎️
There have already been more layoffs in 2024 than in 2023 | Game Industry Layoffs

The state of the hypercasual genre in 2024 | PGBiz


💎 Deep Dives 🔎
GlobalData: The Cloud Gaming Segment Will Grow 7 Times by 2030 | Global Data

Gaming is Personal | Fandom

Newzoo: How Women play Games in 2024 | Newzoo


🌈 Platforms 🏠
All three game console makers have now abandoned X integration | The Verge

Aptoide becomes first non-Apple iOS store | GamesIndustry.biz


✨ Web 3⃣ + Meta 🌐
Uniswap Labs Acquires 'Crypto: The Game' Ahead of Next Season | Decrypt.gg

Sequence and Aethir to Offer Decentralized GPUs for Games | Gam3s.gg

Arbitrum to Launch $215 Million Gaming Catalyst Program | Gam3s.gg


🧠 Knowledge Hub 📘
Mock reviews and game evaluations: what are they, and why are they useful for devs? | GamesIndustry.biz


💲 Fundraising 🤑
Distance Technologies raises $2.7M for glasses-free extended reality apps | GamesBeat

Pixelverse Secures $5.5 Million From Top VCs | Gam3s.gg

Astrocade AI secures $12m in seed funding round | Astrocade AI


👾 Game & Stats Releases 📊
Supercell's Squad Busters team tell all on what's become their biggest launch yet | PGBiz

VG Insights: Fallout TV Series generated over $80M in Incremental Revenue for Bethesda | VGI

👋 Web3 Gaming Recap — June 17 to 18

🔄 Gaming Updates
• Pixels — Launch of Chapter 2 (June 19)
• Worlds — Revealed their team developing Waifu Tactical Force
• Qio Labs — Released footage bringing blockchain tech to Apple Vision Pro
• Ather Labs — Launches Capytal War on TG
• Sophon — Launched farming w/ initial assets, $BEAM (June 18)
• Today The Game — Growth Elixir Mint (June 25)
• Symbiogenesis — Start of Season 2 (June 20)
• AI Arena — $NRN (Neuron) TGE registration on Arbitrum (June 12 - 19)
• Sipher — Launched Android APK
• Lumiterra - Launched $LUDAMOON game (June 18)

🔖 Gaming Reads
• Autonomous Worlds Network — Player Scripted NPCs
• Stash — What games can learn from airline loyalty programs part 1
• Stash — What games can learn from airline loyalty programs part 2
• B3 — How B3 is powering the future of onchain gaming
• Tin (Sipher) — Web3 & AI are pivotal innovations that will get gaming thru its winter
• BITKRAFT — Is mixed reality signaling a platform shift?
• Gangster Arena — How to play Infographic
• Carlos Pereira (BITKRAFT) — What Bodycam is, what it isn't & how it relates to the "Web3 gaming is dead" talk
• Magicblock — Released footage of how their engine accelerates Solana w/o state fragmentation
• tamagucci — Ronin has exceeded expectations
• Footprint Analytics — State of Blockchain Gaming Now
• Luke Barwikowski (Pixels) — Success in Web3 gaming hinges on early shipping and iterative development rather than traditional stealth strategies & premature token launches
• Play AI — 5 ways AI Agents will make games more fun
• AW Research — Onchain game roundup

▶️ Gaming Watch/Listens
• Blockchain Gaming World — Weekly Roundup

💸 Gaming Fundraising
• Pixelverse — Raised $5.5m Funding Round
• Yuliverse — Raised $4m Pre Series A
• Sonic — Solana based gaming chain raised $12m Series A led by BITKRAFT

✅ Gaming Projects
• Qio Labs (VR Project by Inutan Studio — Play Aria)
• B3 (Gaming Ecosystem)
• Natomon
• Edison Metaverse (By BoredElonMusk)
• Variance Poker
• Capytal War
• STARK Arcade
• INTERSTICE
• Bubblewars
• RIVES
• Woah Universe
• Ruyui Studios
• Panda Roll

hope helpful wuwu 😆💞

✅ Gaming News
✅ Web3 Gaming Coverage

👋 Web3 Gaming Recap — June 19 to 20

💎 Gaming Spotlight 🥜
• Ronin introduces zkEVM which unlocks more scalability, cross-chain experiences & economic alignment — Read More

🔄 Gaming Updates
• OhBabyGames — Oh Baby Kart Dev Update #3
• Pixels Online — Launched Chapter 2
• Kaiju Cards — Shutting down after 3 years
• Superverse — Unveiled Altura Grant Fund allocating $1m for Web3 Games
• ARBO — Arena Tactics Build 1.53.2 Patch Notes
• LANIAKEA — Moving to Monadhttps://i.redd.it/x40d88egpsmc1.png
• Crypto Unicorns — Airdrop for $XAI node holders
• Engines of Fury — Alpha scheduled for August 2024
• Degen Wars — Released public fully onchain testnet
• The Machines Arena — Released Whitepaper
• Persona — Launched Season 1.5
• Sonic — Launched Odyssey Testnet Campaign
• METALCORE — Closed Beta 3 (June 27)
• Nyan Heroes — Airdrop Season 2 $NYAN Claim (June 19 - July 3)
• World Shards — Economy Updates
• MON Protocol — LaunchPool #2 (June 24 - 28)
• Fractional Uprising Studios — $FU is both a meme & utility token
• Tatsumeeko — Pre Beta Registration (June 19 - July 1)

🔖 Gaming Reads
• Starknet Foundation — Recipients of Propulsion Program ($20m initiative)
• Simon (Mighty Bear Games) — The Future of Gaming: Why Web3 is unstoppable
• Adrian (Newman Capital) — Is Play to Earn the end game or bug for Web3 gaming
• David Amor (Playmint) — Autonomous Worlds despite being innovative are very niche and have zero to no traction & PMF which illustrate perhaps the cost of trying to introduce new ideas to the world

▶️ Gaming Watch/Listens
• Press Play (Gam3s.GG) — Where are the Gamers

💸 Gaming Fundraising
• Second World Games — Raised $3m in token presale (TGE on June 26)
• Saltwater Games — Closed seed SAFT round for $XR token from Animoca Brands (Previously raised $5.5m led by DeusX, 4RC & Primal Capital)

✅ Gaming Projects
• Trifle
• Warpacks
• Spot Zero
• GameShift
• Saku Monsters
• TWL
• Pioneer
• Blob Arena
• Tale Weaver

hope helpful wuwu 😆💞

✅ Gaming News
✅ Web3 Gaming Coverage

👋 Web3 Gaming Recap — July 1 to 3

🔄 Gaming Updates
• Baratie — GMonster GM Challenge (Join by July 5)
• THE WATCH — Version 2 Private Alpha (July 5)
• Ember Sword — Closed Beta (July 12)
• GOAT Gaming — Launched Road to $GOAT Airdrop Campaign
• Fableborne — Launched Play 2 Airdrop Campaign
• Wild Forest — Launched game & Play 2 Airdrop Season 2
• Shardbound — Launched Public Beta
• Paradise Tycoon — Launched P2A Season 2
• Crypto Unicorns — Launched S1 Play-to-Airdrop
• Decentral Games — Launched BAG City
• Blast Royale — Launched Beta Season 10
• Loot Legends — Launched Pre Registration for Web3 mobile roguelite dungeon crawler game
• Tatsumeeko — Launched Pre Beta Preview #1
• Worldwide Webb — Rebranded to Soulbound
• Cross The Ages — Early Access (December)
• BattleBound — Launched Steam store page for Project A
• Rumble Arcade — Now available as Mobile App PWA
• Aavegotchi — June Highlights
• Petopia — Launching Free For All PvP
• ZTX — Revealed Roadmap
• MARBLEX — Migrating games & dapp services to Immutable zkEVM
• Treasure DAO — Released Developer Docs
• Planet Mojo — New Season (July 11)
• Treeverse — Monthly Update #31
• Pirate Nation — Turned off signups for new accounts to maintain game stability & performance
• Uncharted — Future Roadmap to become gamification layer for crypto

🔖 Gaming Reads
• Autonomous Worlds Network — Pixel Based Digital Physics
• Starknet Foundation — Recipients of Propulsion Program ($20m initiative)
• zKorp — zKastle, solo strategy card game & winner of ETHGlobal StarkHack Dojo Prize
• Blockworks Research — Fully Onchain Gaming & Autonomous Worlds
• Peter (1kx) — Evolution of fully onchain applications
• Arto (Tribo Games) — Is Mobile Gaming mostly casual
• Jon Hook (Play Ember) — Consumer crypto is the trending narrative
• Cipher — Sanko Gamecorp for Dummies
• Vader Research — Is listing your token on Tier 2 CEXs worth it at this point?
• Apix — Influence economy & reward structure breakdown

▶️ Gaming Watch/Listens
• Press Play (Gam3s.GG) — How does a game go about building a brand in Web3?
• Doubl3Tap — Episode 022: Richard Kim (Zero Edge)
• Venture Games — Episode 45: Anton Bernstein (Pocket Worlds)
• Game Economist Cast — E28: B-A-N-A-N-A!
• FOCGERS — The launch of an FOCG, 3 years in the making
• Into The Metaverse — EP.95: Matthew Ball & The Future of the Metaverse (Part 1)

💸 Gaming Fundraising
• Farworld — Closed $1.75m funding round led by Lemniscap & Variant Fund
• Grug’s Lair — Closed pre-seed funding round led by PTC Crypto
• Cambria — Closed $2.5m seed round led by BITKRAFT
• Redacted Coin — Raised $10m to create a Web3 entertainment ecosystem

✅ Gaming Projects
• Heir of Light: Eclipse
• Llama Land
• Immortal Rising
• Runepunk Legends
• zKastle
• Chain Monsters
• Hyve Labs

hope helpful wuwu 😆💞

✅ Gaming News
✅ Web3 Gaming Coverage

Look at Gaming #396 | 7.08.2024

GM! It's Monday so let's get after it!

VCs have always used the heuristic of an "ex-Riot/Blizzard" founder as a reason to invest in them. These two companies (Theorycraft and Singularity) are the bellwether for whether that investment thesis works or not.

Secondly, I want to highlight how games are fluid and will find ways to spread into a users' daily content consumption regiment. There are many forms of games and evidently Chinese gamers aside from playing core games they also find these filler mini games. Additionally, the delivery factor and access point matters. As most mini games are played within another app.

Speaking of mini games, my favorite type of mini games are co-op games. I played 'It Takes Two' with my wife and it was such a blast. Things generally move in cycles and in the games industry we've gone from single-player titles, to co-op games, to massive multiplayer online games, and now reverting to co-op. In 2023, 6% of games released were co-op titles YET 36% OF UNITS SOLD ARE CO-OP GAMES.

Also some bright light in the industry. Layoffs have impacted many in the industry and it seems like it finally slowed down.

Have a wonderful week and catch y'all next week!

-----

⚡ Spotlight 🤩
Theorycraft vs. Singularity 6: Is the biggest investment thesis in gaming at risk? | GameMakers

Two-thirds of Chinese mobile gamers play mini games | PGBiz

Amir Satvat finds the smallest of tea leaves for the game job market: growth is returning | GamesBeat

VG Insights: Cooperative Games on Steam in 2024 | VGInsights


🌊 MARKET 📞
Theorycraft vs. Singularity 6: Is the biggest investment thesis in gaming at risk? | GameMakers

These 27 brands are sponsoring the 2024 Esports World Cup | GamesBeat

Two-thirds of Chinese mobile gamers play mini games | PGBiz

Skillz files suit against Voodoo as part of its ongoing bot battle | GamesBeat

Amir Satvat finds the smallest of tea leaves for the game job market: growth is returning | GamesBeat

Animoca Brands eyes IPO in Hong Kong or Dubai for 2025 | PGBiz


💎 Deep Dives 🔎
Netflix Games: mistakes and opportunities | MobileDevMemo

The Long Road Ahead for the Esports World Cup | The Fudge Retort

How consumers engage with games today | Newzoo

Meta’s “pay or okay” model violates the DMA | MobileDevMemo

VG Insights: Cooperative Games on Steam in 2024 | VGInsights

Niko Partners: Chinese Gamers in 2024 | Niko Partners


🌈 Platforms 🏠
Apple 30% fee extends to Instagram and Facebook ads worldwide today | PGBiz

Epic says its EU iOS app store is approved but that Apple wants a change | The Verge

Ex-Rockstar dev says GTA Online got so big, it killed GTA 5's story DLC | GameDeveloper

NASCAR brings its familiar roadways to Fortnite’s Rocket Racing | GamesBeat

Netflix's latest big name release is Microsoft's Minesweeper from 1990 | PGBiz


✨ Web 3⃣ + Meta 🌐
Ubisoft is still trying to make NFTs happen | GameDeveloper


🧠 Knowledge Hub 📘
Analyzing New Game Ideas for Market Success: Strategic Toolkit | GameDeveloper

What are 'skip-its' and how will they affect ad monetisation in 2024? | PGBiz

Training the game designers of tomorrow (part 1 of 5) | GameDeveloper


💲 Fundraising 🤑
Finnish startup Bitmagic raises $4 million for AI platform able to create games from text prompts | PGBiz