Through Karmaverse Zombie, looking at the future development trends of the GameFi track

Author: Kar

Since May of this year, various factors have caused the cryptocurrency industry to gradually enter a bear market cycle, and various sectors have begun to face development difficulties, especially in the GameFi sector, where the situation is even more pronounced. The vast majority of GameFi applications have seen a sharp decline in revenue, trading volume, and active user numbers due to the significant depreciation of incentive token values.

Although the GameFi sector as a whole has entered a "winter" of development, we see that Karmaverse Zombie, a blockchain game launched in April this year, has managed to maintain its appeal to players even in the overall market downturn, continuously converting new users into sticky users of Karmaverse Zombie and consistently maintaining a very high retention rate.

Since its launch, Karmaverse Zombie has maintained a high growth rate in metrics such as DAU, MAU, and NFT trading rates, especially with new users increasing by tens of thousands for several consecutive months. For example, user activity data shows:

• In July, its daily active users reached 8000+ from July 15 to August 15, which is a* 38% increase compared to the previous month ( June 15 to July 15).*
• Monthly active players once approached 80,000, representing an increase of about 234.7% compared to May.
• The retention rate of players holding NFTs for 90 days is as high as 72%,***
• Each player's game time is approximately 127 minutes.
• The app has nearly 50,000 users.

In addition, according to Dappradar data, Karmaverse Zombie once ranked fifth among games on the Polygon chain (and reached as high as third), and it is listed in the TOP 20 among all chain games.

Karmaverse Zombie is currently one of the few GameFi applications that can maintain stable and significant data growth in a bear market environment.

This article will take Karmaverse Zombie as an example to analyze the reasons for its popularity and advantages, as well as the overall development prospects of the Karmaverse gaming ecosystem, to analyze the potential development trends of the GameFi sector in the future.

Introduction to Karmaverse Zombie's Parent Ecosystem Karmaverse Gaming Platform

• Karmaverse Gaming Platform

According to Karmaverse, it is a AAA game multiverse that includes multiple game metaverses. We can consider Karmaverse as a blockchain-based game distribution platform, and the games it publishes are mostly developed by its own team (a Web3 game ecosystem). Karmaverse aims to be built into a rich and lasting game universe, which will include ecosystems, game characters, token circulation, etc., to create a healthy and sustainable GameFi platform.

The platform plans to release a series of blockchain games, including Karmaverse Zombie, Fantasy World, Old West, Cyberpunk, etc. Karmaverse Zombie, launched in April this year, is the first game they have released.

It is worth mentioning that the Karmaverse team has previously achieved remarkable success in the traditional gaming field, having developed two top-selling SLG (real-time strategy) mobile games, "King of Avalon" and "Guns of Glory," which ranked among the top ten in mobile gaming history. Notably, "King of Avalon" has over 100 million global downloads and has been the best-selling game in 67 countries, generating over $2 billion in revenue and 5 million monthly active users. Therefore, whether in the traditional gaming field or the blockchain gaming field, the Karmaverse team's game development philosophy, development strength, and operational capability are top-notch.

• Karmaverse Zombie

Karmaverse Zombie is a GameFi mobile game that serves as the "opening work" of the Karmaverse ecosystem. It features a novel game format, using a match-three game model as its foundation, further introducing SLG game mechanics. The game positions itself as "Play and Earn" rather than just "Play to Earn."

The game is set in a post-apocalyptic world filled with zombies and mutants, telling the story of a group of survivors fighting against zombies and building shelters—players will gather survivors, battle zombies, construct shelters, and create a new future for humanity.

Upon entering the game, players need to obtain 3 NFT heroes to start (the free player system will provide three non NFT heroes for free play). Karmaverse Zombie is based on a level progression system, where players will sequentially challenge 23 large venues such as churches, amusement parks, central squares, city halls, police stations, and banks in the world mode. Each venue contains multiple levels, and players defeat zombies in each level through match-three gameplay.

Players can choose to bring a minimum of three and a maximum of five heroes into battle each time (the number of NFT heroes in the team will affect the rewards players can earn in different game modes), and each hero has different skills (by eliminating blocks to attack zombies, players also accumulate mana to unleash skills against zombies). When a zombie's health bar reaches zero, the level is successfully cleared, unlocking the next level (if a hero's health bar reaches zero, the level is failed). During the process of defeating zombies, players will also receive various rewards, including crafting materials and Serum tokens. Different heroes and zombies have different skills, star ratings, talents, levels, speeds, etc., and both heroes and captured zombies can be upgraded.

Additionally, in the SLG gameplay, each player has a "shelter" upon entering the game, where they can upgrade building facilities based on strategy using resources (obtained through gameplay or purchase) to gain more resources, rewards, and enhance combat and defense capabilities. Furthermore, Karmaverse Zombie has set up alliances, PVP, bounty contracts, and many other gameplay elements worth exploring.

Some rewards in Karmaverse Zombie can be monetized, such as the withdrawal of Serum and KNOTS assets, which can also be traded in the secondary market. Additionally, some NFT zombies, NFT heroes, and advanced materials can be sold in the Karmaverse marketplace for cash.

Unlike other GameFi games, Karmaverse Zombie allows non-paying players to participate in the game, with both NFT heroes and non-NFT (free) heroes available.

NFT Heroes: Players can obtain them through NFT sales, market trading, in-game drops, or gameplay (using other NFT heroes to heal zombies).

Non-NFT Heroes: Given to players upon entering the game, they can also be purchased from the in-game store or obtained by playing the game (using non-NFT heroes to heal zombies in the biological laboratory).

Whether NFT heroes or non-NFT heroes, players can enjoy the fun of the game through gameplay actions while earning withdrawable rewards. Of course, NFT heroes may have more efficiency and rights in earning rewards.

Through a simple experience of the Karmaverse Zombie game, we see that it continues the high-quality and engaging characteristics of traditional games like "King of Avalon" and "Guns of Glory," and Karmaverse Zombie's playability is on par with current mobile game standards. Moreover, the user base of Karmaverse Zombie is not limited to crypto users; traditional gamers still account for a significant proportion, further contributing to higher user loyalty for Karmaverse Zombie.

Advantages and Prospects of Karmaverse Zombie Game

Karmaverse Zombie is unique compared to both traditional games and GameFi games.

• Organic Combination of Match-Three Gameplay and SLG Game Model in GameFi Form

Karmaverse Zombie is currently the first GameFi game that integrates match-three gameplay with the SLG model. Both match-three games and SLG games are backed by a large user base, so the player demographic for Karmaverse Zombie is relatively broad, establishing an early foundation.

Match-three games have been validated by the market over many years and have a high acceptance rate among potential players, whether they are young or older. Data reports indicate that a single match-three game can have up to 800 million users, with the age distribution showing that match-three game users are concentrated between 35-54 years old. Additionally, middle-aged and older users have a strong willingness to pay, and match-three games rank at the top in terms of overall app user scale, activity rate, and user stickiness. According to a Gamma data survey on casual games, 74.8% of players prefer elimination-type games.

The match-three game model is simple and easy to understand, which lowers the learning cost for players and thus reduces the entry barrier for the game. Match-three games are usually categorized by shape or color, allowing players with color recognition or visual discrimination difficulties to enjoy the game easily, providing a user-friendly experience. Although match-three games are simple, they are easy to understand but hard to master, offering considerable challenges and fun. Thus, this game model is inherently playable, allowing players to discover and enjoy the fun and immersive experience within the game. At the same time, the zero-barrier free participation to earn rewards means that Karmaverse Zombie's user base is not limited to crypto users; all gamers have the potential to become its users.

Match-three games represent an untapped territory in the GameFi sector, as there is currently no mature match-three GameFi game, allowing it to fully enjoy the early market dividends of match-three games in the GameFi field.

Using match-three games as the primary game model and organically combining it with the SLG game model adds a new narrative direction for Karmaverse Zombie. From the perspective of traditional games, many believe that lightweight and casual games are a future trend for mobile games, a view that has gradually changed with the emergence of SLG games.

We see that SLG games are currently one of the game types with the best user stickiness and monetization capabilities, which the Karmaverse team must have deeply experienced after launching "King of Avalon" and "Guns of Glory."

Although the rise and development of SLG games have not been long, we see that SLG games, once considered "niche," often attract a large number of dedicated SLG players with high loyalty. These players typically have a mature gaming mindset and have formed very solid gaming habits. The sense of achievement gained through strategic gameplay further drives their intrinsic motivation, overshadowing the aesthetic fatigue caused by repetitive content (match-three gameplay).

SLG games are strategy-based, so most players may need to spend considerable time cultivating their "game cognition" for the game. Compared to "hardcore" gameplay, the long learning time and associated sunk costs usually make players reluctant to leave (of course, a significant portion of players also invest funds through in-game purchases), gradually becoming "hardcore" players. Therefore, in terms of loyalty and user stickiness, SLG game players typically outperform other game types.

Thus, from these two game models, whether match-three gameplay or SLG gameplay, both have a strong ability to attract user stickiness and can use the SLG model to compensate for the gameplay fatigue caused by repetitive content in match-three games, forming a complementary relationship. The SLG game model can also significantly consume the output of the match-three game model, promoting a positive cycle in the economic ecosystem.

The Karmaverse team itself has extensive development and operational experience in the SLG game field and is also expected to fill the gap of high-quality SLG games missing in the GameFi sector through Karmaverse Zombie.

Traditional games are not lacking in quality, but players can only gain gaming experiences without actual earnings. Karmaverse Zombie is on par with traditional games in terms of production quality and gaming experience, and on this basis, anyone can earn rewards (Crypto/NFT) through the low-barrier "Play and Earn" method. Additionally, assets such as heroes and captured zombies in the game can circulate as NFTs and be sold in the market, which is attractive to traditional players. This is one of Karmaverse Zombie's main advantages in competing with traditional games.

• From Play to Earn to Play and Earn

Karmaverse Zombie is built on the foundation of playability, further deepening the construction of other elements such as match-three gameplay and SLG gameplay, which can provide players with a rich, strategy-based gaming experience and immersion compared to other game modes. Non-paying players and paying players can find their positioning in the game and receive corresponding monetizable rewards. Karmaverse Zombie is inclusive of various types of players, especially traditional gamers, who will not be turned away by the high barriers of GameFi. They can gradually explore and learn about the uniqueness of GameFi after entering the game, gradually accepting and recognizing crypto assets, and eventually transforming into paying players for a better gaming experience.

Crypto investors also need gaming behavior to continuously explore and adapt within the game, with the purpose of investing funds being to better support gaming actions. Only by deeply participating in the game can they achieve considerable gaming rewards. The game's rewards will no longer be the primary factor determining player stickiness, and the game's development will no longer be overly affected by market fluctuations.

Moreover, in terms of ecological supply and demand, Karmaverse has developed a DBAS (Dynamic Balance Adjustment System) to address the imbalance of token production and consumption within the ecosystem. The core of DBAS is to provide incentives to encourage users to consume tokens when consumption declines, thereby increasing their investment in the game. By dynamically adjusting the economic cycle, it further helps the ecosystem achieve macro control to continuously consume output and solidify the value base.

Karmaverse Zombie is built on the principle of "PAE," which fundamentally distinguishes it from existing GameFi applications.

GameFi is a category under the broader game category, but early GameFi applications often tended to sacrifice gameplay to compromise towards P2E to cater to crypto users. This means that early GameFi applications primarily targeted crypto users, whose loyalty to the game itself is highly tied to earnings (completely dependent on the performance of incentive tokens). The lack of playability means that GameFi does not attract seasoned traditional gamers, as traditional gamers seek gaming experiences.

However, from a long-term perspective, traditional gamers should actually be the main target user group for GameFi applications. On one hand, traditional gamers represent a very large user base and are usually willing to pay for gaming experiences. They typically possess reliable loyalty and stickiness, and traditional gamers are expected to become the backbone of GameFi development.

On the other hand, traditional gamers are usually mature, possessing a relatively mature and complete "game view" and "value view." Therefore, the influx of traditional gamers often drives the development of the GameFi sector and the further maturity of the industry. The "Earn" feature can serve as a supplementary advantage for GameFi to compete with traditional games rather than being a primary feature, which industry practitioners need to view dialectically. Crypto investors should also become gamers under the right guidance; any investment behavior aims to assist in pre-learning actions. Those who fail to become loyal GameFi players and remain mere speculators will gradually detach from the GameFi user base.

Thus, in terms of ideology, Karmaverse Zombie's "PAE" and the existing "P2E" represent two completely different ideologies. "PAE" provides a good reference for the clear identification of GameFi user target groups and the establishment of its purpose. We also have reason to believe that it will be one of the development trends for GameFi in the future.

Token Economic Model of Karmaverse Zombie

The Karmaverse ecosystem has established a parent-child token mechanism, with KNOT as the parent token of the Karmaverse platform, while the tokens launched within the game will serve as its child tokens. Currently, Karmaverse Zombie, as the first GameFi game within the ecosystem, uses SERUM as its sub-token.

KNOT is the main and practical token that embodies the core value of the Karmaverse ecosystem, with a total supply of 210 million. Its uses include:

• Consumption in key scenarios such as healing zombies and upgrading heroes in the Zombie game.
• Settlement currency in the Karma Marketplace.
• Governance and voting.
• Liquidity mining.
• Minting NFTs.

KNOT can only be obtained through special events, PVP, or by purchasing from the secondary market. As other game worlds develop, KNOT will have more significant utility within Karmaverse.

SERUM is the sub-token in the Zombie game, produced daily when players reach a certain level. In battles, both PVE and PVP will yield SERUM as game output, and upgrading heroes and purchasing equipment will also require consuming SERUM. Currently, the number of addresses holding SERUM is continuously growing and becoming more decentralized, indicating that more and more users are participating in the game and continuously earning tokens to become holders.

As of August 17, Karmaverse has announced relevant token lock-up/destruction plans:

• 90,000 KNOT (from market trading fees and other costs) approximately accounts for 0.19% of the circulating supply and has been locked.
• 90,000 SERUM (from game enhancements and related consumption) approximately accounts for 19% of the total issuance and is collected for destruction.

In the future, Karmaverse will continue to promote the lock-up and destruction plans for KNOT, SERUM, and other sub-tokens.

Karmaverse Team and Financing

The Karmaverse team mainly consists of core members from the creative teams behind "King of Avalon" and "Guns of Glory." Karmaverse is headquartered in Hong Kong, with team members spread across the globe, including California, Malaysia, the UAE, Europe, and China, with a decentralized structure.

In February of this year, Karmaverse raised a total of $8 million in private financing led by top venture capital firms such as A&T Capital, TPS, and YGG SEA. Other top investors participating in this round of financing include Foresight Ventures, Polygon Studios, Cao Zhen (Partner of Republic), OKX Blockdream Ventures, NFX, Mindfulness Capital, GSR Ventures, HashKey Capital, Fundamental Labs, Y2Z, L2Y, and Altonomy.

In terms of partnerships, Karmaverse has also established strategic collaborations with many top gaming guilds, including YGG SEA, GGG, Avocado, Balthazar, PathDAO, LLG, etc., and the partnerships are continuously expanding, helping Karmaverse grow its player base.

Conclusion

Although the industry is in a bear market, the excellent data performance of Karmaverse Zombie since its launch in April this year is striking, demonstrating the foresight and trendiness of the Karmaverse development team in game design philosophy.

Karmaverse Zombie deeply integrates match-three games with SLG game models for the first time and presents it in the form of GameFi, creating a blockchain game that combines playability, gaming experience, and immersion. It fills the gap in the GameFi sector for high-quality match-three and SLG games and lowers the entry barrier for everyone to participate in the game through a free approach, being friendly and inclusive to all types of players.

Karmaverse Zombie builds a new ideology of "PAE" based on game playability and low barriers to create a gaming ecosystem, aiming to further expand the player base of GameFi and potentially providing an early reference for the development of the existing GameFi sector. In the future, Karmaverse will successively launch other games within the ecosystem, which is also worth looking forward to.