The blockchain version of CS has raised $20 million in Series A funding: Can Shrapnel deliver an ultimate P2E experience?

In the world of esports, every update and every new item can spark heated discussions and pursuits among players.
"Counter-Strike: Global Offensive" (CS:GO) has driven players crazy with its unique weapon trading system, making every new crate a target for players. But we can't help but ask, do these items obtained with real money truly belong to the players?
Now, with the combination of blockchain technology and FPS games, item equipment data will be stored on the chain, leading to the emergence of a new FPS competitive game, "Shrapnel." Will it be able to ignite the enthusiasm and investment of players like CS:GO?
In this article, we will explore the background of "Shrapnel" and see how it brings more innovation and opportunities to players in the context of new technology.

The parent company has secured significant funding; the future of Shrapnel looks promising

Game development studio Neon Machine has completed a $20 million Series A funding round, led by Polychain Capital, with participation from Griffin Gaming Partners, Brevan Howard Digital, Franklin Templeton, IOSG Ventures, and Tess Ventures.
Neon Machine will use this round of funding to further develop its shooting game Shrapnel, with the game team planning to release an early access version this December and a full release in 2024. The Shrapnel team currently has 70 employees.

In the current market environment, this funding indicates the development potential of "Shrapnel" in the blockchain gaming market. With "Shrapnel" set to launch for paid users in December and a full free release in 2024, market expectations are gradually rising. Against this backdrop, this article will delve into the background, gameplay, market performance, and other aspects of "Shrapnel" to provide readers with a comprehensive understanding.

FPS games, short for First-Person Shooter, are an important subcategory of video games. In these games, players engage from a first-person perspective, as if they are personally immersed in the game world.

The core gameplay of FPS games focuses on shooting and tactical strategy, where players control characters to fight against enemies, using various weapons and equipment to achieve game objectives. These games are often loved by players for their high immersion and intense combat scenes. From early titles like "DOOM" and "Counter-Strike" to modern series like "Call of Duty" and "Battlefield," FPS games have evolved over decades, continuously bringing innovation and surprises to players.

Competitive FPS games have revitalized the shooting game category, bringing high levels of engagement, retention, and spending rates. According to Newzoo, by January 2022, FPS games had the highest monthly active users (MAUs) among all PC games. The average daily playtime for PC shooting games also exceeds two hours. This strong engagement translates into revenue, as PC shooting games have higher average spending compared to other PC games.

When discussing traditional FPS games, it's hard not to mention "Counter-Strike: Global Offensive" (CS:GO). As one of the representative works of FPS games today, CS:GO is not only loved by players for its thrilling gameplay but has also garnered widespread attention globally due to its built-in weapon trading system. Players can buy, sell, and trade various weapon skins through the in-game trading system, which hold considerable value in the gaming community.

However, the trading system of CS:GO has also exposed some issues. Since it is based on traditional centralized servers, players do not truly own their items. This means that if the game servers shut down or players are banned, they may lose all their items and investments.

With the rise of blockchain technology, the gaming industry is undergoing unprecedented changes. Among them, FPS games, as an important part of esports, combined with blockchain, bring players a new gaming experience, which is the opportunity that blockchain technology offers to FPS games. In blockchain games, players truly own their game assets, which are stored on a decentralized network, free from control by any centralized entity. This brings the following advantages to FPS games:

1. Real virtual economic system: Players can freely trade their items in-game or on external markets without restrictions.
2. Data transparency and security: All transactions are publicly recorded on the blockchain, allowing players to verify and audit at any time.
3. Protection of player rights: Players truly own their game assets, free from control by game developers or platforms.

However, blockchain FPS games also face some challenges:

1. Technical difficulties: How to ensure game performance is comparable to traditional FPS games while handling blockchain transactions.
2. Market acceptance: Although blockchain technology offers many advantages, some players may be hesitant, concerned about its complexity and novelty.

Blockchain technology brings real virtual economic systems, data transparency and security, and greater player participation in game content and rules to FPS games, but it also faces challenges in technology and market acceptance.

Introduction to the Shrapnel project: A blockchain FPS game created by a strong professional team

"Shrapnel" is a competitive multiplayer FPS game developed by a team of industry-leading AAA game and blockchain project experts. The development team, Neon, is based in a waterfront office in Seattle, Washington, and split from the well-known company HBO Interactive in 2014. It is an independent team composed of designers, producers, artists, and programmers with rich experience in games, television, film, and graphic novels, having participated in the production of over 30 well-known games and films, including "Halo," "Call of Duty," "Madden NFL," "Bioshock," "Destiny," "Star Wars," "Hawken," "Skylanders," and "Westworld," winning more than 40 entertainment awards, including Emmy Awards and BAFTA Awards.
Team members have considerable relevant experience, and their real names and photos are displayed on their official website, making them verifiable individuals, which sets them apart from other anonymous projects. Among them, CEO Mark Long has worked on platforms such as Sega Genesis and PlayStation 4, developing many heavyweight games for major clients like Disney, Ubisoft, and the U.S. Army.
The team split from HBO Interactive in 2014; in November 2021, they raised $10.5 million in a seed round led by Griffin Gaming Partners and Polychain Capital; in April 2022, they completed a $7 million token sale; and in October 2023, they completed a $20 million Series A funding round, led by Polychain, with participation from Griffin Gaming Partners, Brevan Howard Digital, Franklin Templeton, IOSG Ventures, and Tess Ventures.

The team has always aimed to build a competitive multiplayer online FPS game where players can participate in modifications and own assets. Players can create content in the game, providing a simple way to reward them for their time spent doing what they love, allowing players to modify and create their own games, such as CALLSIGNS and INSIGNIA, and mint them as NFTs to trade on the market. Additionally, the game introduces the SHRAP token, an ERC-20 token created on the Avalanche C-chain, used for governance, minting player-created content, staking, and more.

This combination allows players not only to enjoy the game but also to gain real economic returns through trading. Furthermore, "Shrapnel" uses the industry-leading Unreal Engine, which elevates the characters, environments, and visual effects in the game to a very high standard. Player-created assets and maps look cohesive and realistic, thanks to real-time rendering with Lumen dynamic lighting.
Shrapnel chose to develop on the Avalanche subnet primarily for its usability, accessibility, and security features. Avalanche enables "SHRAPNEL" to provide optimal performance through its unique subnet architecture, innovative Snowman consensus, and unparalleled security guarantees. With Avalanche's sub-second settlement times and low transaction fees, an excellent user experience can be ensured on the platform, providing a better network for game transactions.
Traditional games are centralized, controlled by developers who set the rules players must follow. In contrast, blockchain games return power to the community, inviting players to make specific decisions regarding design, roadmaps, and aesthetics. This means players truly own their game assets, which are visible on the blockchain, allowing them to gain a sense of belonging for creation, curation, and game interaction. Shrapnel collaborates with anti-cheat company Anybrain to build new models for detecting fraudulent player behavior.

Does the SHRAP token have investment value? First, understand its economic model

The SHRAP token is the core economic unit in the "Shrapnel" game, playing a crucial role in the economic system and interactions between players. The SHRAP token is an ERC-20 token created on the Avalanche C-chain and is introduced for use in the SHAPNEL subnet. On April 29, 2023, a total of three billion SHRAP tokens were generated. The total supply of 3 billion SHRAP tokens will never increase. It is expected that no other tradable tokens will be created or minted.
The distribution and unlocking of SHRAP tokens are shown in the following diagrams:

The application of SHRAP tokens in the game is very extensive. One of the main applications of SHRAP tokens is for publishing player-created content (PCC). All PCC on the platform will be published on-chain as NFT items using SHRAP tokens, meaning that when players create content in the game and mint it as NFTs, they need to use SHRAP as a payment method. This allows players to own the content, and they can choose to sell, auction, or retain ownership of their creations. This mechanism encourages players to participate in content creation in the game and provides them with real economic incentives.
SHRAP tokens also have value outside the game. As an ERC-20 token, players can trade SHRAP on various decentralized exchanges or use it for other Avalanche C-chain compatible applications and services. In terms of technical implementation, the Shrapnel platform is designed to systematically pay validators within the subnet, providing players and creators with an experience that does not require paying gas fees. Additionally, SHRAP tokens are used as a medium of exchange in the Shrapnel marketplace.
SHRAP tokens are also closely related to the game's governance and promotion mechanisms. All SHRAP holders can promote maps and certain items using their tokens as a way to vote on content; moreover, promoters can earn SHRAP as rewards based on the popularity of the content.

Overall, the SHRAP token is key to the economy and community participation in the "Shrapnel" game, providing players with a new way to interact with the game while also bringing them real economic returns.

The value of Web3 FPS is promising; Shrapnel is expected to become a new benchmark in blockchain games

As an emerging blockchain FPS game, "Shrapnel" undoubtedly demonstrates strong potential in technology, team background, and market strategy. Its emergence coincides with the booming development of the blockchain gaming market, while the technology and partners behind it provide solid support. However, whether "Shrapnel" can become the CS:GO of blockchain games is not a straightforward answer.
CS:GO, as a classic FPS game, owes its success not only to its gameplay but also to its large player base, community activity, and years of refined game balance. While "Shrapnel" has clear advantages in technology and innovation, it will need the test of time and market validation to reach the status of CS:GO.
However, as we can see, "Shrapnel" showcases its unique value in the application of blockchain technology, encouragement of player-created content, and deep collaboration with several well-known partners. If "Shrapnel" can continue to optimize the gaming experience, strengthen interaction with players and the community, and gain recognition in the market, it has every potential to become a new benchmark in the blockchain gaming space.