Ecological players exceed one million, reviewing the 13 games currently promoted by Immutable

Author: Zen, PANews

At the beginning of this year, the gaming public chain Immutable launched the early access version of the Immutable zkEVM mainnet supported by Polygon, officially kicking off the rapid development of its ecosystem. As we entered the second quarter, with the launch of "Guild of Guardians" and the release of the "Main Quest," which boasts rewards exceeding $50 million and is claimed to be the largest Web3 gaming mission and reward program in history, its integrated player identity solution, Immutable Passport, achieved significant growth, with registered users officially surpassing 1 million, doubling in May alone.

Immutable zkEVM aims to provide dedicated chains for game developers, combining the advantages of zk-rollup technology with the Ethereum ecosystem, featuring EVM compatibility, low costs, large-scale scalability, and enterprise-level security. In addition to supporting game infrastructure, Immutable has also begun providing funding to game developers. In March of this year, Immutable, in partnership with venture capital firm King River Capital and Polygon Labs, established a $100 million Web3 gaming fund called the "Inevitable Games Fund" (IGF). Immutable and Polygon Labs will seek investment opportunities, while King River will manage the investment process and deploy funds among game studios and Web3 infrastructure companies.

Thanks to its technological foundation and financial support, Immutable zkEVM quickly attracted a large number of game developers. According to Immutable co-founder Robbie Ferguson, in the first five months of this year, the number of games signed with sufficient funding reached 147, surpassing the total for the entire year of 2023, with plans to launch over 60 more games in the next five months. Among these more than 200 games, over a dozen related to the "Main Quest" are clearly the current focus of its layout. What are these games? What standout performances do they have? This article by PANews will review these games.

Illuvium

A game world composed of multiple games, including the simulation management game Zero, the open-world adventure game Overworld, the auto-chess strategy game Arena, and the NFT collection game Beyond. Each game has unique gameplay mechanics targeting different player groups, yet they are interconnected through the extraction and utilization of resources across different games. The blockchain game Illuvium launched its Open Beta testnet at the end of May and is available on the Epic Games Store, offering versions for Windows and macOS. To date, Illuvium has completed four rounds of financing, raising a total of $65 million, with investors including IOSG Ventures, Framework Ventures, Animoca Brands, Spartan Capital, and Polygon Ventures. Additionally, Illuvium raised approximately $72 million in 2022 through the sale of Illuvium Zero land.

Guild of Guardians

A rogue-lite mobile role-playing game inspired by "Diablo" and "Dungeons & Dragons," developed by Stepico Games and published by Immutable. On May 15 of this year, Guild of Guardians was globally released, launching simultaneously on the Apple iOS App Store and Google Android Play Store. The game had over 1 million pre-registered players before its release, and on its first day, daily active users increased more than 20 times, reaching the top ten in the Android and Apple app stores in the United States, the Philippines, and Singapore.

Hunters On-Chain

A top-down casual PvE action-adventure game, available for free on the web, Android, and iOS. Hunters On-Chain is developed by blockchain game developer and publisher BoomLand, whose team members are experienced gaming professionals, claiming to have released over 200 games with more than 1.5 billion downloads to date. Hunters On-Chain offers various gameplay modes based on PvE and PvP, including a fast-paced hunting mode, a cooperative mode to protect the king, special challenges to hunt bosses, dueling modes to compete against other players, and a battle royale mode called "Bounty Hunters" for 10 participants. Recently, Hunters On-Chain launched a Play To Airdrop event, which will include two seasons, each lasting one month, with a total prize pool of 250 million $BOOM tokens.

Baby Shark Universe

An underwater ocean-themed open-world role-playing game where players can create their own items, maps, and other game content, interact with other players, and expand the game based on their choices and actions. The developers of the game have over a decade of experience working at the South Korean gaming company Nexon. Baby Shark Universe will offer various metaverse-based gameplay, including combat, collection, and crafting, as well as NFT trading among users. It will eventually support user-generated content (UGC) features, allowing users to create and contribute their own content. In May of this year, Baby Shark Universe announced the completion of a seed round of financing at a valuation of $34 million, with investors including Animoca Brands, CREDIT SCEND, the Sui Foundation, and Comma3 Ventures.

Storm Warfare

A free collectible card game themed around World War II, currently launched on Windows and macOS, with plans to release on iOS and Android mobile platforms soon. The game features cards divided into four different types: units, vehicles, artillery, and support, with each card having its own attack and defense attributes, as well as different characteristics and abilities. By collecting cards and building decks, players will simulate battlefield tactics in World War II and engage in combat with other players, aiming to win by reducing the enemy commander’s health to zero. Storm Warfare features an in-game marketplace where players can buy, sell, or trade their in-game NFT cards and items. From June 28 to July 12, Storm Warfare will launch a tournament offering airdrops of 50,000 IMX tokens and a prize pool of over $50,000.

Space Nation

A space opera-themed massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) that stands out with its vast future world, complex characters, and intricate narrative, receiving strong support from partners and VCs. The game has invested a total of $50 million in development, with supporters including Foresight Ventures, Lighthouse Capital, SevenX Ventures, HashKey Capital, and Arcane Group. The story is set in the fictional Telikos star cluster, a deep space frontier inhabited by builders, warriors, and survivors of various races. Players will take on the role of interstellar spaceship captains, embarking on an adventurous journey, facing deadly pirates, traversing dangerous environments, and discovering secrets and treasures. Space Nation is currently running the Space Odyssey 101 event, offering rewards including 1 million OIK, closed beta 2.0 access codes, and fuel.

Katana Inu

A battle game featuring humanoid Shiba Inu as the main characters, with different characters possessing various combat styles such as martial arts, magic, and melee. The gameplay of Katana Inu mainly includes a battle royale mode allowing up to 60 players to compete in an open-world environment, as well as 1v1 and 3v3 arena battles. The game employs a "P2E" mechanism, with its NFT marketplace allowing players to exchange in-game items like skins, hats, and clothes for the game’s native token $KATA. As of June 25, the fully diluted valuation of the KATA token is approximately $40 million, with a decline of about 32% in the past month. Katana Inu recently partnered with the popular meme token Baby Doge on BNB to launch a limited NFT series, limited to 1,000 pieces, set to be released on June 27.

Rebel Bots: Epic War

A casual game that combines MOBA mechanics with collectible card gameplay, now available on the Apple iOS App Store and Google Android Play Store. In the game, players control their unique robots, each with specialized abilities and roles, aiming to outsmart and defeat opponents. The game emphasizes teamwork and strategy, requiring players to make potentially game-changing decisions in an instant. What sets the game apart is its integration of collectible cards, allowing players to collect various robots, abilities, and enhancement items, with each robot and card being a unique NFT. By participating in matches and achieving victories, players can earn loot boxes containing random cards and items.

Battle Bears Heroes

A top-down 3v3 shooting game featuring various gameplay modes including mini MOBA, deathmatch, battle royale, and campaign modes. The previous game in the series, "Battle Bears," has accumulated over 40 million downloads, including Battle Bears -1 and Battle Bears 1: Zombies. BB H is a remake of the classic BB GO from 2010, featuring new heroes, PvP modes, and a new version of Battle Bears -1 with the same nostalgic cutscenes. BB H diverged from Ronin in March of this year and officially announced its release on Immutable zkEVM a month later. It is expected to launch in July, with pre-registration now open.

Zoids Wild Arena

Zoids Wild Arena is a collectible card game developed by ACT Games, which joined the Immutable ecosystem in May of this year. The game is inspired by the popular ZOIDS anime series from the well-known Japanese toy manufacturer TOMY Company, Ltd., featuring cards designed as mecha robots based on dinosaurs and animals, which can be traded, collected, and battled. Specifically, players will use 30 cards to build decks for 1v1 battles, with each player using their pre-assembled deck. In matches, players take turns using their cards with different strategies, aiming to reduce their opponent's health to zero to win.

Paradise Tycoon

A simulation multiplayer role-playing game developed by the game studio Empires Not Vampires. Its gameplay mechanics are similar to "Stardew Valley," where players own a tropical island and must make it prosperous through organizing, crafting, and decorating. In February of last year, Empires Not Vampires completed a $1 million financing round, with investors including Shima Capital and Zee Prime Capital. The game is currently in public beta version 2.0, supporting in-game resource trading and NFT trading for crafted items and blueprints. Paradise Tycoon was initially developed on Avalanche but later transitioned to Immutable. Its second season Play-to-Airdrop will launch on June 27, allowing players to participate for free.

Arena of Faith

A 5V5 MOBA game themed around the struggle between gods and humans, developed by VORTEX LABS, now available on the Apple iOS App Store and Google Android Play Store. The basic gameplay of Arena of Faith is similar to other MOBA games like Honor of Kings, where 10 players are divided into two factions to battle, with the first to destroy the opponent's crystal winning the game. The game's outcome is determined by factors such as economic development, lane control, and player confrontations, with each match lasting about 15 minutes, requiring both individual player skills and teamwork. In May of last year, Arena of Faith announced the completion of a $1.75 million seed round led by Chain Hill Capital.

Astra Nova

A story-driven Web3 role-playing game built on the Unreal Engine 5 game engine. Astra Nova's gameplay integrates exploration, combat, strategy, and community-driven storytelling. Players can customize their characters, choosing from races and professions that survived the destruction of five major worlds. The game challenges players to explore the vast landscapes of Astra Nova, from treacherous wilderness to ancient civilization ruins. In March of this year, Astra Nova launched on the Steam store; in April, Astra Nova announced the completion of a $1 million financing round, with major investors including Hashgraph Ventures, Oxbull, and MoonEdge. Astra Nova is currently undergoing a series of game updates for Chapter One, "The Fall of Saerinda," with the second level expected to launch at the end of this month.