The gaming industry has come a long way from its humble beginning. It has undergone a digital transformation through new technologies like Augmented Reality (AR), Virtual Reality (VR), and Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Next in line is the latest tech – ‘Blockchain.’ In fact, the usage of Blockchain has exploded in recent years, owing to its potential.
Cited as the next big thing in technology, Blockchain’s potential can open up new doors for the gaming industry. It can also help with in-game asset ownership, play-to-earn model, and many more.
Numerous innovations are popping up globally that are set to become the stimulus to create a true vision of the metaverse.
Emergent Games
Recently, London-based digital entertainment studio Maze Theory and crypto technology and operations business Pluto Digital has jointly announced a new gaming blockchain and metaverse studio, ‘Emergent Games.’
As a part of the deal, Pluto Digital will invest £4M in Maze Theory to enable the studio’s growth and consolidate its expertise in VR.
‘Game first’ philosophy
With a ‘game first’ philosophy, Emergent Games will offer players high quality, high production value games, jargon-free, and easy to pick up and play.
Its ambition is to bring free-to-play mechanics to the blockchain gaming space, offering players the option to just play for fun, or engage with the crypto NFT element and earn real money.
Emergent Games’ first project, Resurgence, will take players on a journey from present-day disaster to a post-apocalyptic future.
The game gives complete control to the player to craft their own destiny by utilising resources in a unique community-based survival concept.
Ian Hambleton, CEO of Emergent Games, says: “Emergent Games has a strong ‘game first’ philosophy which means creating absolutely awesome games for all gamers, with an optional crypto element, enhancing the experience for those interested. We believe this approach is not only the right thing to do but removes barriers for players moving into blockchain games.”
He adds: “Story-living is a term we coined for the concept and technology driving our games. It’s where players are inside a virtual world making meaningful choices that drive the narrative. Bringing this into a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) will offer new and incredible experiences for players and form a significant role in the future of gaming.”
Maze Theory: A gaming studio
Maze Theory is a gaming studio led by experienced industry veterans from top entertainment companies including Activision, Sony PlayStation, Output Group, Oculus, EA, Disney, BBC, Channel 4, and more.
The company’s game portfolio includes the first-ever VR game Doctor Who: The Edge of Time and the found-phone horror game Doctor Who: The Lonely Assassins.
The company is working on the first-ever VR game Peaky Blinders: The King’s Ransom, as well as developing their new VR game ENGRAM.
Pluto Digital: A crypto tech company
Pluto Digital is a crypto technology company with expertise across blockchain, Decentralised Finance (DeFi), metaverse technologies, and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
Pluto has three primary business units — Pluto DeFi, Pluto Metaverse, and Pluto V.
The company’s mission is to launch a market-leading suite of DeFi applications and blockchain-based games that connect the crypto world with global finance and gaming communities.
Brian Kinane, director of Pluto Digital Plc, says “We are tremendously excited to become the largest investor in Maze Theory and partners in the new studio, Emergent Games. We believe the combination of our high-end blockchain engineering and token capabilities together with the gaming creativity of the Maze Theory team will create a leading next-generation web3 metaverse gaming studio”.
