MetaCene is a really anticipated blockchain MMORPG made in China over around 2 years with $5 million invested so far. It wants to make a “place for tons of players” in a world after an apocalypse where survivors use NFTs to rebuild civilization. It pioneers player-focused entertainment, governing, and creating through its tech, social guild decentralized groups, and in-game editors. The team says it “goes beyond the ordinary by seamlessly mixing AAA aspirations of Web2 gaming with the revolutionary tech of AI and blockchain.”
The team plans to test again and launch the blockchain mainnet in the third quarter of this year. In the fourth quarter, they expect to launch the 1.0 commercial version, then 2.0 in 2024. Investors and crypto game makers want a game “that doesn’t look like a sketchy money-making scheme.” The creator says “The idea was gamefi players just wanted money not fun. But that’s because developers focused on the ‘fi’ not the ‘game’.” Early reception shows a solid game with crypto is better than a crypto economy with a game attached.
MetaCene was founded in October 2021 by veteran gamers from big companies. Led by Alan Tan, the team includes Cary Chen, Lion Cheung, Owen Fung, and Last Chan. In August, MetaCene had an alpha test to let players explore areas, meet up, form guilds, do quests, and earn rewards. Of the 2,961 players, around 90% did PVP combat. Players collectively played 461,916 minutes, made $6,166 in transactions, and made 1,225 new addresses. It’s free but takes a cut of crypto transactions between players. It plans to raise $8 million more from investors. In August, they launched a system to let players earn rewards and NFTs before the full launch. Currency is earned by crystal mining without needing players to be active.
