In this inaugural edition of Cointelegraph\u2019s monthly Web3 gaming column, we highlight some of the top stories and events in the blockchain gaming space over the past few weeks, as well as upcoming releases.<\/em><\/p>\n It has been a little over a month since NFT behemoth Yuga Labs, the company behind Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) and other top NFT collections, rolled out the skill-based game and NFT mint, Dookey Dash.\u00a0<\/p>\n Sent on a quest by a dog called Gary, players have to navigate through the sewers, dodging obstacles and collecting power-ups in pursuit of a golden key.<\/p>\n For three weeks, holders of Sewer Pass NFTs competed for the top spot on the leaderboard and different prizes. Though BAYC and sister collection Mutant Ape Yacht Club holders could claim a free pass, buying one wasn\u2019t cheap. The floor price currently stands at 2.4 Ether (ETH<\/a>) ($3,888)<\/p>\n That\u2019s a lot to play Temple Run in a toilet.<\/p>\n Yuga Labs reported the game was played more than 7.5 million times, equivalent to 80 years of game time and an average of about 28 hours per pass. Over 9,000 pass holders used $APE to purchase boosts, about one-third of active players. That said, it is not clear how many individual people played the game. Only 51% of the Sewer Passes have unique owners, meaning a whole lot of people are hoarding multiple passes.\u00a0<\/p>\n A bonus round of the game, Dookey Dash: Toad Mode, closed its leaderboard on March 1.\u00a0<\/p>\n The top prize, \u201cThe Key,\u201d went to Kyle Jackson, <\/a>better <\/a>known as \u201cMongraal\u201d on Twitch and YouTube. The 18-year-old professional Fortnite player, no doubt treasuring the very important loot he had just acquired, promptly listed The Key for sale on OpenSea.<\/p>\n Though he wanted 2,222 ETH ($3.6 million) for it, he ultimately sold it this week for 1,000 ETH ($1.6 million) to American scrap metal CEO Adam Weitsman.<\/p>\n I have agreed to sell the key for 1000 ETH to @AdamWeitsman<\/a>. Super nice guy and thrilled the sale went through with him.<\/p>\n A special thank you to @yugalabs<\/a> for hosting an incredible competition. I look forward to competing in future events. Royalties will be paid in full. \u2014 Mongraal (@Mongraal) February 27, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n According to Spencer Tucker, Yuga Labs\u2019 new chief gamer officer, the game is just the beginning of how the company is thinking of connecting the dots between NFTs, gaming and community engagement.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cWe want these things to be fun and weird, while also continuing to push the boundaries of what people perceive of the NFT industry,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cMore than a jpeg, it\u2019s all about utility, innovation, creating interactive experiences and hopefully onboarding new players to the web3 space.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Wizards of the Coast, the publisher of Dungeons & Dragons (D&D), was forced to walk back proposed changes to its Open Game License (OGL) in January. For more than two decades, its OGL has allowed people to make D&D derivative projects, like graphic novels and plays.<\/p>\n Among the now-dropped changes was a ban on NFTs and other blockchain integrations. Ironic, considering Wizards of the Coast is owned by Hasbro, which itself debuted a Power Rangers NFT collection on the Wax blockchain last year.<\/p>\n The company also sought to introduce royalties payable by content creators of a certain size and new powers for Wizards to terminate the license of projects.<\/p>\n The drama impacted U.S. company Gripnr, which is building a D&D game with NFT integrations called The Glimmering. Its CEO and co-founder, Brent McCrossen, said he was\u00a0 \u201cthrilled\u201d that the updates had been reversed and that the published rules and lore of D&D had been moved to a Creative Commons license, making it freely available for use in perpetuity.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe were not going to simply pack up our belongings and head home,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n GRIPNR isn’t moving forward with OGL 1.2 or SRD 5.1. It’s not protective of creators nor meets our standards of “open.” <\/p>\n To be blunt, Wizards has no broad right to prevent the use of Web3, blockchain, or NFTs in TTRPGs.<\/p>\n Our statement:https:\/\/t.co\/UE0QEYxmko<\/a>#OpenDnD<\/a> #DnD<\/a> #OGL<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 The Glimmering (@The_Glimmering) January 20, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n \u201cNFTs and other potential emerging technologies are not a valid reason for revoking the OGL. We will object in a similar manner to any potential future attempts to restrict blockchain use; it is fundamental to GRIPNR\u2019s core business,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n While the Wizards of the Coast\u2019s ban hasn\u2019t ultimately panned out, it follows similar moves to ban NFT mods from Minecraft and Grand Theft Auto servers.\u00a0<\/p>\n Yet whereas Grand Theft Auto makers Rockstar Games sent out cease and desist letters to builders shortly after the ban was announced, Mojang Studios \u2014 which is owned by Microsoft \u2014 doesn\u2019t seem to be enforcing it, as NFT games still exist on Minecraft servers.<\/p>\n Elsewhere on the dark and violent crossroads between traditional and Web3 gaming, Square Enix has released more details about its upcoming NFT game. Symbiogenesis was first announced in November as an Ethereum-based game. It\u2019s since switched to Polygon and plans to launch in Spring this year.\u00a0<\/p>\n Among traditional game makers, Square Enix has been one of the most bullish on Web3. Its president, Yosuke Matsuda, doubled down on that position in his New Year\u2019s letter in January where he predicted the growth of a more mature blockchain gaming market over the coming year.<\/p>\n Read also<\/p>\n \u2018Deflation\u2019 is a dumb way to approach tokenomics\u2026 and other sacred cows<\/p>\n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n Is the Metaverse really turning out like \u2018Snow Crash\u2019?<\/p>\n <\/a>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The game will be set on a fantasy floating continent and players will have to unlock storylines through NFTs, which can be bought, traded or earned through completing missions.\u00a0<\/p>\n Other AAA gaming studios in East Asia are also getting involved in Web3 projects. But while they\u2019ve generally been more willing to experiment than their U.S. counterparts, there are still some holdouts.\u00a0<\/p>\n The rumor in Kyoto is that the powers that be at Nintendo HQ aren\u2019t keen on NFTs, despite some vague public statements of \u201cinterest\u201d \u2014 so don\u2019t expect Pokemon NFTs any time soon.<\/p>\n And even the crypto-curious firms remain cautious. Nobody is risking their most valuable IP just yet, preferring to test out the response with lesser-known titles.<\/p>\n One of the most highly anticipated Web3 games of the past few months, Wagyu Games rolled out its first-person shooter zombie game, Undead Blocks, at the end of February.<\/p>\n With all the hallmarks of a classic zombie shooter \u2013 including a multiplayer mode \u2013 Undead Blocks claimed around 2,500 active daily players during its beta.\u00a0<\/p>\n But the full launch now includes \u201ckill-to-earn\u201d features for NFT holders. Players can earn in-game token ZBUX for slaying the living dead, which can be traded or used to buy NFT weapons and upgrade. The game also has a second token, UNDEAD, for governance that can be staked for rewards.<\/p>\n The company has been hyping up the rewards for players at a time when other games are becoming more cautious in their approach to rewards and tokenomics. There are plenty of contenders out there vying to become the project that proves there\u2019s a sustainable way to share rewards with players<\/a>, but nobody\u2019s done it yet. In January, Illuvium rolled out the private alpha for Illuvium: Zero, a building sim based around collecting and processing natural resources on Illuvium land NFTs. The Aussie company\u2019s third game followed quickly on the heels of the December private beta release of Overworld.<\/p>\n Think SimCity BuildIt but more\u2026 purple.\u00a0<\/p>\n Reviewing an alpha is arguably a grossly unfair thing to do. Alpha versions of games are still in their early days. They\u2019re supposed to have glitches and lack full gameplay. The fact that it\u2019s almost as good as BuildIt (not to be confused with non-mobile versions of SimCity) says far more about BuildIt than it does about Illuvium.<\/p>\nFortnite player sells Dookey Dash prize <\/h2>\n
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1\/2<\/p>\n![\"Dookey](\"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/dookey.png\")
Dungeons & Dragons reverses NFT ban<\/h2>\n
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Square Enix to Launch NFT-based game Symbiogenesis<\/h2>\n
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\n Features<\/span><\/p>\n![\"Final](\"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/final.jpg\")
Wagyu Games rolls out \u2018kill-to-earn\u2019 zombie shooter<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Play-to-earn has also fallen out of favor<\/a> as a driver of growth. A Blockchain Games Alliance survey in 2021 found 67.9% of gaming professionals predicted play-to-earn would be a significant growth driver. A similar survey in January saw that number drop to just 22.5%.<\/p>\n![\"Undead](\"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/undead.png\")
Hot take \u2014 Illuvium: Zero<\/strong><\/h2>\n
![\"Illuvium:](\"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/illuvium.png\")
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