The blockchain-based trading card game, Gods Unchained, developed by Immutable, has recently launched on the widely popular Epic Games Store. This significant development exposes the game to over 230 million customers globally. Gods Unchained shares similarities with Hearthstone and Magic: The Gathering Arena; however, it operates using non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on the Ethereum layer-2 network, Immutable X. Since its release in June 2019, the game has amassed 80,000 weekly active players by January 2022.
The Epic Games Store is a well-known digital game distribution platform, home to over 230 million PC gamers. This partnership marks a turning point in the game’s history, according to Daniel Paez, the executive producer of Gods Unchained. He believes the collaboration with Epic Games Store will introduce the game to a massive audience of traditional PC gamers and trading card game enthusiasts.
However, this development comes at a time when Web3 publishers face increasing challenges from Steam, the world’s largest PC game distributor. In October 2021, Steam announced its opposition to Web3 games on its platform, delisting Age of Rust due to the game’s NFT perks. Subsequently, former MetaMask team members developed a rival distribution platform, Hyperplay, which offers access to the Epic Games and GOG.com stores and features its own list of Web3 titles.
There is a growing interest in the Web3 gaming space, and Immutable’s Gods Unchained collaboration with Epic Games Store signifies the potential for more blockchain-based games to reach broader audiences in the future. However, important questions remain to be answered, such as how these games can thrive in an industry that still faces skepticism, resistance, and potential regulatory challenges.
The integration of blockchain technology in gaming creates both opportunities and challenges. Proponents argue it could revolutionize the gaming industry, offering true ownership of in-game assets to players, while skeptics worry about potential risks, regulatory issues, and market saturation. The future of blockchain gaming remains uncertain, but partnerships like that between Gods Unchained and the Epic Games Store may pave the way for further adoption and integration within mainstream gaming platforms.
Source: Cointelegraph
