Blankos Block Party was first available back in December 2020 on Mythical Games website, but has now hit the mainstream and is available from the Epic Games store. There has been talk of having a game being released on this kind of scale for a while, with all bets being on Gala Games being the first to do so with their game ‘Grit’. With other gaming companies no doubt wanting to get in on the action, will we see more games like this on popular game stores? Continue to read for more information about this big step for Web3 and NFTs.
So whats the news…
Today saw the introduction of Blankos Block Party on the Epic Games Store, the first Web3 game to be offered on the well-known PC gaming store. Blankos Block Party is an online creativity game powered by NFT.
The game from Mythical Games had previously been made available on its own website after going into open beta in December 2020. As of June of this year, Blankos has collected more than one million users overall.
Although it was uncertain whether the free-to-play game would be the first of its kind to enter the market, the company announced plans to release it on the Epic Games Store this year in June. Grit, a Western-themed shooter by Gala Games, was supposed to be the first Web3 title for the system, but it hasn’t yet been made accessible.
Blankos Block Party, which is motivated by designer/vinyl toy culture, enables users to interact and play in a vibrant online setting. In the game, NFTs are used to symbolize distinctive products like avatar styles and accessories that can be purchased and sold through the game’s marketplace.
Major partnerships for limited-addition releases
Since its release, the game has enlisted a number of corporate and artist partners for limited-edition releases, including Deadmau5, Burberry, and Atari. NFT ownership is not necessary to participate in the game, though. A blockchain token called an NFT stands for ownership in a variety of things, such as in items like characters, weapons, and virtual real estate.
The Epic Games Store has adopted a different strategy for Web3 gaming than its main competition, Valve’s Steam marketplace, which projected to have more than 194 million players overall by the end of 2021. Since last fall, Valve has prohibited the publication of any games on Steam that make use of NFTs or cryptocurrencies.
Tim Sweeney, the founder and CEO of Epic Games, responded by tweeting that while the company itself didn’t intend to use NFTs or Web3 technology, it would permit other creators to do so as long as they adhered to legal requirements and market norms. Epic Games is the publisher of the popular game Fortnite.
“Epic Games Store will welcome games that make use of blockchain tech provided they follow the relevant laws, disclose their terms, and are age-rated by an appropriate group,” he tweeted. “Though Epic’s not using crypto in our games, we welcome innovation in the areas of technology and finance.”
Identical to original game
The version of Blankos Block Party that went live on the Epic Games Store today is identical to the one that can be played via the game’s official website in terms of functionality. Both games are currently in what is referred to as a “early access” stage; the entire game will launch across platforms on September 28 along with new features.
The Mythical Platform of the studio, which is based on the EOS.IO blockchain protocol and features a bridge to the dominant NFT network Ethereum, is where Blankos Block Party is housed. The licensed NFL Rivals video game is just one of the many games that Mythical is currently working on. Last November, the company raised $150 million at a $1.25 billion valuation.
