The crypto gaming space is ever expanding
and with prominent games releasing, token airdrops piling up, and the constant shifting of the markets around them all, it’s a lot to take in. Luckily, we’re all over it here at Decrypt’s GG. And if you’re looking to keep tabs on the latest happenings around crypto video games, this weekly roundup gives you a quick overview of the biggest stories we covered over the past week, along with a smattering of other interesting tidbits from around the space.
Top stories
Symbiogenesis on Soneium: Square Enix is expanding its blockchain game Symbiogenesis from Polygon to Soneium, Sony’s Ethereum layer-2 network. This move connects Symbiogenesis with two other Soneium games: Sleepagotchi and Evermoon. Players who complete quests in Symbiogenesis by May 31 will earn NFT collectibles providing benefits across all three games. Soneium was developed by Sony Block Solutions Labs, a joint venture between Sony Group Corporation and Startale Group. While not a direct collaboration between Square Enix and Sony, the companies share a long history dating back to Final Fantasy VII’s PlayStation debut in 1997. Symbiogenesis is still scheduled to conclude its final season of content in July.
Adidas and Xociety: Apparel giant Adidas is collaborating with Sui-based game Xociety to release 2,600 limited edition NFT mystery boxes priced at $129 each. Launching May 16 through May 23 on Tradeport, these boxes contain Adidas-branded virtual clothing and accessories for player avatars in the “pop shooter” game. The NFTs feature varying rarity tiers, with First tier boxes including all eight Adidas skin sets while Uncommon boxes contain three sets. Each includes tops, bottoms, and sneakers for digital avatars, plus XCS tokens representing shares in Xociety. Xociety will hold its next playtest on May 15 via the Epic Games Store. The move marks Adidas’ continued presence in blockchain since its 2021 Bored Ape Yacht Club collaboration.
Coinbase sponsors League esports: Coinbase has become the exclusive crypto exchange and blockchain partner for Riot Games’ League of Legends and Valorant global esports events in a new multi-year deal. The partnership launches at June’s Valorant Masters in Toronto and will feature broadcast integrations like the “Econ Report” for Valorant and “Gold Grind” for League of Legends, analyzing in-game currency strategies. The collaboration includes viewer rewards, promotional trips to competitions, and plans to enhance fan experiences through Web3 technology. While financial terms weren’t disclosed, this deal fills the void left when Riot’s previous crypto sponsor FTX collapsed in 2022 after signing what was reportedly a $100 million, seven-year agreement.
ICYMI
Move-to-earn game Sweat revealed an AI agent along with multi-chain expansion plans for its token. Over 1.4 million free MapleStory Universe NFTs have been minted on Avalanche via OpenSea. You can now pre-download MapleStory Na ahead of the game’s May 15 launch.
A Pudgy Penguins game, Pengu Clash, has been launched in early access on Telegram. Nintendo says that it didn’t use generative AI for Mario Kart World on Switch 2, despite speculation.
Arbitrum Gaming Ventures revealed $10 million in investments for Web3 games and infrastructure, including Wildcard and the Xai network. The Treasure Chain is shutting down at the end of May. Ethereum gaming metaverse The Sandbox has added the Teletubbies.
Sony and Bandai Namco are investing a total of 10 billion yen—about $69 million worth—in Web3 fan platform Gaudiy. Esports team Ninjas in Pyjamas and crypto platform Socios are teaming up to enhance the team’s Dojo fan app. Delabs launched its Press Play on the Future airdrop campaign around the Telegram game Boxing Star X.