Mighty Bear Games, a Singapore-based multi-platform game development studio, announced Tuesday a $10 million round to launch its blockchain division and develop a series of immersive AAA web3 games that are novel, fair and thoughtful.
The round was led by Framework Ventures and includes additional investment from Mirana, Sfermion, Spartan, Dune Ventures, Sanctor Capital, Folius Ventures, Polygon, Play Future Fund, Everblue, Ancient8, Ready Player DAO, Razer, Avocado DAO, DWeb3, Great South Gate, mrblock and more, Mighty Bear Games said in a statement.
Alongside the raise, the studio is announcing its first web3 game slated for release later this year, Mighty Action Heroes, a multiplayer third-person Battle Royale that puts an emphasis on fun, skill, and chaos.
Founded in 2016 by a diverse group of industry veterans with experience at the likes of King, Ubisoft, Lucasarts, Disney and Gameloft, Mighty Bear Games has a proven track record of developing highly engaging games that appeal to universal audiences.
The raise follows an impressive period of growth for the studio, which has rapidly established itself as a partner of choice for the world’s leading IPs and platform owners, with immersive, multi-platform games such as Butter Royale and Disney Melee Mania under its belt.
“At Mighty Bear, we believe first and foremost, in games being fun. web3 is already here, but in many ways, its games are lagging behind – lacking the imaginative gameplay and polish the wider gaming community has come to expect,” said Mighty Bear Games Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer Simon Davis.
“Many existing blockchain games feel like work, with players grinding away at often dull and unrewarding gameplay in exchange for financial gain, but it doesn’t have to be that way. Our approach to Mighty Bear Games’ blockchain division is and always will be games-first and fun-focused, with ways for players to own assets and earn from them built naturally into the game experience,
“We’re proud to be backed by such a stellar line-up of investors who have the conviction and foresight to be supporting teams in this ‘bear’ market. They truly are the ‘mighty’ ones,” he added.
Building upon the studio’s expertise in developing genre-defining experiences from scratch, Mighty Bear is focused on eliminating the traditional barriers to entry to blockchain gaming to engage non-crypto native and crypto native communities alike.
The studio’s games-first, play-and-earn approach in web3 will be fun and fair – helping define the next generation of gaming by allowing players to feel truly rewarded for their skill-based gameplay.
“With the entire crypto gaming industry still innovating and defining the most effective game mechanics, we think the Mighty Bear team is one of the best positioned to launch genre-defining titles in this new space,” said Daniel Mason, Operating Partner at Framework Ventures.
“With decades of combined experience from multiple, established gaming giants, as well as a track record of successful web2 game launches at Mighty Bear Games, this is a team of industry veterans that we think, with the right resources, will deliver games that close the gap between the economic potential of web3 gaming and the artistic, narrative, and experience elements that drive web2 gaming,” he added.
Mighty Action Heroes will be powered by Polygon, the leading carbon-neutral Ethereum scaling solution designed to improve ethereum functionality and promote infrastructure development. Mighty Bear Games will also receive support from Polygon Studios in the form of funding, marketing, technical advice, strategy and ecosystem support.
“Mighty Bear Games’ player-centric approach is precisely what we look for in quality web3 projects, and we’re thrilled to welcome them into our burgeoning ecosystem. Their recent raise demonstrates the appetite for a game-first approach to web3 gaming exemplified by Mighty Bear’s products, and we look forward to seeing Mighty Action Heroes come to fruition,” said Urvit Goel, Head of Games BD at Polygon Studios.
Ahead of the launch, Mighty Bear Games will release a non-fungible token (NFT) profile picture (PFP) collection and engage the community this summer, with each NFT offering immense utility within the game and beyond.
Each PFP holder will gain early access to the game during the Early Access Preview and be able to give feedback and stay involved throughout development. PFP holders will also be able to collect in-game rewards and cosmetic items when the game releases in late 2022.
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