Crypto Gaming Titles on Ethereum's Ronin Network Face Funding Challenges
Two Ethereum-based games, 'Realms of Alurya' and 'Wonder Wars', have stopped working or gone offline.
Two games on the Ethereum gaming-centric Ronin sidechain, Realms of Alurya and Wonder Wars, have announced their impending shutdown due to financial struggles in securing continued development funding.
Developers Hello Monster and Realms of Alurya's creative director and co-founder, Oscar Soler, shared this week that they could not secure the necessary funds to maintain operations of their respective games, Realms of Alurya and Wonder Wars.
"We find ourselves in uncharted waters," the message from Hello Monster stated.
Realms of Alurya recently migrated to Ronin after an exclusivity contract with the blockchain-based publisher Treasure was terminated abruptly. The publisher, Treasure, recently announced it would cease publishing games and wind down its chain.
"Without any prior notice, Treasure informed us that all agreements were being terminated immediately, and with that, their support for games on their chain would end," Soler was quoted as saying in a Discord message.
In a statement, the team behind Realms of Alurya explained that they hoped the recent Hunt & Mint event would provide enough time to seek additional funding, but it was unsuccessful. The game will go offline indefinitely as the team investigates potential solutions.
Both Realms of Alurya and Wonder Wars will forgo launching their utility tokens on account of the shutdown, citing the unreliability of launching a token without purpose and relying on speculation.
The shutdowns of Realms of Alurya and Wonder Wars add to a growing trend of halted crypto games so far this year, including Nyan Heroes, Ember Sword, and The Mystery Society. Solana cat-shooter game Nyan Heroes shut down earlier this month due to funding difficulties, while Ethereum game Ember Sword and The Mystery Society ceased operations months prior for the same reason.
The Ronin network has experienced significant growth in recent months, with one game, Fishing Frenzy, reporting a 300% increase in daily active users and over 330,000 installs within two months post-migration. The network continues to attract more games due to its scalability, low transaction fees, and integration with leading game developers.
Representatives for Realms of Alurya and Treasure did not immediately respond to Decrypt's requests for comment.
Edited by Andrew Hayward
- The developers of Realms of Alurya, despite migrating to Ethereum's Ronin sidechain, could not secure sufficient funds to maintain the game's operations.
- In an unexpected move, the blockchain-based publisher Treasure terminated its exclusivity contract with Realms of Alurya, leaving the team to face challenges without their initial support.
- Due to financial difficulties, both Realms of Alurya and Wonder Wars have decided against launching their utility tokens, citing concerns about launching a token without purpose and relying on speculation.
- As more crypto games, such as Nyan Heroes, Ember Sword, The Mystery Society, and now Realms of Alurya and Wonder Wars, face shutdowns, the crypto gaming industry on Ethereum's Ronin network appears to be facing significant funding challenges.
- The Ronin network, known for its scalability, low transaction fees, and integration with leading game developers, continues to attract more games, despite the recent funding struggles faced by some titles on the network.
