Hi @adventurousape - thanks for taking the time to read the AIP. I know it’s exceptionally detailed, but I am a clarity kinda guy. 
Plausible concerns, indeed. But here’s the beauty of it…
Alganon is a “Web2 MMORPG game with Web3 components”. I could release it as planned in 2024 without the Web3 components and it would be the same game. In fact, the way it’s engineered, simple build flags are all it takes to disable the Web3 components (except for the Web3 wallet which is integrated in the pre-existing Web2 wallet - still need to work on a build flag for that at some point).
I did it this way because my “Game First” approach to Web3 - which I have written extensively about - requires that a good game should always come first. The tech stack is largely irrelevant. As are the Web3 components. And this is why, instead of starting from a new game, spending millions of Dollars and several years on an experiment, I decided to re-purpose these two Web2 games. So, the game neither relies on nor requires Web3 for it’s success or failure.
Also, the game’s design as an MMO, already had all the components required for implementing a pass-through Web3 tech stack. This means that, if I so choose, we could very well deploy different game servers and clients. e.g. a Web2 or Web3 version. This is basically similar to legacy and modern versions of various MMO games.
During the course of gameplay, a player wouldn’t notice any of the Web3 components unless they choose to. e.g. You could start the game, create a character, and go explore, quest, trade etc. and never encounter any Web3 components. You would only encounter those components if you actually do anything that triggers them.
For example, when you create a game account, you get an in-game wallet (Web2) and inventory stack. When you buy in-game currency, it’s that wallet that is used. If you however decide to trade in certain items which are tagged as NFTs, then an in-game Web3 wallet is automatically created for you within the same UI/UX as the Web3 wallet. You fund that wallet in the same manner that you would the Web2 wallet and you can transfer funds between the two. Your Web2 wallet and in-game ($TRIBUTE) currency remain in the Web2 wallet, while your NFTs and token ($APE) currency remain in the Web3 wallet.
Similarly, the game’s Web2 marketplace UI/UX works the same way. As you can see above, it also has web access and is identical to the in-game version. The Web3 version of that marketplace is going to be using a third-party White label Web3 marketplace SDK. So, you will see a tab specifically for NFTs in both the in-game and web versions of the marketplace. And you will be able to trade those NFTs with other players or sell them back to the game’s marketplace.
The game’s loot drops (via questing, kills etc) are also geared toward both Web2 and Web3 components. So, if you get a Web3 item - but you don’t have a Web3 wallet setup - it still goes into your inventory allowing you to later decide if you want to trade it or keep it. And then you need to activate your in-game Web3 wallet.
I have millions of Dollars and several years of my life invested in this game. Unlike some lucky studios who have the luxury of seeing several titles fail, I have never had that luxury. And for that reason, I tend to think carefully through what I do with my games so that I always have a “In case of emergency, pull lever” plan of action. My foray into Web3 is no different.
As to using $APE, that’s not relevant because the token used is of no consequence. It’s just a game that uses fiat or crypto currency as-needed. If the AIP doesn’t pass, which means that I won’t use $APE, I will just end up using $MATIC, $TLOS or $SUI - all of which we’ve run tests with. The difference with those tokens is that they don’t have a centralized community like ApeCoin does. And we have to do a lot more work to cultivate a Web3 install base to complement and merge with the Web2 install base. It’s specifically why I came here; because I believe that the key to wide Web3 gaming success lies in the merge of both factions - in a good game that isn’t Web3 in your face.
TL;DR is that Alganon neither needs nor requires Web3. And it never did. The second game, won’t be any different in this regard.
ps. If you take a look at the marketing push currently going on for nWay’s Wreck League, you will see similar sentiments regarding Web2 vs Web3. And that game, over two years in the making, started out as a pure Web3 game when it was all the rage. You have to adapt to market conditions. And you have to be quick about it - or your project is dead. Most Web3 games don’t have the luxury of that pivot, and that’s why they’re either dead or dying.
I have said this over and over again, there is no Web3 gaming without core Web2 gamers.
No, it’s unrelated. All games are marketed. Alganon is no different. It’s why I mentioned in the AIP that we would add ApeCoin and $APE to our marketing effort so far as to include mentions of them. But we will not be advertising obo of the DAO. So, it’s up to the DAO to undertake that effort as it sees fit via it’s own marketing initiatives (e.g. Web3 influencers, social media, Spaces etc).
And no, we don’t need the DAO to on-board gamers. It’s only a license. The additional costs (laid out above) are due to the fact that the DAO isn’t setup to
-
Acquire and maintain its own game servers + infrastructure
-
Have its own trained staff to support the DAO community of gamers
All gaming licensees, which are always full-blown corps, have all of the above. And it’s impractical - if not impossible - to sit around and wait for the DAO to do any of the above via a voting system that’s as unpredictable as it is ludicrous.
You’re welcome. As I will not be extending this AIP again, hopefully more questions will come in before it goes to draft tomorrow.
To be clear, this AIP is truly a test of the DAO’s future as a going concern. I don’t expect that it will pass nor do I need it to pass in order to do what I need to do with the game. The singular failure will be that I don’t get the close-knit Web3 community with a vested interest in the game. That aside from the loss of a massive impact of tangible benefits to the community via the [paid] ApeCoin Ambassadors hired to build the community through the game. If the DAO isn’t brave enough to embark on something like this - even as Yuga Labs is spending millions of Dollars on smaller games - then everyone needs to take a step back and ask “What are we doing, and why are we even here?”
There is not likely to be another opportunity like this because games take a very long time to make, cost a lot, and are a massive risk from start to finish. This is a $30M (from its inception to present day) game with a $250K per year license to a DAO that needs to break out in a big way.
ps. This just in:
Grand Theft Auto dev Take-Two’s first crypto game launching on Ethereum