Battlebound will use the capital to launch its two newest games in phases.
According to a draft blog post that was provided to CoinDesk, Battlebound, a Play-to-earn (P2E), gaming startup, has announced a seed round of $4.8 million led by Andreessen Horowitz (16z), and with participation from Play Ventures (a16z) as well as CryptoKitties developer Dapper Labs.
Angel investors that participated in the round were Yield Guild Games CEO Gabby Diaz, Dapper Labs CEO Roham Gharegozlou, and Alex Price, an a16z advisor.
Battlebound will be able to scale up and bring its two games to market in faster phases with the funding. In an email, Adam Hensel, CEO of Battlebound, stated that the company will expand its operations and development teams.
A16z is now a major player in crypto investing. The firm raised $2.2Billion last summer for its third crypto fund. This was before Paradigm raised a $2.5B fund in November.
Jonathan Lai, general partner at a16z, said in an email that Battlebound’s founding team is “a rare combination of web3 savvy as well as veteran game development expertise” and added, “The Battlebound founder team includes Adam Hensel and his team. Together, they have helped build some of industry’s most successful games like Overwatch 2, League of Legends and Teamfight Tactics.” Their first project, “The Evaverse”, was a proof of their abilities with a small team. We’re thrilled to support them as the grow to more ambitious experiences on chain.
Game lineup
Battlebound was founded in May 2021 and currently develops two games. Evaverse, a metaverse game, is open to other non-fungible token communities (NFT). It allows them to integrate playable avatars. Project A is the second game. It’s a next-generation creature collection game where players can create, battle, and manage their own assets. Project A will also work with Evaverse.
Battlebound launched a NFT collection last year of 10,000 avatars that could be used as playable games. It raised $3 million in funding. The next NFT collection is expected to launch in the second half of this year.
Evaverse does not require players to purchase NFT or connect to a crypto wallet to play.
Hensel, who was previously a technical artist at Riot Games, stated that all of our games will be made for NFT and non NFT players. We believe that blockchain ownership enhances an already great gaming experience. Players should have fun playing free-to-play games before making any purchases.
Token launch
Project A is currently in pre-production and could launch in early 2023.
“We believe that building relationships with our community is key to a successful game. We want players to be part of the journey. Hensel stated that the immersive development process will reward and encourage players to be part of it as it develops.
Battlebound is currently developing a tokenomics model that is based on the native EVA token. It will support the earning economy within Evaverse. The model is expected to launch in the second half of this year.
Hensel stated that the launch of Battlebound tokens is a priority. He said, “Our goal for the tokens at Battlebound was to create long-term sustainable and positive growth in an ecosystem that shares rewards for our players who spend their time playing our games.”
