Quick take:
- Nexon has announced a $100 million investment in MapleStory.
- The company wants to expand the MapleStory Universe including a blockchain-based MMORPG, a mobile version of the game and an SDK.
- MapleStory also plans to integrate Polygon Supernets, the blockchain developed to facilitate massive gaming projects.
Nexon has announced a $100 million Web3 fund for the MapleStory Universe. The Japanese video game publisher is building a Web3 gaming economy that consists of a blockchain-infused massively multiplayer online roleplaying game (MMORPG), a mobile-based version of the game, a software developer kit (SDK) for developers to build decentralised apps and a Sandbox platform for players and creators to craft their blockchain games.
Nexon wants to use blockchain and NFTs to create lifelong storylines for self-sustaining communities built on a strong foundation of over 180 million registered users. According to the announcement, the MapleStory Universe will integrate Polygon Supernets by March 2024, about twelve months since Nexon announced a partnership with the layer-2 blockchain to develop NFT games based on the MapleStory IP.
With Polygon supernets, the blockchain created to facilitate massive online gaming players will be able to earn and trade NFT items during gameplay. According to the March announcement, MapleStory N gaming economy allows players to acquire in-game assets through gameplay and competing in battles, rather than buying from an in-game store.
The MapleStory N and MapleStory N mobile games were first announced in June 2022, at a time when NFT gaming was booming. And despite the recent market downturn and a considerable decline in Web3 funding, Nexon has continued to build its Web3 gaming ecosystem, which culminated in the latest fund announcement.
A Nexon spokesperson explained the reasoning behind the massive internal funding as one backed by the company’s massive valuation of $27 billion. “With Nexon’s robust $27 billion valuation and internal capital generation, the need for external investments in blockchain initiatives might diminish,” a blog post on Medium announcing the investment reads.
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