Quick take:
- Storytelling is a key component in Cauldron’s Web3 gaming worlds.
- The company plans to release three different gaming worlds.
- Two worlds are based on fantasy while one is focused on science fiction.
London-based Web3 gaming firm, Cauldron, has raised $6.6 million in a funding round, according to TechCrunch. The round was led by Cherry Ventures, joined by Cassius, Seedcamp and Playfair.
The latest funding comes just six months after Cauldron raised $1.4 million in its pre-seed round. Mark Warrick, founder and CEO of Cauldron, declined to disclose the company’s valuation.
Cauldron plans on becoming the ‘Pixar of Web3’ by putting storytelling at the forefront of its worldbuilding approach. Warrick told TechCrunch that the company plans to launch its first Web3 gaming world, Project Nightshade, this autumn.
“A big bit missing from web3 gaming is storytelling … people aren’t really coming back because there isn’t a reason to come back,” Warrick said to TechCrunch. “If you close your eyes and are listening to a Pixar film, you can’t see the art or technology but the story is still gripping you. Storytelling is what matters.”
Founded in August 2021 by Mark Warrick, Fox Rogers, and Matt Hyde, Cauldron is a spin-off of the fintech unicorn, Thought Machine. After seven years as Thought Machine’s chief design officer, Warrick announced he was moving on to become the CEO of Cauldron.
Fox Rogers was a design director at Thought Machine while Matt Hyde is a BAFTA-nominated games director. Other high-profile team members include Matthew Newcombe, Cauldron’s CTO, who has been in the games industry for over 10 years with experience at studios such as ustwo games, Rare and King where he worked on the likes of Monument Valley 2, Assemble with Care and Halo.
Speaking to TechCrunch, Warrick said: “When you’re looking at entertainment in web3, you have to look at what web3 is: It’s about ownership of assets. If you’re not designing around owning a part of a universe, then existing entertainment can’t translate to that.”
The fresh funding will be used to hire more talent from the game and film industries while building out the studio’s experiences. Cauldron plans to release three gaming worlds, with two being focused on fantasy while Project Nightshade is set in a science fiction universe. The gaming studio aims to create a Web3 experience that enable players to participate and own parts of the universes they love.
“We focus on Pixar not because of aesthetics, but because they created a recipe with ‘Toy Story,’ and 23 years later, they never had a mishit,” Warrick explained to TechCrunch. “For us, we want to create a recipe with Project Nightshade and want to repeat that and make many worlds. In five years’ time, I’d love to have three worlds out there loved by millions, and in 10 years’ time, multiply that by four.”
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