Immutable and SuperDuper have partnered to create a game that will use the intellectual property of Overlord. The game will be released on the web using Immutable’s blockchain technology. It will also feature an animated film created by Seth Green’s company Stoopid Buddy Stoodios.
This venture is set to make waves in the gaming industry, especially looking at both companies’ track records. In January 2022, SuperDuper launched Cold Blooded Creepz, a non-fungible token (NFT) collection. Since then, it has generated over $220 million in total trading volume.
Immutable global business VP Andrew Sorokovsky expressed their excitement to work with SuperDuper. He said that SuperDuper’s extensive brand-building process would significantly affect the company’s success as the Web3 adoption accelerates.
“We firmly believe that SuperDuper’s extensive and multifaceted approach to brand building will play a major role in the mass adoption of web3, ultimately allowing us to onboard millions of new users to the world of blockchain gaming,” said Sorokovsky.
“Immutable is excited to offer the full suite of our tools, frameworks, and services to help make SuperDuper’s experiences as fast, accessible, and seamless as possible.”
Andrew Sorokovsky, Immutable global business VP
Through its partnership with Immutable, SuperDuper will be able to provide its players with fast and easy gas-free digital asset trading. All of the associated assets will be featured in multiple Immutable marketplaces, such as Rarible and Token Trove.
SuperDuper founder and CEO Dom Smith said the partnership would enable the company to deliver enhanced Web3 gaming experiences. He also noted that the partnership would allow them to expand their transmedia engagement in various areas, from fashion to gaming.
“We are thrilled to announce Overlord’s strategic partnership with Immutable X. This collaboration supercharges our web3 gaming experiences by providing true digital ownership through NFTs, in line with Immutable’s mission,” said Smith.
“Prepare for amplified transmedia engagement across gaming, TV/Animation, Fashion, and Merchandising. We’re on a mission to reshape the digital landscape, making you, the player, the real owner.”
SuperDuper’s efforts to build Overlord
Overlord is a multimedia entertainment and gaming brand designed to be the next generation of Web3 gaming. It aims to unify various forms of entertainment.
SuperDuper works with various entertainment agencies to achieve its goals. ThreeSixZero is the global entertainment and management company that handles the Overlord IP. It also owns the Westbrook Entertainment group. Westbrook Entertainment represents celebrities such as Jada Pinkett Smith, Jaden Smith, Will Smith, Kenna and Crespo.
Another collaboration is with West Brand Lab, led by former Nike, Levis and Lululemon executives. Overlord plans to launch a clothing line through this partnership.
Overlord is also working with leading entertainment agent WME to develop high-value deals and distribute the brand across various platforms. This collaboration sees the Emmy award-winning production house Stoopid Buddy Stoodios working on a Creepz-based animated series for the streaming platform Netflix.
Immutable’s response to current market sentiment
While Immutable keeps delivering new projects, the crypto and blockchain industry is going through a difficult time. In response to the current market volatility, the most prominent Australian blockchain start-up decided to reduce the price of its shares for employees by almost two-thirds.
The company, led by James Ferguson and Robbie Ferguson, had previously charged its employees around $900 to exercise their stock options. The share price of Immutable has since dropped to around $345. This move is aimed at retaining and recruiting its employees.
An employee stock option scheme offers workers the opportunity to purchase company shares at a discounted price while receiving a bonus and a stake in the company’s potential growth. However, it’s important to note that if the share price becomes excessively high, the options may lose their value.
Determining the company’s overall worth involves considering different methods of valuation. In this context, a decrease in the strike price of the shares could signify a decline in the company’s overall valuation, which now stands at around $3.5 billion.
A spokesperson for Immutable noted that the company’s decision to reduce its stock options’ strike price was unrelated to its overall valuation. Instead, it aimed to ensure its employees could still participate in the company’s growth.
According to the spokesperson, the share price reduction has allowed the company to attract more workers. He attributed the company’s rising token value and its partnership with the industry to its success.
Danny Gilligan and Zebediah Rice, Immutable’s investors, commended the company for its decision to reduce the share price.
During an interview, Gilligan was asked if he still believed Immutable was worth around $3.5 billion. He refused to provide a definitive answer when asked if he still believed the company was worth that amount. But Rice reassured that “Immutable has always thrived through crypto winters and this one is no exception.”
Immutable’s Gods Unchained released on Epic despite tough market
On June 21, Immutable announced that its trading card game Gods Unchained had been listed on the Epic Games Store. The game is now available to Epic’s 230 million customers.
In Gods Unchained, players can trade and own their own cards, similar to what players can do in games such as Magic: The Gathering Arena and Hearthstone. The game was first released in June 2019, and it has since grown its weekly active players count to over 80,000.
According to Daniel Paez, the executive producer of the game, the listing on the Epic Games Store is a significant moment in Gods Unchained’s history. He said his team was very excited to bring the game to a broader audience.
This listing comes when Web3 publishers are facing off against behemoth PC game distributor Steam. In October 2021, it announced that Web3 games were not welcome on the platform. Following the announcement, Age of Rust was delisted due to the game’s perks for its NFT holders.
Valve president Gabe Newell explained that when Steam started accepting payments using cryptocurrencies, it caused customers to become enraged due to the volatility. Newell pointed out the NFT scene’s association with criminal activities. He also claimed that using cryptocurrencies required more work than it was worth for the company and its customers.
“The vast majority of those transactions, for whatever reason, were fraudulent, where people were repudiating transactions or using illegal sources of funds and things like that,” said Newell.
In March, the former team members of MetaMask launched the game distribution platform Hyperplay to challenge Steam. Through its interface, users can access the various stores of Epic Games and GOG.com. The team then raised $12 million in a funding round to further develop the platform.
