Decentraland and Zynga alum Thor Alexander wants to change the story NFTs in the video game industry.
As Executive Producer of the third-person multiplayer role-playing game ‘Big Time’, Alexander is passionate about making titles that go beyond the 2D experience of the game and feel like a ‘Second Generation Crypto Game’ . play and earn Title like “Axie Infinitylost popularity after facing this year Decline in token price and massive $622 million hacked.
“Big Time” has to be something different.
“One of our most important challenges was introducing our ideas to traditional gamers. Web3‘ said Alexander Decryption on mail. “Many of them had early experience with NFTs and ended up being rugs/scams, leaving a bad taste in their mouths.”
“Big Time” is now Early access development Only available to select Ambassadors and Creators and VIP Pass purchasers. $4,500 It depends on the tier purchased.
gold standard
As Executive Producer of “Big Time,” Alexander focuses on in-game development. Economy.
“This is one of the next big phases,” said Alexander, adding that “there is no set timeline” for when the game will finish its current stage of development.
“Big Time is currently working with our community on early access development. Once they tell us the game is ready, we will roll it out to more users.”
Alexander has been working in the video game industry since 1992, working on various titles such as Electronic Arts’ Medal of Honor and Ultima X for seven years before working with Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz at Metaplace. rice field. Social then sold his game company to Disney, and Alexander moved to Zynga, where he worked on the now-defunct “PetVille” and “CityVille,” among others.
“The Big Time development process is a throwback to the small games of the late ’90s,” said Alexander. “We don’t have a huge budget to build a game or he has a six-year budget, so we borrowed the development process and design thinking that was in his previous MMOs and RPGs.”
When asked about “big time” in a few years, Alexander is optimistic.
“We want ‘Big Time’ to serve as the gold standard for what NFTs and cryptocurrencies can offer to gamers and the gaming industry itself. ”
Gamers and Greed
The veteran executive is unafraid of the army of NFT haters that seem to proliferate the traditional gaming space, calling any backlash to cryptocurrencies in gaming a “normal reaction.”
“We saw a similar trend in the early free-to-play (F2P) games. Their thin nature sometimes led many to misunderstand how things would unfold. From FarmVille Years later, the same core F2P mechanics underpinned major hits in mainstream games like League of Legends and Fortnite.”
But why do some gamers hate NFTs in particular? Gamers think publishers are “greedy” and NFTs are the next way studios “come and get your wallet” .
And the efforts of some game studios to call NFTs euphemistically, such as “digital collections,” are unhelpful, Alexander said.
“Gamers are not easily fooled by marketing buzzwords. What we have to do is show them how NFTs can have a positive impact on gaming.”
“For years, players felt like the money and time spent in-game wasn’t worth it,” argued Alexander. “[Traditional] Studios are squeezing their players every last cent at the expense of their experience. “
With player ownership thanks to Web3, things could be different.
“Done right, blockchain technology opens up the world to players and allows them to truly own the assets they collect in-game,” he said.
first impressions
When I logged into Big Time, it felt like I was jumping into a game of Fortnite or Dauntless. Because the aesthetic of the game and his interface feels clean and seamless.call out Epic Games Store material.
But it also displayed a visual disclaimer.
Well, that’s certainly one way to manage expectations.
That said, I was impressed by the number of different servers the game is already online, even though it’s still in development. With servers in , Hong Kong, Sao Paulo, and Singapore, it’s an impressive range of locales that rivals AAA Blizzard titles like Overwatch.
Robust Servers Are The Foundation Of A Great Game And Why big complaint for player when they collapse (Looking at you, “Apex Legends”).
“Big Time” network latency, as gamers colloquially call it ping, was equally good, ranging from 12 to 50 milliseconds in my Los Angeles-based testing.
Why Ping Matters Low ping is essential for a smooth and enjoyable gaming experience. Especially if you’re playing a multiplayer online game where you hit targets. This is especially important for first-person shooters like Call of Duty and Valorant, and RPGs like Big Time itself.
Considering Big Time Studios’ developers hail from Epic Games, Electronic Arts, Riot Games, and more, it’s not unfair to compare ‘Big Time’ to these strong Web2 competitors. And in May 2021, Big Time Studios has raised funding. millions of dollars From the likes of FTX Alameda Research And Ashton Kutcher’s VC firm Sound Ventures.
“Big Time” had a “Dauntless” mentality with aesthetics similar to “Fortnite” and “Pokemon Sword and Shield.” Movement is smooth and satisfying when it comes to fighting animations and killing enemies, requiring precision and forethought.
The graphics of the character models are definitely simplistic, but the environments look great. I think the game runs fine even on his low end PC. With my beefed-up gaming rig and 240hz monitor, the solo play experience was pretty seamless, but graphically speaking, it needed a little more detail.
Alexander said Decryption Big Time Studios chose a “very stylish look” implemented to “keep the art production under control”.
Naturally, there’s something to be said for games that don’t invest too much in graphical details so that people with cheap PCs can actually enjoy the game.
Surprisingly, however, neither cryptocurrencies nor NFTs were involved in the first few hours of the “Big Time” playthrough. I wouldn’t have even known it was a “crypto game” if no one had told me. As it stands, the ‘big time’ crypto economy poses no threat to that gaming experience.
However, higher level players can start doing quests and dungeons that can earn NFTs. They sell from a few dollars to over $500 per item on the “Big Time” online marketplace.
room to grow
Still in development, what do other gamers think of ‘Big Time’ so far?
Jonah Blake, Founder and Chief Gaming Officer of Web3 VC firm Game Fund Partners, believes the title is off to a decent start, but may still need some tweaks.
“I think they have a great game structure, but it’s in its early stages and lacks the necessary content filling to switch to traditional gamers,” said Blake. Decryption DM on Twitter.
“I think the enemy variety is severely lacking, the sound design needs improvement, and the raids feel awkward,” he elaborated. “On the positive side, I think the world design is very clean and the story concept is engaging. there is.”
One early access “big time” player who logged into the game for over 12 hours with a friend said he regretted his $20,000 purchase.
“I paid about 6 ETH for 3 gold passes that were close to 20k at the time,” said G.nft Decryption“They advertised a model of play to acquire a limited supply of [of NFTs] between gold.
But anyone who held the expensive Gold Pass experienced a diminishing return on investment over time, G.nft said.
“Early investors/advocates who held NFTs have been diluted. Gold Pass has been diluted as over tens of thousands of NFTs were produced during Silver, Jade and Ruby. [Passes]”
As an early buyer, G.nft said he felt Big Time Studios “did not live up to” its promise.
In contrast, Web3 game content creators Brycent So far I have had a more positive experience with ‘Big Time’.
“We’re seeing games create an ecosystem to incorporate non-Web3 gamers in innovative ways,” said Brycent. Decryption DM on Twitter. “I think it’s powerful. With the storyline and lore properly nurtured, the game has a better chance of succeeding.”
