NFT News Digest: Gods Unchained is now available on the Epic Games Store

In addition to the news that Gods Unchained is now available on the Epic Games Store in today’s NFT News Digest for the past week of June 17-23, you’ll find:

• Nike x Fortnite collab will not include NFTs,
• Nouns DAO has launched its first animated film,
• Yuga Labs launches HV-MTL Forge Game.

Gods Unchained is now available on the Epic Games Store

Immutable Games, which is known for its groundbreaking gameplay development, recently announced that the NFT card game Gods Unchained can now be accessed from the Epic Games Store.

Thrilled to announce that our very own award-winning TCG @GodsUnchained has officially launched on @EpicGames!

This enables easier access to Gods Unchained for the vast mainstream audience of 230 million PC users worldwide pic.twitter.com/rJ9pFJr8rB

— Immutable (@Immutable) June 22, 2023

This news marks the most important milestone in the history of Gods Unchained because from now on, the NFT game is expected to be as wildly popular as Magic: The Gathering, Yu-Gi-Oh, and Hearthstone. More than 230 million players, and that’s how many users are there on Epic’s base, will be able to take part in Gods Unchained digital battles.

The trick to Gods Unchained is the combination of traditional gameplay and NFT-based ownership. Through this unique combination, players really own their digital riches. This trading card NFT game is currently the most profitable in the Ethereum ecosystem.

The executive producer of Gods Unchained Daniel Paez has expressed his approval and high hopes for this expansion:

This launch on one of the world’s largest PC gaming platforms is a pivotal step for Gods Unchained. With this, we’re thrilled to showcase our game to a broad spectrum of audience – traditional PC gamers, TCG enthusiasts, and those intrigued by the possibilities of web3 gaming.

Ambitious plans of Gods Unchained team

Attracting different gamers from a large community is only one part of the long-term strategy for Gods Unchained. The authors have developed an impressive roadmap, in which they have promised to add new features in order to provide an immersive gaming experience across all platforms. In this regard, it should be noted that Gods Unchained is also being prepared for release on the Android and iOS mobile platforms:

"The mobile gaming market is highly competitive, the potential for success is enormous" – Daniel Paez, GU Executive Producer 👇

🔮 Read: https://t.co/7hGa5bXSln pic.twitter.com/NWc6eoD9gw

— Gods Unchained (@GodsUnchained) June 20, 2023

One of the most exciting features on the roadmap is a NFT game mode called “Sealed”. If the developers implement this, Gods Unchained will be the first Web3 card game to offer it. The peculiarity of the “Sealed” mode is that the players can create decks from the random set of cards and Gods, and it adds a lot of drive and new impressions to the game.

As we can see, the authors of Gods Unchained have far-reaching plans. If they come to fruition, users will be able to have a unique gaming experience backed by the power of blockchain technology.

Nike x Fortnite collab will not include NFTs

Nike’s collaboration with the online game Fortnite is a noteworthy event in itself. After all, the two brands teamed up to create a virtual land called Airphoria styled after Nike. But the real hype rose when Nike representatives hinted at a digital sneaker drop in Fortnite, promising Sneakerhunt. This news had a bombshell effect. Many were excited about the possibility of introducing Web3 elements to the game.

On June 16, Nike announced that Sneakerhunt would begin soon:

On 6.20 the ultimate Sneakerhunt begins. 🏙️🌬️ pic.twitter.com/QgMyA1uXRT

— Nike (@Nike) June 16, 2023

While brand representatives have been sparing on details, some members of the community have speculated that Nike could use Fortnite’s Creative 2.0 mode in its development. It allows users to create their own game maps of virtual islands using Fortnite assets, which is similar in functionality to creating games in ROBLOX.

Nike and Fortnite collaboration details

Nike has put a lot of effort into developing a digital metaverse. It has partnered with Beyond Creative for design and used Epic Games’ Unreal Engine to support Fortnite software. The announcement also mentioned the .SWOOSH ecosystem, which is the Web3 platform for Fortnite. Users assumed that Nike would also launch NFTs as part of the collab. But that did not happen.

Epic Games provided a commentary on the matter:

The connection between Fortnite and Nike doesn’t integrate any NFTs or digital item trading marketplaces into the Fortnite world or its economy. Items recognized across these two ecosystems are purely for the enjoyment of the purchaser, and aren’t tradeable, transferable, or sellable, as has always been the case in the Fortnite economy. The official statement of the company

Nevertheless, as far as the Nike and .SWOOSH connection is concerned, it remains in effect. Presumably, if Airphoria players connect their Epic Games account to .SWOOSH, they will have a chance to get on the whitelist for the Air Max sneaker drop.

Nouns DAO has launched its first animated film

Nouns DAO, with the support of Atrium Studios, has launched a feature-length anime film “The Rise of Blus: A Nouns Movie”. In the history of animated movies, this is the first one created with DAO money. Its characters are NFTs from the cult project Nouns. And on the official Twitter page, a teaser was published.

The Rise of Blus – A Nouns Movie ⌐◨-◨. Part 1 is now live pic.twitter.com/RImZAfD0IE

— The Rise Of Blus – A Nouns Movie ⌐◨-◨ (@nounsmovie) June 21, 2023

“The Rise of Blus: A Nouns Movie” by Nouns: from conception to teaser

It’s incredible, but Nouns’ journey to the big screen was only a few months long. Recall that the decision to create the film was made in March of this year by a vote of the members of the Nouns DAO. And as early as June 21, fans were presented with a teaser of the film, which can be viewed at nouns.movie and on Nouns DAO Discord.

Even more amazing is that in such a short time a team of highly skilled professionals was assembled. It included screenwriter Yuwil, directors Zen Doubt and HKJay, a production team from Atrium Studios and a network of independent artists who have previously worked with Netflix, Pixar and Marvel.

Despite the film’s rather small budget ($2.75 million), the work on it is progressing much faster than in a traditional studio production.

What we’ve been able to achieve so far is wild! We are 10x-ing the speed of traditional studios because we can make decisions quickly and move forward in a more agile manner. Zen Doubt comments

Fast decision making is facilitated not only by the lack of bureaucratic red tape, but also by the use of advanced technologies. One of them, Unreal Engine 5, allows a team whose members range in distance from Los Angeles to Hong Kong to successfully test different rendering styles.

The characters in “The Rise of Blus” are fearless supermen

The film project is permeated with the inspiring idea of fighting for justice and camaraderie. The film’s protagonist, a 13-year-old boy named Noun, wants to protect the disenfranchised citizens of Blus. When he discovers the evil plans of the town’s elite, he assembles a team of brave men just like himself to confront the evil and put Blus out of harm’s way.

The plot of the film is somewhat reminiscent of the story of the Nouns project itself, which decided to go beyond the NFT framework and create a truly decentralized organization. It was this transformation that allowed for greater community involvement, the creation of The Rise of Blus: A Nouns Movie foundation, and the launch of an innovative film project that combines art and technology.

Yuga Labs continues the history of the BAYC universe with the launch of HV-MTL Forge

On June 20, NFT giant Yuga Labs announced the first season of HV-MTL Forge, which will continue the gamified story of Bored Ape Yacht Club. The launch date for the new project is June 29. NFT owners are provided with unique features, which Yuga Labs’ tweet expressed in four words: “Build. Flex. Fight. Evolve”.

HV-MTL Forge.

Build. Flex. Fight. Evolve.

Season 1 begins June 29th. pic.twitter.com/rsZd9ChVqh

— Bored Ape Yacht Club 🍌 (@BoredApeYC) June 20, 2023

Major surprises awaiting HV-MTL Forge players

The March release of HV-MTL, Yuga Labs’ latest NFT collection, was greeted rather reservedly by the community. The revealed design of the collection in May failed to excite holders again. But Yuga Labs knows how to instill enthusiasm in its fans. The HV-MTL Forge NFT game announced this week is a clear proof of that. It will allow each of the 30,000 HV-MTL owners to showcase their digital creations, earn additional rewards, and climb the leaderboard.

The first season of the NFT game requires learning how to build in-game workshops, manage and upgrade mechanical creatures to prepare for upcoming PvP battles.

Fans of gaming are in for an incredible adventure in the HV-MTL metaverse:

• Searching for blueprints,
• Gathering materials,
• Discovering new abilities in their HV characters.

In the course of the NFT game, successful participants will receive community approval, gaining votes for their advancement.

The BAYC universe continues to expand

HV-MTL Forge is a continuation of an exciting narrative in which BAYC owners searched for a golden key in a virtual underworld. Participants in this quest were rewarded with mysterious sources of power, which later evolved into the HV-MTL NFTs.

Now the HV characters have a crucial role to play in the game’s journey, providing their owners with an immersive experience. Presumably, all of Yuga Labs’ collectible digital assets will make a huge difference in the Otherside metaverse.

Importantly, the market value of Bored Ape has now approached 40 ETH. Recall that the legendary collection has not reached this level since November 2021.