From psychology professor to leading game developer and now in the forefront of advancing blockchain gaming, as he himself phrases it, “I’m an entrepreneur so when I see a wave coming, I have to surf.”
We are talking about Joonmo Kwon, the former CEO of South Korean gaming giant Nexon. Today he leads Delabs Games, the web3 venture springing out of gaming studio 4:33, which he also founded.
With its first mint upcoming, we took a moment to check in with the Delabs team to learn more about its games as well as broader vision of blockchain gaming.
Why blockchain?
Given Kwon’s history in mobile gaming, we were intrigued to find out why Delabs is developing blockchain games.
“We want to create fun games that last for a thousand years. With blockchain technology, our games can one day live on forever. This technology also helps us create tools that empower the community to become builders of their favourite Delabs game,” he commented.
“Web3 games offer a solution to the issues faced by traditional games. Players are not only enjoying their gaming experiences, but they also have ownership of valuable and tradeable digital assets.”
One of the issues today however, is that the standard of blockchain games doesn’t seem to excite players quite like the initial hype. Something Kwon agrees with, “Most web3 games in the market now are not very fun.” However he is hopeful this will change, partly thanks to Delab’s upcoming games offering its players fun, console-like and immersive experiences.
Kwon is a diligent believer in web3 gaming stating that the psychology of ownership plays a powerful role. “Players who own in-game assets tend to become loyal customers, enthusiastic marketing agents and active community members. They provide feedback on the game’s direction and participate in community activities.”
He goes on saying that “In web3 games, the company’s interests and the player’s interests are aligned.”
Fun gameplay
Going back to the subject of uninspiring games on the web3 market, we wonder how Delabs plans to bring about a change.
“Our primary objective is to offer high-quality graphics and an immersive gameplay experience that is unparalleled. Our core philosophy is centred on creating fun experiences that cater to a broad audience. Our games are designed to provide players with a pleasurable experience, regardless of their familiarity with NFTs, wallets, or cryptocurrencies in general.”
The first title from Delabs is Rumble Star Racing, which is a lawnmower racing game. One of its standout features is the game’s interoperability, meaning that players can acquire PFP NFTs with real in-game utility. For example, in Rumble Racing Star, holders of Goblintown and y00ts can play as a goblin or a y00t character, which the developers hope will excite a wider audience.
The Delabs team has previous experience of creating racing games, having worked on Mario Kart-inspired PC game Kart Rider.
Two more titles
By purchasing an Adventure Pass NFT, holders will also get benefits in Delab’s other two upcoming titles, RPGs Space Frontier and Metabolts.
“Space Frontier is a survival roleplaying game with amazing graphics and dynamic gameplay. Metabolts is a beautiful character collection game. Our art director for Metabolts is the best anime artist in Korea”, according to Kwon.
Somewhat surprisingly given Kwon’s background is that the upcoming games are all launching on PC, which he thinks currently provides the best platform for web3. “However, we are open to exploring other platforms in the future.”
Rumble Racing Star is a racing game on Polygon, with the mint of Adventure Pass NFTs on Thursday 6th April. Find out more by visiting Delabs Game’s website.