As the year draws to an end, we’re asking some of the key members of the blockchain gaming sector what they thought about what happened in 2023, and what they expect in 2024. You can check out all our interviews in this series here.
Rebecca Liao is the co-founder and CEO of layer 1 gaming-focused blockchain Saga.
What was the most significant news of 2023?
In a year where we inked partnerships with Polygon, Avalanche, Celestia, Forte, Klaytn and Com2uS, and released our Pegasus Incentivized Testnet as the final stop before mainnet in Q1 2024, it’s hard to pick the most significant news.
However, it probably is the current size of the Saga Innovator Program, which is our ecosystem program. We currently have 300+ projects building on Saga, 80% of which are gaming. For a pre-launch chain to have attained this level of traction speaks to a very meaningful movement in the industry.
How did the focus of your business change this year?
Saga has remained consistent in our vision and go-to-market approach, but there were two significant expansions that have changed the trajectory of the business. First, we have positioned our brand to celebrate storytellers, creators and developers writ large, not just web3 or even web2 game developers. The greatest contribution of web3 to the cultural zeitgeist is the celebration of freedom and the exploration of creative expression, together. This is a message that will resonate with gaming and entertainment, regardless of the technology used on the backend.
Second, we have brought our technology far more into the forefront so the market can get to know our tech stack much better. With our Unblock Yourself campaign, we are inviting developers to “unblock” themselves from the tech struggles that have prevented them from building the games they dream of building. It became evident that developers needed to know how our integrated stack differs from other scaling offerings in the market and the solutions it would present to their development challenges. We’ve found that developers have been hungry for this technology all along, and a large focus for 2024 will be making sure they can successfully onboard to the Saga Protocol.
What do you predict will be the most important trends in 2024?
Web3 gaming will finally start to migrate from play-to-earn to the early formation of multiverses where the emphasis will be on mods and creators taking game IP and making it their own. Roblox and Fortnite are the biggest gaming trends in wider gaming, and web3 takes their mechanics and scales them in a decentralized way.
While much of the emphasis has been on triple titles for the most promising web3 games, we’ll find that the best and most popular web3 games will be those that harness first and foremost the power of the community, not the production value of the game itself.
What was your favourite blockchain game of the year?
Parallel, no contest.
What’s your New Year’s resolution and what resolution would you enforce on the industry?
No matter how Saga grows, we will always be the place where crazies can come to dream their craziest dreams and feel loved and supported. I hope that the industry joins us in upholding this creative ideal.
Degen energy has been necessary for seeding any crypto vertical, but what takes it forward are the universal values of rebellion, community and the relentless drive for new forms of creative expression that better reflect how we live now.
Find out more about Saga here.
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