We talk about Epic Games a lot; not only are we fans of the CEO, Tim Sweeney, but we’re fans of how they have put themselves in the firing line for early adoption of blockchain gaming.
Epic Games’ first foray into NFTs in their own IPs was not well-received, and in all honesty, that was for good reason. The NFTs added to an already dying Ghost Recon: Breakpoint were a bizarre tack-on. However, their long-term strategy with regards to Web3 and blockchain technology is far more interesting.
When Steam turned its back on games that use NFTs, Epic Games stepped forward. Then, Tim Sweeney doubled down by saying, “Over the coming decades, the metaverse has the potential to become a multitrillion-dollar part of the world economy.” Then, just this month, Epic Games announced a partnership with Gala Games to list a blockchain battle royale game, Grit.
Now, at NFT.NYC, Blankos Block Party has announced that they are also partnering with Epic Games to be listed on the store.
What Is Blankos Block Party?
Blankos Block Party is a free-to-play, Play-to-Earn (P2E), social, open-world multiplayer game by Mythical Games. Mythical Games have been creeping up the Web3 gaming relevancy charts for a while now, first with Blankos Block Party, and more recently with the officially licensed NFL Rivals.
Blankos Block Party is a game in which the players create much of the content, similar in style to Minecraft, for example. The game has its own SDK (Software Development Kit) that allows players to create their own worlds without knowing how to code or having any background in game development.
The game has proven popular in blockchain gaming’s fledgling years, and after launching at the end of 2020, it reached 1 million players within a year. Finding accurate player numbers is difficult at the moment as it’s not on DappRadar, but Blankos Block Party has undoubtedly done well.
Nevertheless, the difficulty for any game is getting more players and staying relevant. This partnership with Epic Games and the listing on the Epic Games Store could be a milestone for the project. Epic Games Store has an eclectic mix of genres, with some titans in gaming like Fortnite, Rocket League, and Valorant. Blankos Block Party’s listing on the store will not only garner more eyes for the game, but could also make the installation and onboarding of players a far smoother process — one of blockchain gaming’s biggest hurdles.