A Kickstarter effort has been started to gather money for the creation of real cards for the trading card game What is This Sorcery, which is being developed across the Ethereum networks Skale and Abstract. However, the game’s developers claim that it serves as a means of reaching more Web2 players in addition to being a fundraising tool. With stretch goals of up to $80,000 to include extra uncommon and promotional cards in the set, the campaign, which started Tuesday afternoon, seeks to fund at least $20,000 for the actual card creation. As of this writing, more than $6,700 has been raised.
About What is This Sorcery
What is This Sorcery (WITS) is a trading card game (TCG) that combines digital and physical gameplay in a seamless manner. With the help of blockchain technology, WITS incorporates NFC-capable cards to improve collectibility, facilitate tap-to-trade, and verify ownership. Set in the mystical world of Catena, players join one of ten distinct factions to fight, gather, and rule throughout Season 0, influencing how the WITS universe develops. WITS offers both players and collectors an experience by fusing cutting-edge technology, captivating lore, and strategic depth.
Why Ethereum Game ‘What Is This Sorcery’ Turned to Kickstarter
Nick Grossi, co-founder, and CEO of What is This Srocery, said that Kickstarter is supporting the campaign with guidance and advertising in addition to a month-long email campaign to relevant people, such as someone who has previously supported a card game campaign.
He stated that Kickstarter wasn’t just about fundraising, but about building real, organic demand from players outside of Web3. Nick Grossi explained that by launching there, they could reach mainstream gamers who wanted to play, not just speculate; prove their demand to future investors and partners, and avoid excessive Web3 presales that could create unsustainable market conditions.
According to Grossi, What is This Sorcery is the first-ever Web3 game that has such an association with Kickstarter.
This special status is partly because Web3 games usually use their own crypto-native fundraising strategies, such as launching tokens or game assets or avatars that are sold as non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Though not games based on tokenized assets, many Web2 independent games have previously used Kickstarter and other financing websites.
However, Grossi thinks that the way to a more sustainable model for crypto gaming is to reduce crypto-native funding rounds. According to Grossi, Web developers frequently ‘over-monetize’ their games before releasing them, which results in a small following.
Last week, What is This Sorcery finished selling 1500 Genesis Stone NFTs on Abstract for 0.04 ETH each, which gives players access to in-game goodies and a boost on the scoreboard. This is an advance for Season 0, the game’s first seasonal airdrop campaign on Skale, which is scheduled for mid-February.
However, according to Grossi, the NFT release and Kickstarter campaign are not an example of over-monetization. This is due to the fact that each funding source has a distinct goal, the NFTs are optional, and the game is already free to play on the Epic Games Store.
The money raised from the NFT sale will be used to support the early game economy, create staking functionality that works with the game, and support in-game prizes.
