Ready Layer 2

So, you want to build a web3 game? There's a lot that goes into it. Not the least of which is the actual software development.

Maybe you're a dev, or you know a dev, and you can build it yourselves.

But what if you aren't a dev? What if you don't know any devs that you can trust? What if this is your first time building a game and you're unsure of how to get started? What if you just want some support to make sure you don't screw the whole thing up?

Then you should consider hiring a Web3 game studio.

Today we talk with Zander from Animus Labs. They're a Web3 game studio for hire that has been involved with great games on Arbitrum like Smol Age and SmithyDao. They are also building several titles on Berachain and Polygon.

On this episode, Zander helps you understand when you should consider hiring a dev shop and how to pick one. We cover:

• What should you do before you reach out to them?
• How does contracting work? And how much does this stuff cost?
• What are the characteristics and habits of the founders that make it?
• And what about those that don't?

If you're interested in building a web3 game and you think you may need some help, then this episode is for you.

BTW… Animus Labs recently acquired Smithy Dao. We're going to drop a second episode with Zander to discuss that. Keep an eye out for it in the days ahead.

On this episode I talk with Flook from Knights of the Ether.

Knights of the Ether (KOTE) is coming off of Mydsummer Madness - a very successful launch event for their deck builder game Blightfell.

Flook takes us through the journey that began with a generative NFT collection on Mainnet, evolved to include a DeFi staking game on Arbitrum (thanks in part to the smol brains), and most recently, spawned the deck builder game, Blightfell.

This story includes important lessons for founders about hiring from your community (a common theme on this show lately), testing ideas with your community without giving away too much, and staying motivated as a web3 builder through the ups and downs (especially while crypto twitter chases and glorifies obvious scams and pump and dumps).

Most importantly, it's a story about following your muse and stepping through the doors that open for you as a founder. You never know where you might end up!

Learn more:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/KnightsOfTheEth

Web: https://mint.knightsoftheether.com/

Play Form Side Quest: Unreal Editor for Fortnite (Medium article)

For more from Ready Layer 2: https://gitsmol.com/podcast

On this episode, I talk with Smashe from Tales of Elleria.

This is a long-running project in the Treasure Dao ecosystem and it's had its share of ups and downs. They launched their mint at the height of the last bull run and then launched their game into an absolute extinction-level market collapse.

But they persevered. The Tales of Elleria team built through the bear, suffered, and recovered, from a massive hack on their LP, and have kept building, and having fun, throughout.

We talk about team size and structure for this type of complex GameFi project, managing emotions as a team through the ups and downs, and managing the community through those ups and downs too.

This is a fantastic conversation with tons of learning opportunities for the would-be founder and/or team member. Plus, a good amount of history and insight into the game for the players out there too.

Twitter: @TalesofElleria

Web: https://www.talesofelleria.com/

Smashe's Top 10 Lessons Learned Building Tales of Elleria: https://twitter.com/Smashe__/status/1618600949848866822

Find more from Ready Layer 2 at https://gitsmol.com/podcast

On this episode I talk with OBLOMOV. He's a digital artist who loves 3D and creepy little characters. Plus, he's a great community contributor and just flat out fun to talk with.

Topics:

• The early days (and vibes) of the Treasure DAO and Smolverse communities
• Converting pixel art to 3D
• Launching your first NFT project
• The Gloomy Doomers NFT project
• The challenges of rendering 3D generative NFT collections (really interesting - I recommend you pull up a Gloomy Doomer and inspect it while listening to this part)
• Some alpha on why so many generative NFT projects are late to reveal
• The Colony NFT project
• Pros and Cons of minting on ETH Mainnet vs. Arbitrum

Tools discussed:

• Blender - a free and open source 3D creation suite
• Bueno.art - No-code tools for digital collectible creators

Links:

• Oblomov on Twitter: @CryptOblomov (with LinkTree)
• Gloomy Doomers (Open Sea)
• The Colony (Open Sea)
• The Colony on Twitter (minting now - link in pinned tweet): @TheColonyNFT_

On this episode, I talk with Max Wave and Desolute from Realm.

If you're a builder, you'll learn about:

• Building a community
• Building trust
• Generating excitement and engagement thru rapid delivery
• Engaging your community and giving them a real sense of ownership in building the game
• Launching tokens
• Building an economy
• Interop (both planned and unplanned… listen in to see what I mean)
• Team size and more

If you're interested in becoming a mod or joining an existing team, you can learn from Max Wave and Desolute's experience.

If you're a fan of Realm like me, you'll get to hear the history and evolution of the game and a bit about what's coming next.

Learn more:

Web: https://www.rlm.land/

Twitter: @rlmverse

For more from Ready Layer 2: https://gitsmol.com/podcast

On this episode, we talk with Blanklee (@Blanklee3) from RentFun.io. They are building a platform that brings Liquidity to NFT Utility.

What does that mean?

• A player wants to try out a new game or alpha hub before making a (potentially sizable) investment to buy in.
• An NFT owner needs short-term liquidity but doesn't want to sell their NFT.
• An NFT owner wants to earn a yield on the utility of an NFT that they are not using.
• A game or alpha hub wants to provide additional utility for its owners and users.

RentFun aims to support all of these scenarios and more.

We discuss the process of building an NFT rental marketplace, launching an NFT project, and considerations before launching a token.

Plus, community building, governance, marketing, and all the other things that go into launching a new platform.

On this show, we chat with DefiDog, a well-known DeFi Threadoor on Arbitrum. Defi Dog has captured the attention of many, including myself, with his insightful posts and engaging content on Twitter. We'll explore Defi Dog's motivation, process, and approach to content creation.

For founders... you'll gain valuable insights into how a threadooor like Defi Dog evaluates projects. Discover tips and tricks on how to create documentation that is easily shareable for content creators. Moreover, learn the best practices for engaging with content creators as partners, maximizing your project's exposure.

For content creators... Defi Dog will share his wisdom on organizing research effectively and presenting content in a way that captivates your audience. We also talk about the responsibility of being an influencer, and how to approach partnerships and sponsored content with integrity.

For crypto investors and explorers... Defi Dog will share invaluable tips on how to DYOR (Do Your Own Research) effectively. Uncover the strategies and tools you can utilize to make informed decisions in the dynamic crypto landscape.

Follow DeFiDog and check out his work on Twitter: @ArbiAlpha

Today we're talking with Big Noodle and Lambo McGee about one of Arbitrum's most beloved projects... The Lost Donkeys.

It started with a joke about Bridgeworld's funny-looking donkey, and quickly evolved into an NFT project, a lively community, and a game.

We'll take you through the origin story, The Lost Paper, and the process of building a loyal community.

We'll get into the mechanics of designing and building a game, how to deliver incremental value to your holders, and how to keep building towards the bigger, long-term vision.

And we're going to talk about the future... the multi-chain, donk-board riding future of TLD!

Links and Resources:

• Web: https://www.thelostdonkeys.com/
• Link Tree: https://linktr.ee/thelostdonkeys
• Twitter: @TheLostDonkeys - @Big__Noodle - @CryptoTaxCat (Lambo McGee)
• The Lost Paper

Learn more about Ready Layer 2 and https://gitsmol.com

We talk with The Gainlings founders madski and nArtc about a fun new play2burn model coming to Arbitrum. It's a degen play where your NFTs battle it out and the winners come away with ETH bounties.

From a founder's perspective, this innovative project allows us to explore a bunch of interesting topics:

1. The technical approach to building fully on-chain battles that are watchable right on OpenSea
2. Unity programming inside an NFT
3. Proper random number generation on a blockchain
4. Prototyping and feedback - keep it simple
5. Building the game mechanics and tokenomics
6. Building a community and trust as a new project
7. Legal considerations for games that have an element of chance
8. Getting to launch

And of course, we cover the game itself to get you ready for the Season 1 mint on March 25, 2023.

Learn more:

• Twitter: @thegainlings
• Web: http://thegainlings.io/
• Discord: discord.gg/U6mTAnNvPp

For full show notes and links: https://gitsmol.com

On this episode, we talk with Alec Shaw and Subhajit Ray from Sperax.

We discuss:

• The Sperax DAO.
• USDS, which is their decentralized stable coin with built-in rewards.
• Demeter, which is their Farming-as-a-service infrastructure on Uniswap V3.

You'll learn:

• About Sperax's journey building on Arbitrum.
• How to use Demeter, their farm-building tool, to quickly build liquidity for your own protocol. Plus, get marketing and financial support from the Sperax DAO when you do.

Learn more at https://sperax.io/

Find full show notes with links to everything mentioned on the show at https://gitsmol.com/