In the traditional gaming space, the role-playing game (RPG) market is a significant revenue driver, specifically from gaming apps – accounting for approximately 30% of all app game earnings globally.
In 2022 alone, RPGs generated $44.95 billion, with key revenue sources coming from in-app purchases, paid app sales, and advertising – making mobile RPGs a strong sector within gaming.
The success of RPGs is no different within the Web3 gaming space. Being one of the most successful sectors with games like Axie Infinity and Gods Unchained leading the charge, card-game RPGs are set for growth.
Another player within the card-based RPG space is MSV GG partner Legend of Arcadia (LOA), a free-to-play game tapping into expanding the Web3 gaming space with its immersive gameplay and NFT-based assets.
The multi-chain game combines traditional gaming elements with Web3 GameFi by incorporating its native token, $ARCA, into the game economy, where players can boost yield through staking, battling, and mining.
This month’s project review explores Legend of Arcadia’s key features, team, fundraising, and future roadmap, as well as analyzes the project’s opportunities and potential challenges.
What is Legend of Arcadia
Legend of Arcadia (LOA) is a card-based RPG set in a rich story universe of Arcadia inspired by Kingdom Hearts. The game is built on EVM blockchain and designed for a modern gamer audience, allowing LOA players a free-to-play experience on mobile devices and real-time PVP modes to trade NFTs and other in-game assets.
LOA was developed by Mugen Interactive and is currently its flagship game. Andy Lee, the executive producer and CEO of LOA, aims to make Web3 gaming more fun and accessible by creating games that bring people together.
LOA already has a strong community, boasting over 460K+ X Followers and 66K members on Discord.
Legend of Arcadia hosts a series of interactive experiences on its “Game Hub.” Players can find ongoing campaigns, such as the Grandia World Tour (S2) and the Telegram Mini Game (S3).
Through participating in these experiences, players can earn Gacha Points, leading to $ARCA in the future. The hub has already reached 100K+ players and launched four seasons, including the S1 Arcadia RuneQuest, S2 Grandia World Tour, and the S3 Telegram Mini Game, and S4 website update campaign.
Gameplay, Lore, and Token Economy
Legend of Arcadia immerses players in a richly detailed fantasy world deeply rooted in the lore around the Universe of Arcadia. The game's narrative begins with the mysterious appearance of a deadly black fog that forces humanity to retreat underground.
In the dark, artificial cities, children's imaginations flourish, giving rise to a new universe called Arcadia, where their toys come to life. Central to this story is Dr. Oliver, a once cherished toy who awakens in Arcadia and, through his intelligence, helps create a thriving civilization of living toys.
However, the peace of this toy world is threatened by the rise of Synthetoys, artificial beings created by a disillusioned toy named Frank, setting the stage for conflict between these two factions.
Gameplay
In terms of gameplay, LOA offers a combination of real-time battles and RPG mechanics, allowing players to form strategic teams using heroes from six distinct factions. Each hero has unique abilities, and their placement in battle is key to success.
Various PvE and PvP modes, such as the Fervor Arena and World Boss battles, offer players numerous ways to engage with the world and earn rewards.
Token Economy, $ARCA, Gacha Points, and NFTs
The game also integrates blockchain technology through its NFT marketplace, where players can trade heroes and in-game items. NFT assets, such as SSR heroes and unique gear, can be bought, sold, and upgraded, providing players with opportunities to enhance their gameplay experience.
The marketplace is a key component of Legend of Arcadia’s ecosystem, powered by its native $ARCA token, allowing players to earn, trade, and participate in governance.
The following features drive the LOA token ecosystem:
- Gacha Points – Unlocking Rewards: Gacha Points are essential for accessing rare rewards in LOA. Players can earn them by completing quests in the game or through the Telegram mini-game or Grandia World Tour. The more Gacha Points players accumulate, the better their chances of receiving airdrop rewards, such as rare Obsidian, which is crucial for minting $ARCA tokens.
- $ARCA – The Game’s Main Currency: Once players have enough Gacha Points, they can use them to obtain $ARCA tokens. These tokens allow players to unlock Toy Heroes, upgrade skills, and engage with other players. The $ARCA TGE is planned for the end of 2024.
- Toy Heroes, Factions, and Skills: The heroes are critical in the game. There are eight different hero classes and six factions, each providing unique bonuses and skills. Building the right combination of heroes, factions, and abilities is key to succeeding in battle. The heroes will soon be obtained in the LOA Game Hub.
- Arenas – PvP and PvE Challenges: As aforementioned, the game offers various arenas for PvP and PvE gameplay. These include the Fervor Arena for player-versus-player matches, the World Boss Arena for battling epic bosses, and the Toy Brawl Arena for quick PvP games. Each arena offers valuable rewards like Crystals, Gems, and Obsidian, which are used to mint $ARCA tokens.
Challenges and Campaign Initiatives
In anticipation of the TGE and listing, LOA has gone live with several gaming events and initiatives to immerse gamers and community members into the world of Legend of Arcadia.
The following two initiatives are ongoing events:
Telegram Mini Game
At the beginning of August 2024, the team launched its Season 3 Telegram Mini Game, offering a relaxed yet engaging gaming experience on Telegram, allowing players to participate in various activities. These include unlocking SR/SSR Heroes, inviting friends, and healing heroes, all while earning rewards.
As part of the game, players will need to:
- Earn Coins: Engage in monster battles by tapping to attack, allowing you to collect coins.
- Unlock Heroes: Accumulate as many coins as possible to unlock various heroes, including SR and SSR types.
- Recharge Heroes’ Energy: Restore your heroes' energy over time to keep them in top fighting condition.
- Increase Coin Earnings: Log in daily and complete tasks to earn additional coins and rewards.
- Earn Gacha Points: Participate in battles against mechs and treasure chest monsters to collect Gacha Points, which can be used for further rewards.
Since its launch, the mini-game has hit 200K monthly users, where 100K+ were reached in just less than a month after going live.
Grandia World Tour
Since June 28th, the LOA team allowed people to immerse themselves into the world of Grandia via its “Grandia World Tour” gaming event.
During the event, players were given the opportunity to accumulate Gacha Points (GPs) by engaging in activities like logging in, exploring the labyrinth, mining, competing in the arena, purchasing energy, or synthesizing $ARCA.
Furthermore, when a player's Toy Hero reached its maximum level, it also granted players significant points within the game.
In just a month, the Grandia World Tour achieved impressive traction with over 54K registered players, 220K+ transactions, 10K+ active users, and 17.5K+ Daily New Users.
Due to the overwhelming response and results of the event, the team decided to extend the Grandia World Tour, and is currently available for playing on the LOA game hub: ➡️ here
Team and Fundraising
The LOA team comprises gaming and Web3 veterans with experience at Tencent, Baidu Games, and more gaming studios and games. Executive Producer Andy Lee leads the team and is also the Co-founder and CEO of Mungen Interactive, the game developer behind LOA. Together with a team of game designers, Web3 experts, art directors, and engineers, Andy aims to create an accessible yet fun gaming experience in the Web3 world.
Learn more about the team: ➡️ here
Legend of Arcadia’s game developer Mugen raised $4M in strategic backing from top-tier investors in the web3 space, including Animoca Brands, OKX Ventures, Arche Fund, Mysten Labs, Summer Ventures, and many more. The funds raised by Mugen were used to launch the flagship game and its development works towards its Q4 2024 launch.
MSV GG Partnership
Since August 2024, MSV GG became an official partner with Legend of Arcadia, allowing MSV GG members to play different game versions and test out new functions.
So far, members have played the Telegram Mini Game and provided structure feedback to the LOA team on any new features and the gameplay. The members have already found over 30 critical bugs, shared and implemented with the LOA team.
MSV GG members have also been creating native content and sharing it across their personal X profiles, highlighting the project’s achievements and latest initiatives.
Analysis
Strengths
- Strong Backing from Top-Tier VCs: LOA is supported by highly reputable venture capital firms such as Animoca Brands, OKX Ventures, and Mysten Labs, which provides significant credibility and financial stability. Animoca Brands is mainly well-known for its focus on blockchain-based games, NFTs, and the metaverse, which aligns well with Arcadia’s play-to-earn model. These VCs provide capital and offer strategic guidance, industry connections, and potential partnerships with other portfolio companies in the blockchain and gaming sectors.
- Strong Social Traction: The project's social presence on X and Discord is very strong, considering that the project has not been live for so long. LOA’s community initiatives and gaming events have undoubtedly helped create a strong and active community, helping to attract early users and gamers.
Challenges
- Global mobile game adoption: One of the main challenges for LOA is the adoption of mobile games in Western markets, as Asian countries are already more accustomed to them. So, while the project has strong backing, it must significantly differentiate itself to gain market share. This could mean innovating gameplay, creating a more immersive narrative, or leveraging its blockchain technology to offer unique features that set it apart.
What’s Next for Legend of Arcadia?
The team is getting ready for the $ARCA TGE. In anticipation of the token launch, LOA is hosting several events and initiatives for players and community members to get affiliated with the world of Arcadia and Grandia – such as the Grandia World Tour and the Telegram Mini Game.
If you want to stay up to date on all future initiatives, make sure to join LOA’s discord channel and follow them on X for more frequent updates.
Learn more about Legend of Arcadia:
🌐 Official Website: legendofarcadia.io
🐦 Official X page: x.com/LegendofArcadia
💬 Official Telegram: t.me/LegendofArcadiaAnnouncements
🕹️ Discord Channel: discord.com/invite/legendofarcadiahq
🖊️ Medium/Blog: medium.com/@LegendofArcadia_official
📖 Whitepaper: whitepaper.legendofarcadia.io/legend-of-arcadia
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