AI, gaming, and blockchain are three of the fastest-growing industries of the past year. AI protocols are being integrated into Web3 games powered by blockchain technology, allowing these three sectors to grow. With the rise of Web3 gaming and the emergence of new titles, publishers play a crucial role in driving adoption and pushing the sector forward. Research has shown that game publishers quickly adopt innovations and technologies from upcoming games. Furthermore, games and publishers support each other by leveraging their networks – working together across their respective channels to continue bringing more engaging and innovative games to market.
Aiming to make a mark in all this is Ultiverse, Morningstar Ventures’ portfolio company and MSV GG partner, who are building a one-stop platform for Web3 gaming production and publishing.
This month's review will cover everything from the founding team to fundraising, the product suite, and how the ecosystem works. The review will conclude with an analysis of Ultiverse’s potential strengths and challenges.
What is Ultiverse: Ulti-Pilot, Missions, and Product Infrastructure
Ultiverse aims to create an integrated Web3 platform that combines GameFi, NFTs, DeFi, trading, and Liquid staking. As a three-sided marketplace, the platform provides utility for:
- Gamers: The suite of products allows gamers to discover different titles and enjoy a tailored experience based on their preferences.
- Developers: Developers can easily create and publish games through the integrated tech stack.
- Content Creators: In the future, the team aims to develop more proprietary AI tools for user-generated content.
The integration of AI and blockchain technology has allowed the project to create the following product structure, offering users various creative and economic opportunities within the ecosystem.
Supporting the product structure and Ultiverse ecosystem are Ultiverse’s Core Pillars:
- AI Protocol - The Backbone of Innovation: At the core of the Ultiverse ecosystem is its AI protocol called Bodhi Protocol. It is the foundation for its AI-generated content that ensures the ecosystem is vast, diverse, intelligent, adaptive, and evolving based on user preferences and interactions.
- AI-driven Gaming Worlds - A New Era of Gaming: Ultiverse has an expansive network of interconnected AI-driven MicroWorlds, also known as their dApps. This pillar allows users to own in-game assets, experience transparent and fair game mechanics, and engage at a new level.
- AI-driven Avatar - Connecting Communities: Ulti-Pilot offers a personal and immersive experience in the AI-driven world. The platform enables communication, collaboration, and community building.
- NFTs and Digital Economy - Redefining Value: NFTs play a crucial role in the Ultiverse economy. These include digital art, virtual real estate, and unique in-game items. This core pillar provides a tangible economic framework within the ecosystem, bridging the gap between virtual and real-world value.
- Comprehensive Media Matrix - A Multifaceted Experience: Ultiverse Live is the media division of Ultiverse and the final core pillar. It serves as a comprehensive media platform for Web3 projects and gives visibility to projects to bridge Web2 and Web3 audiences.
To dive deeper into the product structure, this review will focus on three core initiatives that are currently driving the growth of Ultiverse. These include:
- Ultiverse Mission Runner
- Ulti-Pilot
- Terminus
Ultiverse Mission Runner
At the heart of the Ultiverse Ecosystem lies the Ultiverse Mission Runner, providing users with opportunities to earn valuable rewards by completing different quests and collecting points called “souls.” The Ultiverse team is dedicated to offering various missions to maintain user engagement and incentivize participation through strategic collaborations, including allowlist placements and airdrops from various ecosystems.
Since the launch of Ulti-Pilot, more than 130 Web3 games have entered into content partnerships, and Ultiverse has already become the exclusive distribution partner for some of them. This means Ultiverse will continue to offer the community exclusive early access, whitelist spots, rewards, and gaming experiences.
How to complete missions
- Users can sign up to the Missions platform and connect their wallets. From there, they can buy NFTs to gain access to more missions.
- Users can then join and complete the missions they are interested in.
- During the missions, users earn soul points, gaining them valuable rewards within the wider ecosystem.
Ulti-Pilot
Ulti-Pilot is envisioned as the gateway to the diverse gaming experiences within Ultiverse, also known as 'MicroWorlds' (dApps published under the Ultiverse umbrella), all powered by the advanced AI technology of the Bodhi Protocol.
The possibilities that AI can bring to gaming experiences are endless. It allows for creating personalized, ever-evolving, fully autonomous AI agents that adapt to individual preferences and behaviors. In Ulti-Pilot, users begin as wandering “Souls” and are later presented with different questions that help them discover their character. Based on their selected answers, they evolve into a uniquely personalized agent, providing a tailored experience as they explore the world.
Ultimately, the goal of Ulti-Pilot has always been to utilize its AI technology to both personalize the user experience for gamers and also to streamline the game publishing process for studios.
Terminus
Terminus, another key component of the line of products of Ultiverse, is the decentralized virtual metaverse in Ultiverse that runs on the BNB Chain, ZetaChain, and Unreal Engine 5. It's the central hub for real-time interaction, content exploration, and user creation. Similar to a real city, Terminus offers vacant land for user development, including public spaces and DeFi structures. Utilizing Unreal Engine 5, Terminus delivers stunning graphics and dynamic lighting for an immersive experience. It also acts as a portal to access all Ultiverse games.
More Projects
Other projects within the Ultiverse Ecosystem include:
- Electric Sheep
- Ultiverse Live
- BAC
- Moonlight
- Meta Merge
Discover more Ultiverse Projects here: https://www.ultiverse.io/project/ulti-pilot
Team, Fundraising, and Partnerships
In February 2024, Ultiverse announced a successful strategic investment round, raising $4M at a valuation of $150M. The project's investors included IDG Capital, Sequoia, Binance Labs, DeFiance Capital, Animoca Brands, GSR, Morningstar Ventures, and others.
In 2022, our parent company, Morningstar Ventures, made its first investment in Ultiverse and has worked closely with the team ever since. From the beginning, the Ultiverse team and its CEO, Frank Ma, have worked at a high level, continuously developed new products, and grown a passionate Web3 community.
MSV GG Partnership
During our partnership, our members focused on participating in the Ultiverse Ulti-Pilot testing program, where members would collect soul points upon completing missions on the “Mission Runner” portal.
Over the last couple of months, our MSV GG members have been testing the portal and completing missions for Ulti-Pilot and Terminus. Ulti-pilot is Ultiverse's cornerstone, seamlessly blending AI-driven gaming and distribution. It tackles interoperability issues, making integration smooth for developers and enhancing user experiences. As Ultiverse's gateway, it fosters creativity and ensures continuous fresh content through game publishing and seasonal releases.
Our members also created native guides, onboarding materials, and other supplementary content. They also actively supported the Terminus game and gave UX/UI design feedback.
Our Analysis:
Strengths:
- Through proprietary technology, Ultiverse is able to produce its own titles as well as integrate third-party content. This gives its audience an array of games to choose from, keeping them engaged depending on their various preferences.
- The team behind the project has done great work in the past and has a strong relationship with both MSV GG and Morningstar Ventures. Furthermore, Ultiverse has garnered support from top-tier VCs, including Sequoia, Binance, Animoca, and Morningstar Ventures.
- The strong integration of AI allows users to have a personalized experience, which has already resulted in the creation of a strong community. This is proved by their strong following on Twitter and Discord, with over 1 million people combined.
- $ULTI token unifies the three-sided marketplace and incentivizes developers, content creators, and gamers.
Challenges:
- External gaming studios control the quality of third-party games. In the future, Ultiverse might face the challenge of onboarding games that are not engaging long-term.
- Sustaining the existing ecosystem and attracting new talent may become increasingly more costly.
What’s Next for Ultiverse
The Ultiverse team has already announced a series of important initiatives and milestones for 2024, including:
- TGE Q2 - Expected to publish 8-10 games between April and December
- AI NPC/creator tool integration around June
- Launch of Vision Pro version of Termius City in July
- OneStop SDK tool for game developers, expected in 2025
Along with these core roadmap initiatives, the team announced their “Beyond Collectibles, From Silver to Gold” NFT Mint. Owners of the two NFT collections, Electric Sheep and Moonlight NFTs, and Ulti-Pilot participants are eligible for the upcoming raffle. The mint will take place late April and a total of 6000 Gold Chips will be supplied.
Find out how you can participate and what the various rounds entail here: https://twitter.com/UltiverseDAO/status/1773418366751117540
Learn more about Ultiverse
🌐 Official website: www.ultiverse.io
🐦 Official Twitter: twitter.com/UltiverseDAO
📜 Whitepaper: docs.ultiverse.io
🕹️ Discord channel: discord.com/invite/ultiverse
