<div>
  <ul>
    <li>
      <p>
        Yuga Labs, the company behind the Bored Ape Yacht Club, has sold two game properties and their associated NFT collections, HV-MTL and Legends of the Mara, to Web3 gaming studio Faraway. This was done as part of the company's strategy to focus on its remaining games, Otherside and Dookey Dash.
      </p>
    </li>
    <li>
      <p>
        HV-MTL Forge is a game in which users manage habitats with the help of NFTs, while Legends of the Mara is a 2D adventure game connected to Otherside. Faraway, now the new owner of these games, is known for its previous works like Mini Royale: Nations and Serum City.
      </p>
    </li>
    <li>
      <p>
        Faraway will also add Spencer Tucker, Yuga Labs&rsquo; chief gaming officer, as its CPO to help maintain continuity under the new firm.&nbsp;
      </p>
    </li>
    <li>
      <p>
        <b>Analyst QuickTake:</b>
         The news aligns with Yuga Labs' focus on its Otherside metaverse, having 
        <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/27182">
          recently
        </a>
         hosted an event for NFT owners on the platform. On an M&amp;A front, the company acquired Proof, creator of the Moonbirds NFT collection (
        <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/26694">
          February 2024
        </a>
        ), and music metaverse platform Roar Studios (
        <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/20557">
          July 2023
        </a>
        ) to integrate them into its Otherside platform. 
      </p>
    </li>
  </ul>
  <p>
  </p>
</div>


<div>
  <p>
    <a href="https://decrypt.co/226844/bored-ape-creator-yuga-labs-offloaded-games">
      Decrypt
    </a>
  </p>
</div>


Metaverse Experience Platforms

ANALYST_QUICK_TAKE

<div>
<p>Yuga Labs has sold two gaming properties and their NFT collections, HV-MTL and Legends of the Mara, to Web3 gaming studio Faraway, allowing them to focus on their games, Otherside and Dookey Dash. HV-MTL Forge and Legends of the Mara are both games in which user interactions are facilitated by NFTs. Faraway will also employ Spencer Tucker, Yuga Labs' chief gaming officer, as its CPO to ensure seamless operations moving forward.</p>
</div> <p><b>Analyst QuickTake:<br>
</b> The news aligns with Yuga Labs' focus on its Otherside metaverse, having <a href="https:<br>
//sp-edge.com/updates/27182"> recently </a> hosted an event for NFT owners on the platform. On an M&amp;A front, the company acquired Proof, creator of the Moonbirds NFT collection ( <a href="https:<br>
//sp-edge.com/updates/26694"> February 2024 </a> ), and music metaverse platform Roar Studios ( <a href="https:<br>
//sp-edge.com/updates/20557"> July 2023 </a> ) to integrate them into its Otherside platform.</p>

Yuga Labs sells two gaming IPs to Faraway to streamline Otherside metaverse focus

PROMINENT_CATEGORY

<div>
 <p>Roblox has updated its Marketplace policies to permit any Roblox Premium member who has verified their ID to upload, publish, and sell 3D content. This new policy opens up the Marketplace to a larger pool of creators who can sell avatar accessories and clothing. The goal of this update is to boost user engagement and make the platform more accessible to creators who follow community standards.</p>
</div> <p><b>Analyst QuickTake:<br>
</b> The announcement builds on Roblox’s user generated content (UGC) drive, having recently launched tools to streamline this process. This included the <a href="https:<br>
//sp-edge.com/updates/27671"> launch </a> of Avatar Auto Setup and Texture Generator to reduce the time required to build avatars and 3D models.</p>

Roblox launches expanded access to Marketplace for diverse 3D content creation

<div>
 <p>Avalon, a metaverse gaming platform, has generated USD 10 million through a Series A funding round. This round seen participation from firms like Bitkraft Ventures, Hashed, Coinbase Ventures, Spartan Capital, and Foresight Ventures. This investment will be utilized for the development of their first game, named "Avalon", a massively multiplayer online (MMO) game designed for both Web2 and Web3 gaming communities.</p>
</div> <p><b>Analyst QuickTake:<br>
</b> While metaverse funding for startups has remained dismal across 2023 and 2024 YTD, Avalon is one of the only startups in the space to have raised funding across both years so far. Specifically, the company raised USD 13 million in <a href="https:<br>
//sp-edge.com/updates/16720"> February 2023 </a> to build the foundational structure for the company’s metaverse platform, addressing hurdles such as scalability and real-time interaction.</p>

Avalon raises USD 10 million in Series A funding to develop MMO title

<div>
 <p>Web3 social metaverse, Today, has secured USD 5 million in seed funding raised from Sfermion, Big Brain, GSR, Collab+Currency, Lingfeng Innovation Fund, and other investors. This funding will enhance the GenAI non-player characters (NPCs) and the no-code creation tools used in the game. </p>
 <p>Today boasts a leadership team composed of industry veterans from prestigious gaming companies such as Nintendo, SEGA, Epic Games, and Unity. The game permits players to construct virtual islands and look after "Residents", who are essentially NPCs. Gameplay is largely inspired by popular social simulation games like The Sims and Animal Crossing. </p>
 <p>The game is distinct due to its proprietary character engine that allows Tthe Residents to possess evolving personalities. Moreover, players hold ownership rights over the content they create on the platform. </p>
</div>

Web3 social metaverse Today raises USD 5 million in seed funding to bolster GenAI NPCs and no-code tools

<div>
 <p>Victoria VR, a VR content developer, has announced a collaboration with OpenAI to integrate ChatGPT with GenAI for enhanced asset creation capabilities. The collaboration will enable users to develop in-game items and content for VR platforms, which can then be minted as tradable NFTs. This service will be incorporated into Victoria VR's AI Builder platform which aids in the creation of no-code VR experiences.</p>
<p>The company is also in the process of developing a blockchain-based VR MMORPG using the Unreal Engine. This will allow players to maintain ownership of the assets they create. Development decisions will be managed by a Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO). Victoria VR aims to establish an in-game economy wherein users can complete quests, stake cryptocurrencies, and even purchase digital land.</p>
</div>

Victoria VR announces integration with ChatGPT for GenAI-backed asset creation

<div>
 <p>Two mothers, Rachelle Colvin and Danielle Sass, have sued Roblox, claiming it has facilitated illegal online gambling for minors. They argue that Roblox allows and profits from "virtual casinos" where users, mostly children, gamble using digital currency "Robux" obtained from the Roblox website. Although Roblox sought to have the lawsuit dismissed, referencing Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act and stating no actual financial loss occurred as a result of the activities, the court allowed the lawsuit to proceed. The court dismissed some claims like those involving RICO allegations. It did not accept Roblox's comparison of buying Robux to purchasing entertainment tickets, given Robux's value in trading for in-game experiences.</p>
</div>

Roblox faces lawsuit over illegal gambling claims progresses in California court

INCUMBENTS_PRESENT

<div>
 <p>Meta declared multiple updates for Horizon Workrooms, its online collaboration tool, which will be implemented on May 30. </p>
 <p>Updates include a revamp of the VR environment, the ability to arrange meetings without the necessity to create a workroom beforehand, introducing member restrictions within a workroom, and enhanced screen sharing capabilities in VR. Features that will be discarded comprise whiteboards, posters, logos, chat, files, links, and tracked keyboards, and users are advised to backup related data before its elimination.</p>
</div>

Meta adds quality-of-life improvements to Horizon Workrooms; removes other features

<div>
 <p>Epic Games has added MetaHumans, a digital avatar creation platform, to the Unreal Editor for Fortnite (UEFN). This feature allows users to introduce characters they've built in MetaHuman Creator and MetaHuman Animator and use them as non-player characters (NPCs) in their games. Additional updates to UEFN include more camera options, a physics sandbox gameplay mode, and the ability to simulate any static mesh.</p>
</div> <p><b>Analyst QuickTake:<br>
 </b> Epic Games’ <a href="https:<br>
//www.unrealengine.com/en-US/metahuman"> MetaHumans </a> cloud-based platform enables the creation of high-fidelity digital humans. Developers can reproduce facial expressions using only an iPhone, reducing the cost and complexity of performance capture. Further, the company claims that MetaHumans speeds up the development of digital humans to minutes, a process that previously took months.</p>

Epic Games adds MetaHumans avatar creation platform to Unreal Editor for Fortnite

<div>
 <p>Epic Games has revealed that it's bringing LEGO-branded elements and templates to Fortnite Creative and the Unreal Editor for Fortnite (UEFN). This move allows users to introduce LEGO features in their content creation.</p>
 <p>In addition to these new features, three LEGO games: Prop Hunt, Battle Arena, and Cat Island Adventure are being added to Fortnite. Furthermore, the company is introducing race track templates from Rocket Racing and is planning to include assets and animations from the Fall Guys party game.</p>
 <p>As with other user-generated content (UGC), these LEGO games are eligible for payouts in the game’s creative economy. However, in order to qualify, these games must have an ESRB rating of E10+ in the US or a PEGI rating of seven in Europe.</p>
</div> <p><b>Analyst QuickTake:<br>
</b> The announcement follows Epic Games’ collaboration with LEGO to launch a themed survival game in <a href="https:<br>
//www.theverge.com/2023/12/7/23990660/lego-fortnite-release-epic"> December 2023 </a> . Notably, the partnership has created <a href="https:<br>
//www.theverge.com/2024/2/27/24084644/fortnite-new-lego-games-raft-survival-obby-fun"> additional </a> themed experiences with greater sophistication in terms of player mechanics and virtual world elements, compared to traditional brand launches on the platform.</p>

Epic Games announces LEGO templates for user-generated content in Fortnite Creative

<div>
 <p>Player One Universe is unveiling its social gaming metaverse platform in a beta launch. The launch scope includes a social platform known as "Cosy Web" that allows community engagement and adds 12 partner applications. The firm also intends to offer a limited-edition Genesis Pass to early supporters and adopters by March 27.</p>
 <p>This platform enables users to build their own private metaverses where they can engage in community activities like game planning, organizing events, and conducting promotions. The platform has AI implemented to produce unique 3D avatars for users that are based on their NFTs and 2D profile photos. The Genesis Pass presents benefits such as airdrops, advanced access to features, NFT and avatar drops, and the privilege to vote on future advancements on the platform.</p>
</div>

All Updates