NCSoft provides $15 million to Web3 developer Mysten in new partnership

Game developer NCSoft has announced a partnership with Web3 developer Mysten Labs. With the partnership, NCSoft has invested $15 million into Mysten, and the two companies will "explore future collaborations to create digital entertainment experiences."

That NCSoft money will go towards helping Mysten further develop its Sui Layer 1 blockchain. The technology was made following Mysten's founding in 2021, and will serve as infrastructure for games and projects that use Web3.

NCSoft develops and publishes multiple games, primarily MMOs. Of all developers, the South Korean studio is arguably at an advantage when it comes to developing blockchain titles. 

Having multiple MMOs running, each from different internal developers and running on their own in-game economies, gives NCSoft an idea of how to incorporate blockchain technology into a current or wholly new game. Other Eastern developers, such as Nexon, would similarly be well-suited.

In a press statement, NCSoft president Dr. Songyee Yoon said that Mysten "shares our vision for the technology as a platform for truly distributed player centric economy...and trustworthy technology which is crucial for those who desire to build a platform of desired scale and reach."

The contribution from NCSoft was part of a larger $300 million funding that Mysten secured during in a Series B round from September. 

More developers are making progress on blockchain

Blockchain technology, and NFTs, have been cause for several partnerships between game developers and Web3 developers. 

Last week, Square Enix threw down the digital gauntlet with the reveal of its first full blockchain title, Symbiogenesis. The Final Fantasy publisher hopes that the title will lead to the start of a new franchise, and is "designed from the ground up for Web3 fans."

In September, the publisher also announced its own partnership with Oasys, a blockchain developer that's already made partnerships with Sega and Ubisoft. 

Even so, blockchain continues to be a divisive issue amongst game developers. If there's any benefit to the technology, those non-Web3 developers aren't seeing it, and previously called it useless in a study from this past August.