Binance Labs invested in a seed funding round for GOMBLE, a blockchain-based casual game developer affiliated with South Korean publisher 111Percent.
Other participants in the round include Spartan Capital, Shima Capital, Altos Ventures, Animoca Brands, Crit Ventures, and Planetarium.
GOMBLE aims to bring casual gaming to the blockchain and advance NFT interoperability.
GOMBLE's core team, led by Jihoon Byun, former COO of 111Percent, has extensive experience in game development and publishing and successful work in Web2 and Web3 at companies such as Google, Kakao Brain, SK Telecom, and crypto exchange platforms.
GOMBLE plans to use the funds to develop and release its first mobile game, RumbyStars, and expand its gaming platform with a game-as-a-service (GaaS) model.
Casual games, which offer accessible and entertaining gameplay for players of all skill levels, have recently experienced a surge in demand.
The casual games sector is expected to reach a market volume of $24.97 billion by 2027, suggesting significant growth potential for Web3's casual games.
GOMBLE aims to combine its Web2 gaming approach with Web3's balanced tokenomics and sustainable governance.
Users earn the governance token, $CRT, through a tournament prize system, which can be used for NFT purchases, tournament passes, and in-game items.
Yi He, Head of Binance Labs, emphasized the need for blockchain gaming to shift from focusing on "earning" to providing fun gameplay. GOMBLE's commitment to creating engaging, social, and sustainable blockchain games offers the opportunity to introduce casual gamers to the BNB chain ecosystem.
GOMBLE's first game, RumbyStars, will soft launch in Southeast Asian markets in Q2 2023, with plans to expand to North America, South America, East Asia, and Europe.
The company will also work on RumbyWorld, a social infrastructure and GaaS platform allowing existing NFT and GameFi projects to join RumbyStars and create custom NFTs and games.
CEO Jihoon Byun emphasized GOMBLE's focus on creating fun and engaging casual games that appeal to the global market, including non-gamers.
With RumbyStars as a starting point, GOMBLE is committed to providing users worldwide with an enjoyable experience and a diverse range of games in the future.
