Axie Infinity Co-Founder: PH is the Beating Heart of Web3 Gaming as Pixels Goes Parabolic

• Jeffrey Zirlin, also known as Jihoz, presented during the YGG Web3 Games Summit in front of the web3 gaming community in the country. 
• He expressed his appreciation to the community, saying that the Philippines is the beating heart of web3 gaming. 
• Zirlin also brought in the updates on the popular web3 game, including the return of the rewards system in the Classic version.

Photos from BitPinas, YGG, and Jeff Zirlin

In the recently concluded YGG Web3 Games Summit, a web3 gaming-focused event with a two-day conference, a three-day expo, a two-day tournament, a 24-hour hackathon, and dozens of both pre-event activities and side events, Jeffrey Zirlin, also known as Jihoz, the co-founder of Sky Mavis, talked in front of the Filipino community and discussed the things that are happening in the Ronin Network, the game’s own blockchain, and what has to with these updates in the Philippines’ gaming ecosystem. 

“It feels really special. Thank you to Gabby for inviting me, getting this really special group of people together. Being here really feels like being in my hometown. There’s so much love for the Axie and Ronin Nation,” the co-founder said. 

The Ronin Expansion: The Entry of Pixels

Pixels is a free-to-play blockchain game that lets its players create their own virtual world and earn crypto as a reward for being digital farmers. In September, Sky Mavis confirmed that the game has migrated to Ronin Network to benefit from lower gas fees, go-to-market and advisory support from the developer’s team members.

“All right. So let’s talk about what’s happening with Ronin what’s happening with Axie and also how that has to do? What that has to do with the Philippines, and I promise that I come bearing gifts I come with leaks.”

According to Zirlin, the game saw a 2,500% increase in daily active users since its migration to the Ronin Network. The game also witnessed a total of 417,000 $RON, the blockchain’s native token, spendings from its players for VIP passes. 

“That’s over $350,000. So it shows that there’s real demand here and the Pixels team is actually cash flow positive. Sustainability is so important especially during a hard time like this that we’re coming out of,” the game developer explained. 

But what the co-founder highlighted was that “there are so many Filipinos playing this game” and they are not bots:

“In the last day, 82,000 Filipinos have played Pixels, I’m was looking directly at the Google Analytics data. So for all of the doubters, these are real people, these are Filipinos.” 

This is where he emphasized that as the hype in web3 gaming again rises, the Philippines still emerges as the center of enthusiasm.”

“So Ronin is back. The Philippines is back. And it’s clear that as we enter a new cycle, the Philippines will remain the beating heart of web3 gaming,” stressed Zirlin.

Part Evolution

During his presentation, Zirlin emphasized that what their team is aiming for is to create an interconnected experience and system of progression between the games that involve Axies, the in-game NFT characters. 

“And a core foundation of Axie is the ability to upgrade your Axie, to evolve your Axie. When I think about my childhood, I think about my relationship with Charmander. Actually, the thing that got me so addicted to Pokemon was I really needed to level up my Charmander to Charmeleon to Charizard,” he added. 

“That’s actually what got me into it—that same experience, that same emotion is really needed in the Axie universe. It’s actually to be honest. The thing that we didn’t have last cycle. That was the hole in the ship that prevented us from reaching the grand line.”

Moreover, the new update is also part of boosting the comeback of Axie Infinity: Classic, the version of the game that boomed during its hype in the country, as part evolution involves AXP and this token can now be earned by playing the Classic version. 

AXPs, or Axie Experience Points, are off-chain tokens that are used to upgrade an Axie’s body part. It can be gained by playing Axie-related games in the Ronin ecosystem.

Axie Infinity: CLASSIC is Back

In August 2022, SLP rewards were removed in ‌Classic gameplay in light of the game’s gameplay transition to Axie Infinity: Origins. 

The Classic version became inactive since then, because no more rewards can be earned. But now, Sky Mavis has introduced the integration of AXP and AXS into it, Zirlin called it the “Michael Jordan” moment. 

“You know when Michael Jordan went to go play baseball for a little bit and then he came back (to basketball)? Well today, classic has one thing to say. Classic is back. So basically it isn’t just that classic is back. We’ve actually also added a bit of an expansion pack to the game,” the co-founder explained.  

AXS is the governance token of the game, which can be earned by playing The Cursed Coliseum gameplay. The first players that will have 12 wins on this game mode will earn AXS tokens. 

The Classic version also has a regular Grand Tournament, which gives away Mystic Axies as reward.

“Classic is the game that Filipinos, we really know, that you guys all love it. So this is due to the voice of the community where we saw back in July that there were still around 10,000 people playing classic without any rewards and then so we decided to start up a little bit. We had a small tournament that actually attracted over 40,000 monthly active users. So it really is the voice of the community the data that you produced and the feedback that has inspired this momentum for classic,” Zirlin emphasized.

Official Merchandise

Earlier this month, Sky Mavis tapped Grab Rewards as its official merchandise partner. The merch store, which will also be accessible through adds in e-wallet app Grab in Southeast Asia, features figurines, plushies, and apparel.

“We also have a fulfillment center in the Philippines. So the shipping should be manageable and under control. It’s like we’re really good at making and selling digital things. The physical realm is a new experience for,” Zirlin advertised. 

This article is published on BitPinas: Axie Infinity Co-Founder: PH is the Beating Heart of Web3 Gaming as Pixels Goes Parabolic

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