8 Circuit Studios brings together games industry veterans to drive gaming towards blockchain integration.

The team is using the Ethereum blockchain to to create a metaverse; a digital world where gamers are free to move their characters and items across different platforms, games and environments.

“If you’re in the crypto space, there’s a lot of people who want to own their own money,” said founder and president James Mayo. “They don’t want it controlled and manipulated by others. I think that gamers are going to instantly understand that as well – when it comes to the in-game items they obtain and the characters they develop and grow attached to.”

Mayo is a long-term games industry veteran with a career spanning from Microsoft to Nintendo, on titles like Super Mario World, Age of Empires and MechWarrior. The team at 8 Circuit also counts Disney and EA alumni among its ranks.

8 Circuit’s first title was Alien Arsenal – launched on iOS and Android, centred on collecting alien creatures and growing character stats and abilities as players battle nefarious bosses. Players can use the 8 Bit Token – the company’s own cryptocurrency – to level up and trade with others.

“For us, creating exciting technology that integrates the blockchain with game engines like Crytek, Unity and Unreal – that’s a big part of our long-term vision,” said Mayo. “The gaming industry has a history of pushing new technology forward, and that makes the blockchain a natural and exciting fit.”