Adaverse, formed by EMURGO which is the parent company of the Cardano foundation and Everest Ventures Group have announced a strategic investment in Diagon Studios, a Nigerian gaming technology company focused on the development and distribution of hyper-casual games, utility, and NFTs through simple play-to-earn (P2E) models. 

According to Emurgo, the GameFi industry is one of the fastest growing sectors in blockchain and Web3 that is garnering a lot of competition and pushing the crypto market volume. However, globally-popular P2E games are becoming quite expensive and complex to play for mid-level gamers and newbies. 

The company further emphasized in its press statement that by introducing a variety of casual games with an easy-to-use interface, Diagon Studios critically lowers the entry barrier into Web3 for everyone across the globe. 

Emurgo also stated that in contrast to the traditional video game market with dwindling revenue, predicted to plunge further in the following years, blockchain P2E games have made giant leaps in the last few years, recording significant growth of over 2000% in 2021.

Additionally, the revolutionary development of cryptocurrency enabled a unique P2E in-game economy where players can extract value from their whole gaming experience, and convert it into a significant source of income. 

With this trajectory, the blockchain gaming market is projected to rise from an estimated $1.5 billion in 2021 to a staggering $50 billion by 2025, boosting worldwide gaming revenue and creating new financial opportunities for more people to access the Web3 economy.

Shogo Ishida, co-CEO at EMURGO Africa, commented on the new partnership saying, “Focused on hyper-casual gaming that takes out complexity from the gameplay, Diagon Studios is one of the game publishers that stands on the cusp of opening the African space to the realities of play-to-earn and we are glad to be offering the startup a launchpad and the opportunity to build on Cardano.”

Diagon Studios Founder and CEO, Jeremiah Onojah also stated, “The Cardano blockchain will offer a better approach to securing transactions for the Diagon project with its eco-friendly platform and large global community. Diagon intends to issue tokens on the Cardano blockchain in the future development stage. With the support of EMURGO Africa and Adaverse, we will be able to do more with the Cardano blockchain. The Diagon studios team will work intensely with Adaverse to be in the best possible shape, hitting the perfect market fit and scaling her products.”

Beyond play-to-earn (P2E) games, the Diagon platform will connect a virtual community of global casual gamers to develop their skills, network, and access more opportunities in Web3 through partnership programs, especially for DGN token holders who will also have staking and governance rights in the platform.

Vincent Li, founding partner at Adaverse further said, “This startup is all about demystifying the Web3 gaming system in Africa by reaching the grassroots level and providing affordable options targeting low-income earners, to ensure more people find something that interests and pays them while building on a reliable infrastructure. Diagon will be one of the pillars of Africa’s digital future and Adaverse is glad to support this project.”