Patriots Division has raised $5 million for Shadow War, a 5-versus-5 third-person action game set in the sci-fi future.
Malmö, Sweden-based Patriots Division said it has raised the $5 million in a combined amount from both its seed and Series A funding rounds.
Momentum 6 leds the Series A round with additional backing from iAngels, Cointelligence Fund, Xborg, Andromeda VC, Cogitent Ventures, and Cluster Capital. Developed by Patriots Division, Shadow War is a Web3 game that the company said puts player enjoyment and world-building at the forefront.
Pushback for NFTs
The gaming community has shown a strong distaste for blockchain games, the company noted. Surveys consistently show a distinct lack of interest as Web3 facets such as non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and tokenomics fail to resonate with non-crypto natives.
Much of this pushback is rooted in early blockchain-based games focusing solely on money-making practices while ignoring the game experience, the company said. However, a new generation of games with Web3 elements has flipped the script, placing a heavy emphasis on compelling stories, competitive mechanics, and alluring details, putting gameplay first.
Drawing inspiration from marquee titles like Overwatch and League of Legends, Shadow War focuses on the convergence of futurism, fantasy, action, and competition, Patriot Division said. As a free-to-play action game emphasizing melee, the game rewards skill-based players and a tactical gameplay strategy. It creates a path for free players to earn top-tier resources, avoiding pay-to-win mechanics that make competing depend on capital.
“We are thrilled to be part of this pivotal moment in this next phase of growth alongside the Shadow War,” said Garlam Won, managing partner of Momentum 6, in a statement. “Their talented leadership and impressive team of developers thoroughly understand the gaps in the gaming industry and have utilized their expertise to create an engaging space for all gamers. We look forward to witnessing SHADOW WAR’s continued growth and impact as this market evolves.”
Development under way
Upon closing its $5 million funding round led by Web3 innovators, Shadow War will leverage this funding for product enhancements to elevate the user experience and continue expanding its core technologies. Aimed at enhancing gameplay features, Shadow War is committed to perfecting its product through various rounds of playtests with the help of its growing community, already reaching over 10,000 signups in its first phase of trials.
“We are excited to be part of a new chapter of innovation, representing shifts in the industry, blending classic video game elements with advanced features of Web3,” says Roy Blackstone, Creative Director of Shadow War, in a statement. “The development of Shadow War heavily focused on the holistic balance of user experience with the opportunity to integrate digital ownership. We heard and listened to the feedback from the gaming community, which motivated us to focus our efforts on putting the gamer experience front and center.”
The company has 15 people. Asked about the inspiration, Blackstone said in an email to GamesBeat, “Very simply, we wanted to create a game for the next generation of gamers to fall in love with. We are a studio of gamers, and we know the levels of frustration felt at the lack of any real innovation at the intersection of Web3 and gaming. We want Shadow War to be seen as a benchmark for gaming in the space. A game that will bring together the immersive nature of great titles from the Web2 world with the technological advantages of the Web3 world.”
He said that in-depth gameplay in the Web3 gaming landscape is something that is currently lacking. This means there is a blue ocean of infinite potential, but this potential will not be easy to unlock.
He added, “Our studio aims to unlock the potential of Web3 gaming by prioritizing user experience and immersion, reshaping the gaming landscape for the future.”
Blackstone said that raising money during the bear market was “extremely tough.”
“Keeping tight controls on spending, while being selective of our strategic funding partners, ensured the project could keep moving forward,” he said. “We also used the bear market to focus on developing relationships and keeping key potential investors informed about our progress. This meant that when the market started to pick up in Q1 of this year, we saw a rapid shift, with investors seeking opportunities to invest in our project. The project certainly benefited from the change in market conditions. However, ensuring we could build during the bear market and communicating this effectively meant we were able to capitalize quickly when the time was right.”