Another year soon(™) *deep breath* …

Let me start out by saying; It is quite humbling to still be standing after such a long time in Web3. Over the years since 2018, all of us building games have faced more challenges than I could have ever imagined. From being forced to change engines and redo our entire codebase, to the collapse of FTX, the chaos at SVB, to global conflicts, the bear market, and even a pandemic — it feels like we’ve weathered every storm that could possibly be thrown our way.

Yet, here we are, still standing. Still fighting. Still believing in Ember Sword and its potential to change the landscape of gaming. We have restructured, revamped and refocused — and at the start of this year, we were in the healthiest place we have ever been. Thanks to the team tirelessly working on adapting our strategies and putting forth solutions, I am incredibly proud to say that we have made it to Early Access — launching publicly on December 2nd 2024.

MMORPGs: Building Bonds Beyond Borders

It has always been a dream of mine and my co-founders to develop an MMORPG, from myself being a former ‘world champion’ in World of Warcraft, with sleepless nights of high-end raiding, PVPing, tournaments, and having that competitive itch. The camaraderie and shared joy of achieving together, it isn’t something that goes away, and once you have it, once you feel it, you will be trying out countless MMOs to see if they offer something similar to nurture that “hole” such an experience has left. Games, and especially MMORPGs can have a tremendous positive impact on people’s lives, in a way that transcends the normal barriers and bonds you can make in other types of games, and I say that as both an FPS veteran (Counter-Strike) and MMORPG veteran; The bond you create in an MMORPG is incredibly deep. It is a factor of friendship, brother/sisterhood, deep acknowledgement of one’s passion and skillsets, no matter how you look, your race, your creed, your standing in life, whether you have disabilities or not, you can find true friendship, true passion and true commitment to each other. In an MMORPG, whether you are a casual, mid-core or hardcore player, you can find incredible people, and incredible longlasting friendships in these types of games.

I think a great proof of this is the amazing and heartfelt Netflix documentary “The Remarkable Life of Ibelin” which I cannot recommend enough for everyone to watch, to truly understand the transcendent nature and bond of friendship that can be forged within MMORPGs. It is a shining testament to the profound beauty and resilience of the human spirit.

I can only wish and hope to ever create something that binds human beings together in such a significant and beautiful way.

Because what is gaming, if not a way to equalize the field, to allow everyone, no matter what their station is in life, to do, be, and create, on equal terms, with everyone else.. It is the true nature of video games, as it has always been since its initial inception, and it is what we should strive for in life as well..

Ember Sword: From Dream to Reality on Main Net

For Ember Sword, it currently plays well, it feels good, and the world has been expanded with tons of quality of life upgrades. More mobs, funsies and adventures to explore. I’m smiling from ear to ear when I’m playing and exploring the world we’ve built. Whiskers, our beloved Discord mascot, even got his very own Skin!

And now we’re finally going on Main Net!

In October earlier this year, where we had our closed Beta Test, we tested some of the changes we have worked on, and during its final days ended up opening up the servers to everyone to try and stress test our infrastructure–and it did VERY well!

Beta Test Milestones: A World in the Making

The beta test for Ember Sword showcased the incredible potential of our game and its community. Here’s a snapshot of the key results that underscore our progress so far:

• Total Play Sessions: 152,000+
• Combined Playtime: 41,000 hours (nearly 5 years of gameplay)
• Day 1 Retention: 42.97%
• Day 3 Retention: 35.73%
• Average Session Length: 1 hour 17 minutes
• Cosmetics Dropped: 21,049 items (aug)
• Discord Growth: 75,000 members, 151,000 messages during the beta
• Social Media Reach: 800,000+ impressions, 370,000 registered players, 20,000 new follows bringing us to a total social following at 650,000

These are impressive stats given Ember Sword still has a lot of content to add, from weapons, features, character improvements and so on — but players still found the game highly fun and with an addictive game loop.

This is due to the tireless and tenacious work by our team, who has, despite being more lean, and having to work with far fewer resources, done a tremendous job pushing the vision of Ember Sword forward, and it is incredible to see people willing to sacrifice so much for a shared vision of a game. It is both an honor and a privilege to witness.

Early Access Launch: The Adventure Begins December 2nd

Early Access will offer even more updates, more upgrades, more quality of life improvements, and the first initial introduction of staff combat, the latter is very much still work in progress, and still needs to find its proper footing, but we wanted to introduce it now to collect initial feedback and reactions. There is still plenty to do and work on, and with any MMORPG, or game in general, but namely MMOs are always a work in progress, and Ember Sword is no exception. From finishing Solarwood as a nation to implementing all the various weapons, armors, features and so on, it will take time.

As according to our roadmap, we had an EA (Early Access) launch of Ember Sword scheduled for Q4, and we intend on delivering on that promise by releasing in EA on the 2nd of December. 2024 with Early Bird access for holders already playing from Friday 28th of November.

The initial launch will feature SEA, with server(s) in Singapore, and as time progresses we will open up more servers in additional regions.

The launch will have bugs, a lot of them known and some of them of course unknown as they can only be found/caught once you have a certain mass of players joining in — we will do our best to squash these bugs as we proceed, but please bear with us as December especially carries a lot of vacation time, holidays, etc for everyone, plus we have a very limited amount of staff available.

What Awaits in Early Access: Features and Professions

Features:

• A max cap at Level 30
• Cosmetics drops (NFTs)
• Cosmetics merging
• Part of the Solarwood nation
• Premium Shop (The plan is to have part of the proceeds to go LAND owners in 2025)
• Quests
• Staff Weapons
• Sword & Shield Weapons

Professions:

• Alchemy
• Armor Crafting
• Cooking
• Gathering
• Mining
• Weapons Crafting
• Woodcutting

We are committing to the launch, staying true to our promise, and also to gauge interest for Ember Sword. We hope that players will receive it well, and show that this game is not just what the web3 community would like to see completed, but also a game that can draw in players from outside of web3. Especially given that our web3 features are optional, giving the players the choice to play for free forever — which is the default mode of the game. Here are all the details for Early Access.

So please help us spread the word, and let’s make it a good launch!

Revolutionizing Gaming Technology: Breaking Barriers Beyond the Cloud

From the start, we’ve believed in the browser as the future of gaming — unlocking global access to games with unparalleled ease. But access alone isn’t enough; fast, seamless gameplay is essential. That’s why we developed patented technology to directly stream games to users without relying on cloud gaming.

Unlike cloud gaming, which introduces delays, artifacts, and high latency by transmitting commands and rendering remotely, our technology delivers games in a highly compressed state directly to the browser. This ensures responsive, high-performance gameplay suitable even for competitive Esports, without the drawbacks of traditional cloud gaming.

Our approach also enables games like Ember Sword to reach players globally, even in regions with limited bandwidth or infrastructure, while eliminating the wait times of downloads and installs. The browser becomes the ultimate equalizer, bypassing gatekeepers and opening access to entirely new audiences.

We are immensely proud of this breakthrough, which not only redefines gaming but has potential for applications far beyond. As browser technology advances with upgrades like WebGPU, the possibilities for accessible, high-performance experiences will only continue to expand.

A Year Of Industry Challenges…and What We Have Learned

I will get into how we are adapting and moving ahead, but let’s talk about the last year for a moment. It has overall been filled with highs and lows for sure, with a shared mix of incredible development progress and unfortunate market or industry developments, though, luckily, at least we are now seeing the crypto markets picking up — but it is still tough, and has been an extremely difficult year. This also includes a huge shift from funding growth and late-stage startups, to ~90% or more of funding going to early-stage startups instead.

The gaming industry in general is having a tough time, with massive layoffs sweeping across especially Europe. We have had it no different, and unfortunately likewise have had to say goodbye to a lot of amazing people over the last year, which, well you know, is one of the worst feelings and things to go through on all sides, it just plain sucks…

Navigating the waters of startup (founder) life is never an easy task, and I feel immensely for all my fellow founders and leaders out there who have to steer their ships through these continued storms and very rough waters.

Reimagining $EMBER: A Path to Token Sustainability

It is no secret that the token launch of $EMBER did far from meet expectations, and we’ve talked to countless people and partners about how to improve it. It’s not easy, as seen here on this graph below — which is a screencap from a Token 2024 presentation by Murad — practically 95% of game tokens didn’t do well, so we’re not alone in this, but alas, this fact doesn’t offer much in terms of comfort. A lot of us followed the same steps to release to no avail, some without a game or utility and some with a game and utility, high FDV, low FDV, high float, low float, and yet almost every single one didn’t do well no matter the circumstances regarding their launches.

However, to improve the $EMBER token and the Ember Sword token economy as a whole, we have been working closely with our new partners at MANTLE, together with some great new advisors. Some of the plans we’ve tinkered with I would like to share with you, the community. Please be aware none of this is 100% set in stone, but it is what we have discussed and weighed with multiple partners and parties–and should we succeed, is what we would lean towards finalizing, and then start to implement in 2025.

• Tokenomics & Economy Revamp: We have plans to enhance the blockchain elements of the game economy to create a sustainable, long-term growth model. This includes the introduction of a Dual Token Economy (Governance+Utility) to allow the community to play a role in key decisions related to the game’s future.
• Burn Mechanism: We plan to implement a burn mechanism directly tied to the revenue generated by Ember Sword. This will create a deflationary pressure on the token, meaning that as the game generates more income, more tokens are burned, increasing scarcity and potentially boosting value for token holders over time.
• Staking Program: Launching a staking program that allows token holders to lock up their tokens and earn rewards. This initiative incentivizes long-term holding and deeper engagement with our ecosystem, which benefits the overall stability and potential growth of the token’s value.
• New On-Chain Economy: Our revamped economy features a three-phase plan that introduces new soft currencies and a “grind-to-upgrade-to-trade” loop.

These features will enhance scalability, engage more players, and create sustainable, long-term growth for the token economy. As with everything, no doubt there are a lot of opinions, we encountered as much when probing partners and friends, everyone has their own idea of what works and what doesn’t work–and it is impossible to please everyone, especially in Web3 🥲. There are also new ways of launching and structuring tokens emerging all the time, new ways of forming economies, new ways of constructing self-sustaining economies. It is great to see the latest technologies that enable far better avenues than were previously possible. It’s an everevolving industry, and trying to catch on and improve on this aspect, while simultaneously developing a game around said facts is… not an easy feat.

But there is no such thing as a ‘one size fits all’. Not in this space — with how early everything still is. So we have to do what works for Ember Sword and not compare ourselves entirely to others who have a very different business model, game loops and/or product features.

The Road Ahead: Accelerating Ember Sword’s Development

As we enter Early Access, we are embarking on a pivotal phase for Ember Sword — one that will shape the future of the game and its community. This stage is not just about delivering gameplay; it’s about proving the immense potential of what we’ve built together, and demonstrating that Ember Sword is set to redefine browser-based MMORPGs.

Having made the difficult decision to downsize, which means saying goodbye to some of our dedicated team members, we are currently moving forward with a very lean core group. Some team members who are not on the core operating group have even decided to contribute their time voluntarily because they want Ember Sword to succeed — which is humbling and inspiring to see as a founder.

We hope to use the Early Access traction to secure a path for additional resources to succeed.

What’s Next on the Horizon

Our immediate focus includes the following priorities:

• Raising capital to sustain operations and fuel growth over the next 12 to 18 months and with these resources:
• Onboard a co-development company to expedite production timelines and ensure quality.
• Completing Solarwood as the first nation and beginning work on the second.
• Add liquidity to the token through our marketmaker.
• Revamping the token economy, including introducing a dual-token model to support long-term sustainability.
• Building regional partnerships to grow our player base globally.

These efforts will allow us to maintain the momentum gained through Early Access while laying the foundation for the broader development of the game.

A Shared Journey Toward Greatness

We understand the trust and time that our community has already placed in Ember Sword, from Land, Skins and Tokens, to all the feedback during our tests — and we take that responsibility seriously. Every milestone we achieve is driven by the belief that this game is not just a product, but a shared vision for a new standard in gaming.

There is still nothing quite like what we’ve achieved — a browser-based MMORPG capable of reaching players on a truly global scale. The possibilities are immense, but success comes down to two critical factors: resources and execution. Together, with your support and participation, we can ensure that Ember Sword lives up to its full potential.

By late January, we’ll have clarity on our trajectory, so the coming weeks are crucial. Every step forward during Early Access — through player participation, feedback, and support — will help reinforce the foundation we’ve built and demonstrate Ember Sword’s viability as a transformative MMORPG.

A Call to Adventure: Join Us on Thanabus!

Let’s seize this critical window and make Ember Sword a success. Share the news about Early Access with your friends on socials, join the game during Early Access to provide feedback, and be an active part of shaping the future of the game. Your voice matters, and your participation can make all the difference!

And may the Flux forever be in your favor..

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Weathering the Storms: Why Early Access Is Our Defining Chapter was originally published in Ember Sword on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.