UnCaged Studios

UnCaged Studios is a Web3-focused gaming studio established in August 2021 by brothers Raz and Tal Friedman. The founders leverage their previous experience at the publicly listed gaming company Playtika, with Raz serving as Chief Product Officer and Tal as General Manager, to address what they perceived as a need for higher quality and more sustainable play-to-earn games. Their vision is to operate as a gaming-first company that integrates Web3 technologies, rather than being driven primarily by the crypto aspect.

The company's core business involves developing its own game franchises and providing a proprietary platform, Game OS, for other studios. This platform is designed to facilitate the transition for both Web3-native and traditional Web2 developers into the blockchain gaming ecosystem by offering infrastructure, live operations services, and handling technical elements like wallet integration and NFT frameworks. A significant milestone was achieved in July 2022 when UnCaged Studios secured $24 million in a Series A funding round led by notable investors in the gaming space, including Griffin Gaming Partners, Vgames, and Drive by DraftKings. This followed an earlier $4 million token presale for its flagship game.

The studio's premier title is UNKJD Soccer (formerly MonkeyLeague), a turn-based, play-and-earn soccer strategy game built on the Solana blockchain. The gameplay combines strategic, chess-like decisions with RPG elements, requiring players to manage a team of 'Baller' NFTs. Each Baller possesses unique skills, stats, and visual traits, which can be upgraded. Matches involve simultaneous turn-based play where the outcomes of actions like shooting or defending are determined by comparing the stats of the involved players. The in-game economy is centered around the $MBS token, which is used for trading assets like Ballers and Skill Packs, thereby creating a player-driven marketplace. The game targets a broad audience, from sports game fans to strategy enthusiasts, and recently launched in Brazil with plans for global expansion.

Keywords: Web3 gaming, blockchain games, play-to-earn, NFT, game development, Solana, mobile gaming, soccer game, decentralized finance, GameFi