A look at how Beans work in Bean Land!
Does what Bean I hold make a difference?
Hey BEANS,
As promised now that the Exo Viewer is launched it’s time to start giving you all more updates around the GAME, after all that’s why we’re here.
While the team at PlaySide is working hard on many areas of Bean Land including combat, social elements and different game modes, there is one area that has taken more time and thought than the others. How exactly does my Bean effect my gameplay experience?
We wanted to breakdown our current thoughts around actually holding Beans in Bean Land, specifically around combat and builds.
Here comes your favourite medium line — All art, gameplay and P&E explorations displayed in this Medium are subject to change. (Must put this in here so our designers don’t kill Maraudaur).
All Beans are individual, special, and adorable in their own way BUT they also have their own unique set of skills… elemental skills to be exact. A red Bean isn’t just a red Bean, they have gained their red pigmentation from the burning fire within their souls. The very power they will use to vanquish their foes on the battlefield in Bean Land.
So… what you’re saying Klod is all of my abilities are tied to the colour of my Beans?
Not so fast Bean collector. Not ALL abilities are tied to your Bean but your important ones are.
Let’s break it down in more detail using Bean Subject #9650 owned by Goku7423
(As this naked bean has no loot we will be focusing purely on their core abilities)
Bean #9650
Movement and utility abilities are open to Beans of all types whereas elemental and ultimate abilities are not.
Default Combo Attack
This Bean has a ‘Red Skinny’ body which lands them in the Fire elemental category so their base set of abilities are all Fire types.
Basic Fire Type Ability
As with all Beans they can channel the power of their element to create a devastating final blow on enemies. In the case of Bean #9650 their ultimate ability is known as ‘Meteor Shower’. This ability triggers a rainstorm of burning fire that damages nearby enemies. Any Bean caught within the area of effect will burn for a period of time.
Meteor Shower Ability
Players can tweak and tune their loadouts to best suit their gameplay style before heading into the arena. Discover new synergies with different loadout pieces to find more ways to battle against other Beans. While builds can accentuate a player’s play style, strategic and mechanical skill should always come out on top.
So you now know how your Beans body type plays a role in Bean Land BUT WHAT ABOUT LOOOOOT!
Before we deep dive into Loot lets rehash some of what we have already spoken about. In the Medium post ‘Naked Beans & why you should love them’ we looked into the value of owning Beans with empty slots.
Take for example our friend here, BEAN #2706 Owned by Unnamed.
BEAN #2706 has 2 of his 4 loot slots taken
HEAD = Cap
BODY = Chain
BACK BLING = None
ACCESSORIES = None
This means, if you gain loot, you can only add them to the BACK BLING or ACCESSORIES part of the BEAN.
Why does this matter in Bean Land?
As we have just found out Beans body types play a big role in the build that Bean will take into the arena however Loot will also play a role. Each item of Loot has their own minor buffs (eg. Movement speed, armour, increased ice damage to name a few)
Having empty slots allows users to add specific Loot that will help their overall build. If I own an Ice Bean for example I am going to want to fill every slot with Loot that will increase the effectiveness of my Ice abilities.
Now before you ask WEN MORE LOOT I will reshare something I posted in a previous medium because I am that wise.
“Game development is a forever changing beast, so although everyone wants to know when things are being released, from NFTs, to products, the answer is always going to be “When it’s ready”. We will give rough time frames but if we believe projects should be delayed for the sake of quality, we will do so!”
Now the moment you’ve all been waiting for, let’s talk a bit about everyone’s favourite topic : Play and Earn.
What we’ve always said is we want to make a fun and engaging game at the core. From that we can build a sustainable ecosystem that creates and shares value with Players.
Now this medium post will not go into every single aspect of Bean Land Play and Earn but it will cover SOME of what we are currently thinking. Everything below is subject to change as the landscape and technology continues to evolve — the last thing we want to do is commit to something that may not be hot in the Web3 space when the game launches.
How do games make money?
First let’s take a step out of Web3 and talk a little about how traditional games make money, there are many different monetisation models used by developers in order for their products to earn revenue. Below we will cover some of the more common variations.
Box model + DLC (most steam games)
EXAMPLE : Witcher 3
Players purchase the game and can also choose to purchase extra experiences in the form of DLCs. The game developer makes money on the sale of the game and each DLC pack. Usually after a game releases and a few DLC’s are dropped, support for that game will end.
Games as a service — Subscription
EXAMPLE : World of Warcraft
Subscription — e.g. World of Warcraft subscription or Runescape membership.
These games often are free to download but require the Players to purchase an ongoing subscription to continue using the product. Game developers will often release free or paid updates so their player base stays active.
Games as a service — Free to Play
EXAMPLE : The following
- P2W / pay to progress — e.g. Diablo Immortal
- Cosmetics only — e.g. League of Legends
- Loot boxes/gatcha — e.g. Overwatch or Genshin Impact
The core experience is completely free for Players however their experience is altered / improved with micro transactions. Game developers only make money as long as players are purchasing these packs or bundles.
What does this have to do with Bean Land Play and Earn?
Well, to create a sustainable Play and Earn game, first you need to understand how your game makes money. Once that’s been figured out you can then explore how to integrate blockchains and NFTs into that model.
Now with that in mind we have a few key questions to consider.
- What kind of monetisation model fits the game we are trying to make?
- What kind of monetisation model fits a play and earn style ecosystem?
Right now we feel the best fit for Bean Land is the games as a service model — Free to Play. We want the game to be around and enjoyed for a long time and we also feel this offers the most opportunity to incorporate Play and Earn systems.
We will be creating a game that’s fun and engaging at its core while also incorporating opportunities for Players to purchase cosmetic items to enhance their experience and bring true digital ownership to Bean Land. These could include anything from gear/item skins, pets, mounts etc. So it will be up to our team at PlaySide to create and release compelling cosmetic sets throughout the lifetime of the game for players to enjoy, purchase and sell.
With a games as a service model, and regular cosmetic monetisation opportunities, blockchain and NFT/FT technology can be implemented to provide true ownership and allow players to trade their assets with each other.
What this could look like is every time a new set of skins are prepared and released some will be air dropped to NFT holders for them to then use/trade. What is given to holders can be augmented by various factors as well, the more boxes holders tick the rarer/more valuable the cosmetics that will be air dropped.
E.g.
- Linking and tracking content creator reach.
- Running communities/tournaments/events for the game.
- Reaching certain milestones in the game.
- Whether an NFT is held or not, how long the user has been holding, and what kind of NFT it is.
- Token gated experiences that are only available to NFT holders which can also have unique prizes and rewards.
Given the nature of blockchains we believe the rare/limited supply skins are the ones that make the most sense to integrate and make tradable between Players. This can also be extended and applied to any in-game asset that Players eventually purchase/own as the game evolves.
Combining experiences and rewards
When we talk about bringing utility to NFTs we are thinking of a holistic approach. One thing mentioned above is the idea of token gated experiences which we believe will create the most compelling experiences combined with various rewards.
What we mean by this is there could be events, tournaments and other experiences that Players can only access if they have certain NFTs like crowns or the genesis Bean collection. This means that owning these key tokens will not only give Players unique experiences but the opportunity to earn or purchase digital and physical items as well.
It’s important to reiterate that this is only our first step for Play and Earn, again this is not to say that this will be the only P&E element featured in Bean Land but what we are currently working on, as we continue development we will explore additional P&E features that we believe will create a fun and logical approach to NFTs in gaming. The first thing we wanted to explore was how NFTs could be incorporated into the fun games we are playing now and go from there.
For us, nothing is off the table, we want to explore all potential areas for P&E features within our game if it makes sense for the community and the product.
We hope everything above gives you more clarity on where we are starting with integrating blockchains & NFTs into gaming space.
NFT’s are a unique asset that is a combination of art / collectibility / utility / identity / access which we only cover a few of here. As always, we are early. New technology, learning and ideas will come forward that evolves and shapes what we do as well as how we approach this frontier of gaming and blockchains/NFTs.
Much Love to our amazing Community
We can’t wait to show you more and more of what we’re developing here in the Melbourne Studio.
Oh and one more FINAL thing
EXO VIEWER UPDATE IS COMING!!! Loot will be available in the coming week!!
KLOD & DIVVY
