The “Mass Ownership” Ruby Model
Introducing Mavia’s new Web3 gaming model that sustainably scales to the masses.
Introduction
Throughout the past two years or so, the blockchain gaming space has seen very wild highs and lows. We saw an explosion of interest in digital collectibles, NFT assets in games, and an exciting new frontier of game models. However, we also witnessed unsustainable token models collapse, many fly-by-night play-to-earn scams, and a struggle to find the perfect blend between smooth user experience and compliance with app stores. While many Web3 ventures have dared to redefine gaming, capturing the ideal blend of intuitive play and blockchain sophistication continues to challenge even the most dedicated teams.
It’s no secret that hundreds of attempts have been made to open up the world of digital assets to the masses, using the transparency of blockchains to bring NFT assets closer to gamers around the world. But creating a truly engaging and frictionless experience for newcomers in blockchain remains a challenge.
One thing has become clear from the efforts of Web3 builders: incentives alone cannot be the sole lifeblood of a game’s economy. It’s about equilibrium. The balance between immersive gaming, a strong economic framework, and seamless Web3 integration demands innovation and new ideas which have never been tried before.
In this “wild wild west” we call Web3 gaming, we’re excited to introduce a fresh approach — one that takes the lessons of past P2E games and forges them with a new concept. Our new model holds the potential to harmoniously combine blockchain capabilities with an unparalleled mobile gaming experience, ensuring sustainability without over-complication. We’ve named this new model the “Mass Ownership” model. Before diving in, let’s first discuss the challenges of play-to-earn and why it fails most of the time.
Problems with Play-to-Earn Models
The appeal of blockchain in the gaming industry is undeniable, but the implementation of the ‘Play-to-Earn’ model has opened up a Pandora’s box of unprecedented challenges. The main issues are as follows:
1: Balancing Economic Sustainability — The traditional ‘Play-to-Earn’ system pays gamers for playing (in short). But, giving rewards without limits can hurt the game’s economy. This method will work only if new players or money keep coming in, which isn’t likely for a long time.
The “play-to-earn” model in its traditional form is doomed to fail over time, as seen with almost every game that has attempted to implement it. There is merit in implementing a system which rewards players and allows them to own/earn digital assets, but relying on this as the sole or primary mechanic of the game, without real backing of those assets, is a recipe for disaster.
2: The False Promise of Incentivized Gaming — Games should be fun. That’s why its called a game, not a job. Introducing financial incentives as the primary motivation to play contradicts the fundamental appeal of gaming. If a game isn’t engaging by its own merit, monetary rewards can’t make up for a boring experience.
3: Bridging the Crypto Divide — Most gamers don’t invest in crypto or NFTs. A model that doesn’t appeal to this majority will struggle to achieve mass adoption. Crypto-focused incentives cater to a niche audience, often sidelining casual players unfamiliar with digital currencies and NFTs.
4: Compliance with App Stores — Most ‘Play-to-Earn’ models fail to comply with Google Play and Apple App Store regulations. This eliminates access to a significant mobile gaming audience who primarily engages with games via these platforms. Achieving mass adoption requires a compliant model that can operate within established app ecosystems. In our opinion, the best route to reach mainstream adoption is through the iOS and Google app stores, and few Web3 games are focused on this pool of players.
5: Scammy Perception — The ‘Play-to-Earn’ model has been unfortunately tainted by associations with scams and get-rich-quick schemes. This perception deters would-be gamers and erodes trust in teams genuinely striving to create fun blockchain-based gaming experiences.
6: Steep Learning Curve — Novel technologies like blockchain, cryptocurrencies, and NFTs intimidate the average gamer. The need to create new wallets, navigate crypto exchanges, and grasp complex blockchain terminology creates a big barrier to entry.
7: Generating Revenue for Sustainability — The ‘Play-to-Earn’ model often overlooks the essential fact that games, like any venture or business, need a sustainable revenue model to survive. Selling tokens or NFTs may generate initial capital but over time can break the economy without bringing in consistent, long-term revenue. Profitability and sustainability are key to allowing a game to continue improving and growing.
These issues in the ‘Play-to-Earn’ model highlight the pressing need for a paradigm shift within blockchain gaming. The Web3 gaming space needs a fresh approach, one that can overcome the hurdles of compliance, appeal to the gaming majority, ensure economic stability, and still profitably leverage the power of digital currencies and NFTs. The time has come for a new model, one that can unlock unprecedented scalability and ensure sustainability, setting the tone for the future of blockchain gaming. We believe we have solved these issues through our “Mass Ownership” model.
Mavia’s Mass Ownership Model
Welcome to a new era in gaming, where we break free from the chains of conventional ‘Play-to-Earn’ models and introduce a ground-breaking approach. We present the ‘Mass Ownership Model,’ a pioneering concept that breaches the confines of traditional gaming economies.
Instead of cryptocurrency-based rewards, we’re putting the spotlight on ‘Ruby’ and Digital Collectibles/NFTs called ‘Legendary Items’. Within the vibrant lands of Mavia, Ruby shines as a currency that rewards players for their in-game achievements. It cannot be bought or sold directly, and it is no longer a cryptocurrency, making this distinctive currency valuable only within the realm of Mavia.
Players can earn Ruby through winning multiplayer battles, luck based events, gameplay challenges, achievements, and special events, propelling their gaming experience beyond standard play. The best part is that ALL players (free-to-play players and NFT owners) can earn Ruby, making the Ruby economy accessible by everyone.
What can Ruby be used for? It’s simple, Ruby is the only currency which can be used to craft and trade legendary items inside the Mavia game. Legendary items include all skins, cosmetics, statues, land decorations and even a special subgroup of one-time use consumables called “Legendary Consumables”.
All Legendary items are NFTs, and they each have a limited supply (the range in supply depends on the rarity of the item). All Legendary items can be used/equipped directly in the game, and can be showcased for the world to see via your land in the game and your army.
Legendary Items form the heart of this innovative model. Put skins and color themes on your characters and buildings, deck out your base with Legendary decorations and statues, change your scenery and environment with land decor, and even use one-time use Legendary consumables. Each of these items aren’t just cosmetics; they are NFTs, each with an address on the blockchain and owned by a wallet (players) at all times.
But, how does trading work within the game? Aligning with Google and Apple’s guidelines, we’ve established a dual market system. Inside the Mavia mobile app, players can trade Legendary Items for Ruby. All Legendary items traded inside the app are on-chain, but cost no gas to the end user as we reimburse all gas fees, making the trading experience seamless for all players. As for trading these items for real-world value (such as cryptocurrency or fiat), players can buy, sell and trade their Legendary items on the Mavia Web NFT marketplace outside the app, or on any other NFT marketplace of their choice.
The uniqueness of the ‘Ruby Mass Ownership Model’ goes beyond just gameplay; it reshapes the dynamics of the gaming economy. With Ruby being earned by players and only having value within the game, we’ve corrected the prevalent problem of price manipulation , thus ensuring an inclusive and fair gaming environment.
Because Legendary Items are not sold by the developer (Skrice) to players, but are instead earned/traded by players, this means that the Mass Ownership model is completely owned by the players of Mavia. The players are in complete control over the Ruby/Cryptocurrency prices of all Legendary Items/NFTs, and players do not need to fear price manipulation of Ruby, as Ruby itself does not have direct monetary value, but instead the NFTs carry the value. The value of the Legendary Items are derived from the demand by other players to acquire those items for use inside the game.
In play-to-earn models, players used to earn a single Cryptocurrency for their efforts, and many would quickly sell those tokens, lowering the price of that currency. Fear can spiral out of control, and without a strong buyer base, the currency can be quickly devalued.
With Ruby, there is no single currency to “dump” like in most P2E games. There is only a vibrant marketplace of cosmetics and consumables that can be bought and sold. If the price of a “Gold Skin for the Warrior” goes down in price in Ruby one day, another item may be going up in price that same day.
Also, what is really cool about the Ruby model is that “pay to win” is now replaced with “creating exit liquidity”. If a player is accused of “paying to win” by buying the best Legendary items for Fiat/Crypto via the web marketplace, then that player is the exit liquidity for someone who earned that item. That money does not go to the developers, it goes to a player who worked hard for that item. This means “pay to win” is now a GOOD thing for all players in Mavia, because Fiat/Crypto proceeds in the Ruby Marketplace go directly to other players.
It is important to note that almost all Legendary items do not affect progression in the game, and they are solely for cosmetic/social uses. This means even the most expensive Legendary items will not create an unfiar gameplay advantage for the owners. But they may create an unfair advantage when trying to show off and get into the best Alliances ;)
The Mass Ownership Ruby Model empowers you, the players. It’s a shift to a more engaging, fair, and balanced market for all digital assets, taken straight from the heart of Mavia to the wider world of Web3 gaming.
App Store Compliance
In the rapidly evolving world of Web3 gaming, getting compliant with the app store policies of tech giants Apple and Google has been a hurdle many games are yet to overcome. To elucidate further, let’s take some time to understand why certain existing Web3 game models are finding themselves at odds with these app store policies.
Most Web3 games reward players with native cryptocurrencies for their in-game activities and achievements. However, such an approach clashes with Apple’s App Store review guidelines, specifically section 3.1.1, which states that in-app purchases must be used for services related to non-fungible tokens (NFTs), such as minting, listing, and transferring. The App Store policies clearly state that cryptocurrency transactions should not provide additional features or functionality within the mobile application.
Furthermore, in a recent instance, Coinbase, a major crypto platform, was forced by Apple to remove NFT transfers from its Wallet app on iOS. Apple intended to gain a 30 percent cut on the blockchain gas fees associated with an NFT transfer by routing them through its in-app purchase system. However, given Apple’s system doesn’t support paying in crypto, it proved to be an insurmountable barrier.
Coinbase’s interpretation of Apple’s policy meant that even transfers of NFTs between wallets or sending them as gifts would be subjected to Apple’s fee structure, a concept completely contrary to the freedom and flexibility offered by blockchain.
OpenSea similarly faced issues with Apple’s App Store guidelines and was forced to remove any functionality allowing trading of NFTs inside of their app. Users are only able to view their collections and view the marketplace for listed NFT items.
Also, the use of cryptocurrencies to unlock content within the game proves problematic, as Apple’s guidelines clearly state NFT ownership must not unlock features or functionality within the app.
A similar issue arises with fraudulent in-app purchases, where NFTs could be bought with fake credit cards and then dumped on an external NFT marketplace, creating a high-risk environment and contradicting the security aspects of blockchain technology. After all, credit cards and payment processors were never meant to be a part of blockchain transactions, and they are the “weak link” in a model which depends on them.
Now, let’s pivot to how Mavia’s model tackles these challenges head-on to remain compliant with app store policies.
Firstly, Mavia’s in-game currency, Ruby, is NOT a cryptocurrency. This departure from typical Web3 gaming currencies bypasses app store restrictions, as Ruby does not have a direct monetary value and cannot be directly bought or sold. Instead, it’s a virtual reward earned through gameplay, making it a fair medium for crafting and trading Legendary items.
Item trades within Mavia’s mobile application are conducted solely with Ruby, eliminating direct cryptocurrency trades within the app and complying with Apple’s policy against unlocking additional functionality via crypto transactions.
Moreover, a small fee in Sapphire, an in-app purchase currency, is levied on each in-app trade on the Ruby marketplace. This mechanism not only provides a revenue source for Apple and Google but also satisfies the in-app purchase requirement for NFT trading laid out by Apple’s guidelines.
Lastly, Skrice Studios, Mavia’s developer, covers all gas fees, eliminating the need for players to hold any cryptocurrency for minting or trading items. This approach further reduces the app’s interaction with cryptocurrencies. And any minor costs incurred will be offset by the Sapphire trading fee charged by us.
In essence, the design of Mavia’s Ruby model effectively addresses app store compliance issues by carefully separating cryptocurrency transactions from in-game interactions and demonstrating how Web3 mobile games can coexist successfully within the existing app store policies.
Legendary Items
In Mavia, gaming incorporates an exciting spectrum of elements, and among the most captivating are our Legendary items. These aren’t simply collectible, aesthetic additions to your gaming repertoire — they create a new dimension of ownership and trade within the world of Mavia.
Each Legendary item in Mavia is an NFT, embedding blockchain technology within your gaming experience. This feature not only ascertains the ownership and provenance of each item but also imbues them with tangible, real-world value — they’re not simply virtual possessions, they’re Digital Assets.
Ranging from skins and color variations for your buildings, heroes, and troops to statues, base decorations, and unique Legendary consumables, these items add flair to your gaming persona. Each Legendary item enriches your Mavia journey, allowing an immersive customization of your virtual world.
The creation of Legendary items is a unique aspect of Mavia. Each Legendary item is minted by players using Ruby, the in-game currency. This minting process not only allows players to create and customize their assets but also ensures a balanced in-game economy as all Ruby spent on minted Legendary items is burned, providing a deflationary mechanism for Ruby. Crucially, each Legendary item, once minted, resides in the built-in non-custodial wallet that comes with every Mavia account- right inside your phone in the app.
But owning a Legendary item is merely the beginning. These unique assets can be traded in the in-app marketplace for Ruby, or if you wish to capitalize on their real-world value, you can trade them on Mavia’s NFT Web Marketplace or any other NFT marketplace. This dual-pronged approach offers in-game benefits while also serving as a gateway to the world of cryptocurrencies.
Legendary items are not just tradable assets. Each item holds a “floor price” — the lowest price that someone is willing to sell the item, much like an NFT — bringing the concept of market dynamics into the Mavia universe in both Ruby and Ethereum terms.
The transparency and traceability of blockchain technology allow each Legendary item to be tracked using any block explorer. This visible and tamper-evident log enhances the security and credibility of each item.
We’re in the final stages of deciding the blockchain for Legendary items deployment — our smart contracts are ready, and we’re geared to announce the chosen blockchain soon. Here at Mavia, we’re integrating the excitement of gaming with the potential of NFTs and blockchain to redefine the boundaries of the gaming world.
The Ruby Marketplace
The Ruby Marketplace is the game’s central hub for all in-game item transactions. This marketplace, designed to emulate popular NFT marketplaces like OpenSea, allows players to trade Legendary items and express their individuality through the exclusive customization options they offer.
The marketplace operates in two dimensions: an in-app marketplace and an external Web3 marketplace for NFT trading.
1. In-app Ruby Marketplace: This is the primary trading platform accessible within the Mavia game. Players can acquire Legendary Items either by crafting them using their earned Ruby or by purchasing them directly from other players using Ruby. Each legendary item has a “Ruby Floor Price” that fluctuates based on demand. This in-app trading revolves entirely around Ruby and does not involve any sort of cryptocurrency.
2. External Web3 Marketplace: The external platform operates outside the Mavia mobile app and is structured to allow players to trade their Legendary Items as NFTs for real-world cryptocurrencies like Ethereum. It’s inspired by the in-game marketplace, and players can sync their Mavia accounts with the external platform to automatically update their Legendary items and Ruby balances.
This dual marketplace model ensures a seamless transition from in-app transactions to real-world trading, all while respecting the rules and guidelines stipulated by Apple and Google’s App Stores.
One key aspect of the Ruby Marketplace, which sets it apart from the traditional app-based trading platforms, is the crafting and burning process of acquiring Legendary items. When a player crafts a Legendary item, the expended Ruby is permanently destroyed or ‘burned’, thereby reducing supply. This Ruby burning also occurs during trading. A small trade fee in Ruby is applied to each item traded in the marketplace, which is then also burned. This mechanism of burning ensures an equilibrium between the minting and destruction of Ruby, thereby creating a balance in its circulation and maintaining value.
This model succeeds in engaging players through the thrill of exclusive limited-collection items. It fosters a sense of accomplishment in winning auctions, or crafting Legendary Items and maintains compliance with Apple’s and Google’s Marketplace policies. Players can seamlessly and effortlessly trade their Legendary Items for Ruby within the game, while interacting with potently valuable NFTs, without even realizing it.
Transactions done in cryptocurrency on the external Web3 marketplace are entirely independent of the App Stores, eliminating any regulatory clashes. On the in-app Ruby Marketplace, although the trading fee is meager, a small amount of Sapphire — an in-app purchase — is deducted, thereby still generating some revenue for Apple or Google, satisfying their in-app purchase requirements.
Sapphire Currency
In the dynamic world of Mavia, Sapphire embodies the spirit of the game’s premium in-game currency. Derived from in-app purchases, Sapphire facilitates a streamlined gaming experience, bridging the gap between time, resources, and strategic gameplay.
Here’s how Sapphires enhance and enrich the Mavia gaming experience:
Speeding Up Troop Training Times
Every commander aspires for a formidable army, but training troops requires time. A seasoned player can use Sapphires to expedite the troop training process, enabling swift deployment of a fully prepared army. This strategic advantage can be the difference between victory and defeat, making Sapphires a valuable asset in any player’s armory.
Acquiring Essential Resources
Gold and Oil — the lifeblood of Mavia’s economy. These resources drive the progress within the game, powering everything from base building to troop upgrades. But what if you’re running short? Enter Sapphires, with practical utility that allows players to directly purchase missing resources, keeping the pace of the game uninterrupted.
Instant Building Upgrades
One of the most gratifying aspects of Mavia is continually fortifying and upgrading your base. But as rewarding as this process can be, construction times can dampen the experience. Sapphires come to the rescue by accelerating construction processes, allowing an instant metamorphosis of your base and fast-tracking your progress.
Shield Purchases
Defending your base is a crucial part of Mavia’s gameplay, and shields play an instrumental role in protection strategy. A lack of shields, however, can leave the door open for enemy attacks. Sapphires remedy this problem by allowing players to instantly purchase missing shields, ensuring your base stays well protected against invasions.
Trading Fee on Ruby Marketplace
As the core of Mavia’s trading ecosystem, the Ruby marketplace allows peer-to-peer trading of Legendary items. To maintain the vibrancy of this marketplace and compliance with App Store rules, a small fee in Sapphires is charged for each trade. This usage of Sapphires ensures smooth and compliant marketplace operations and contributes to the continuity of enriching gaming experiences.
Sapphires, in essence, are not just the premium currency of Mavia; they are the catalysts that quicken gameplay, boost resources, provide protection, and ensure smooth trading. By holding Sapphires, players are investing in a seamless, accelerated Mavia experience, constantly pushing the boundaries of their gameplay.
Free-to-Play in Mavia
“Free to Play” is at the heart of the Mavia gaming model. We believe that a truly successful game should be inviting to players from all walks of life, whether they’re seasoned crypto enthusiasts or newbies in the digital sphere.
The Mavia game is freely available to anyone via the iOS App Store or Google Play Store, signifying our commitment to making our game accessible. Our model ensures that anybody can play Mavia irrespective of their familiarity with, or ownership of, cryptocurrencies. We’re focused on rolling out a game for everyone; there’s no obligation for any form of NFT or land ownership to play.
The game economy thrives on a simple principle: in-game engagement and achievement. Players accumulate Ruby, the in-game resource, through various activities and challenges. They can then use Ruby to craft exclusive Legendary items. It’s these items, limited in supply but growing in demand with each new player, that become valuable assets within and outside the game.
This premise of our in-game economy addresses the potential concern of millions of players joining the game. As the player base expands, so does the engagement in crafting and trading Legendary items. This increased engagement doesn’t inflate our economy; instead, it drives up the demand for Legendary items, which are scarce in supply, leading to an appreciation of their value over time.
Additionally, our expansive reach to players of all ages, backgrounds, and regions around the world, mixed with the freedom to employ restriction-free advertising methods like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, and App Store ads, enables us to attract a wider player base. This makes Mavia not only a game that meets the players where they are but also spurs a natural and organic growth of a thriving in-game economy.
Essentially, Mavia’s model uses traditional gaming norms and structures while introducing Web3 functionalities in the background, thereby enabling a mass onboarding on to the Web3 boat without the usual complexities it involves.
Mavia Land NFTs
The essence of Mavia extends beyond just an exhilarating game — it introduces a landscape of new opportunities with our Land NFTs. Though our game warmly welcomes free-to-play enthusiasts, Land NFT owners experience Mavia remarkably differently, enjoying game-changing benefits and exclusive access.
Land NFTs boost your gaming prowess by significantly increasing the volume of Ruby you earn — the exclusive in-game currency crucial for crafting coveted Legendary items. The earning potential varies across Common, Rare, and Legendary lands, further amplifying the exclusivity and desirable rarity.
But merely earning added Ruby isn’t the sole advantage of being a Land NFT owner. You stand at a unique vantage point ahead of others when it comes to minting rare Legendary items, such as the exciting new skin drops. While obtaining whitelist access for these mints relies on luck, randomness, or winning competitions for most players, as a Land NFT owner, you get privileged access. You will always have an early claim on these Legendary item mints — truly a game-changer in the world of Mavia.
Land NFTs are more than just metaphorical territory — they come to life in Mavia’s diverse environment as uniquely designed base structures. Land NFT owners can exhibit their distinctive bases, elevating their player status and standing apart from the crowd.
What’s more, owning a Land NFT opens up the opportunity for passive earnings as well. Land NFT owners can rent out their lands to Free-to-Play players who seek to harness the increased Ruby-earning potential and other distinctive advantages that come with it. This not only promises a return on investment for owners, but it also encourages free players to deep-dive into the world of Land NFTs.
With our focus on making Mavia accessible and rewarding for a wide player base, the prospect of Land NFTs is more appealing than ever. We’re geared to onboard millions of players into our ecosystem, making the finite supply of 10,000 Land NFTs a lucrative and attractive part of the Mavia landscape. Even as our player base expands, the supply of Land NFTs remain capped at 10,000 lands, creating an ever-increasing demand for the lands’ Ruby earning potential.
Onboarding the Masses to Web3 and NFTs
At Mavia, we’re breaking down the barriers to entry for Web3. Players will find it simple and enjoyable to own, create, and trade Legendary Items/NFTs. We want to put an NFT into the hands of every active player, one way or another. This is the spirit behind “Mass Ownership”.
We’re setting all players up for success with an effortless introduction to wallets, crypto, and NFTs. Every player is automatically given a non-custodial wallet built-in to their app and account. This streamlined approach ensures players can focus on the game — while we stay behind the scenes, keeping Web3 interactions user-friendly.
We’re not simply adding NFTs to gaming — we’re tying gaming to valuable, tradable assets. Legendary items, enticing in their rarity and style, go beyond the cellphone screen — these are tangible digital assets. Mavia players can sell their Legendary Items for Ethereum, Fiat or other currencies via our external Web NFT marketplace. Players can also purchase NFTs using Crypto/Fiat on the web marketplace as well (thanks to our crypto to fiat on/off ramp solution).
The Legendary item economy and the Ruby marketplace are entirely in the hands of our players. Dealing with buy offers, sell offers, and price charts becomes a fun gameplay experience, not a stressful task. Effortlessly integrated within the engaging Mavia environment, players get a firsthand experience of market principles, something most players may have never had an interest in.
The power of community cannot be overstated, and we’re utilizing this to the fullest with our e-sports and influencer programs. These platforms are perfect for pushing forward our Web3 marketplace and Ruby-driven economy to a vast audience.
Conclusion
The introduction of this Mass Ownership model is new, and untried. While we as a development studio never make guarantees or promises, we believe this is our best approach to making a model that is sustainable long-term, accessible to players from all backgrounds, is compliant with app stores, and creates value for the ecosystem and game as a whole. This model also achieves the same basic goals that the original Mavia Ruby model sought out to accomplish, but in a more scalable and robust manner.
About Heroes of Mavia
Heroes of Mavia is a AAA Web3 mobile strategy game allowing players to build their base, conquer opponents and fight for their dominance on the Mavia island.
