[Short #27] a16z's GAMES FUND ONE
Does all caps make it more legit?
a16z (Andreessen Horowitz) has been on a tear this week. They kicked off the week with the 2022 State of Crypto report. It reminds me of Mary Meekerโs annual Internet Trends report, which has a great State of the Union-esque overview.
However, what I found to be more interesting was yesterdayโs announcement of GAMES FUND ONE.
Geez all caps and hype video?! Feels like theyโre turning into a Gen Z lifestyle brand in the form of a $600 million fund. Fun video to watch regardless.
While watching the video, several of the names caught my eye. Realizing that a16z seemed to take the PR strategy of winning tech news headlines for the week (attention is the new currency after all), I do wonder if something else is at play here.
First a crypto report a week, now a games fund? Are they somehowโฆrelated? Maybe not explicitly, but Iโm going to see if thereโs a crossover of some sort with each of the companies in the video. Maybe Iโm just connecting dots out of thin air, but these guys are smart. Thereโs probably more than meets the eye.
The investment themes for the fund seem to allude some association between Crypto and Gaming.
Putting these companies based on if theyโre working on blockchain gaming efforts, we get this:
Yes (18, 39%) - Dapper, Sky Mavis (Axie Infinity), Forte, Metatheory, Faraway, League of Kingdoms, RTFKT, Yield Guild Games, LootRush, MechaFightClub, Battlebound, Mythical Games, Core Loop, Zed Run, Azra Games, Createra, Improbable, Super Evil Megacorp
Sorta (4, 9%) - Roblox (theyโre creating their own metaverse, so you can argue yes), Voldex (creates UGC games in Roblox/Minecraft metaverses), Carry1st (paying with crypto through shop app), Lowkey (acquired by Niantec, which you can argue is building its own metaverse as well)
No (24, 52%) - Singularity 6, Parsec, End Game Interactive, Elodie, Sleeper, Clockwork Labs, Bonfire Studios, Mountaintop Studios, Overwolf, Mainframe, Raid Base, Omni Creator Products, Z League, E-Pal, Reface, Carbonated, StartPlaying, Sandbox VR, Alta, One More Game, Gym Class, Roboto Games, Pahdo Labs, Supernatural VR
I hope you didnโt click all the links, thatโd be exhausting :)
So, what does this all mean?
Blockchain Gaming is definitely a thing: Almost 40% of a16zโs gaming investments are actively building for blockchain/crypto.
But itโs not the only thing: A majority of the gaming investments are not actively building for blockchain gaming, or they are not publicly disclosing that they are yet. Just because itโs the new hot thing doesnโt mean it will be successful. a16z has the ability to take a lot of shots on goal and bet on breadth as well as depth of a particular theme.
What happens after the announcement: Thereโs plenty of advantages with announcing a thematic fund. There will be an influx of inbound opportunities which will provide more insight into the current or new themes. Itโll be interesting to see what kind of investments will be made by the fund moving forward and how the 40/10/50 split changes over time.
Iโll admit, Iโm not much of a gamer. But the lines between gaming with blockchain, culture, and social experiences are blurring. Iโm going to participate whether I like it or not, and itโs looking more and more fun. ๐น
On-chain gaming makes so much sense. Excited to some really good game designers and game economy designers coming into the space. This fund continues to help.