April 8, 2022 – DEFY Labs, the developer behind the move-to-earn augmented reality (AR) game DEFY, has announced that it has raised USD $3.5 million in a seed round led by Animoca Brands, OliveX, and SpartanGroup. Other investors who took part include Polygon Studios, GameFi Ventures, Bixin Ventures, Unanimous Capital, PathDAO, and Play It Forward DAO.
“DEFY Labs is combining augmented reality with exploration and gamification to create the first-ever move-to-earn AR game that is in a genre of its own. Our early investors believe in our vision to change how mobile gamers interact with the world around them,” said Ben Pember, CEO and Co-Founder of DEFY Labs.
DEFY’s gameplay involves hacking missions that require players to explore their physical surroundings using augmented reality, with players earning rewards in the form of cryptocurrency and NFTs.
The company announced that an Alpha version of its mobile app will launch in mid-April for players to take part in a new storyline. DEFY’s gameplay blends a mix of AR, location-based interactivity, and code-breaking and hacking missions. Players around the world take part in a Robin Hood-style revolution that pits them against an evil tech conglomerate, with the game encouraging players to explore their physical surroundings while earning in-game rewards.
DEFY Labs stated that the fresh funds will go towards expanding its team, game development, and improving the mobile app’s AR features.
“DEFY has the potential to serve as a bridge for the massive casual mobile gaming community to enter the world of NFTs. DEFY is transforming the experience of owning NFTs by introducing AR technology, contributing to making the open metaverse more physically engaging,” said Yat Siu, Co-Founder and Executive Chairman of Animoca Brands.
Kelvin Koh, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Spartan Group, also commented: “At Spartan, we’re really excited by games that unify virtual and physical worlds: DEFY combines an exciting augmented reality game experience driven by rich lore with move-to-earn elements and a strong economic flywheel. The team has the right background to build this, and we believe that DEFY will be a fun and interactive way for users to play and earn that will onboard many users into Web3.”
For more information on DEFY Labs and its move-to-earn augmented reality gaming experiences, please visit the company’s website.
Image credit: DEFY Labs / Twitter
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Sam is the Founder and Managing Editor of Auganix. With a background in research and report writing, he has been covering XR industry news for the past seven years.