GameStop has teamed up with the Telos Foundation to pilot a new Web3 game launcher named GameStop Playr.
As stated by Telos Chief Marketing Officer, Peter Nguyen, "GameStop Playr is marketing/distributing Web3 games that are built using Telos’ blockchain technology.”
As of now, GameStop Playr has not launched and no compatible games have been announced. However, interested parties can register for a waitlist.
GameStop, formerly a traditional brick-and-mortar game retailer, shifted its focus to crypto a year following the infamous r/wallstreetbets short squeeze, which sent its stock soaring in January 2021. In January 2022, the company launched an NFT and crypto division, according to the Wall Street Journal.
A year later, GameStop partnered with Immutable X to inaugurate its own NFT marketplace, which reached $1 million in trading volume within the first 24 hours.
According to a statement from Telos, games compatible with the Telos blockchain will be distributed via GameStop Playr. Some games that are either compatible or "close to fully integrated" with the Telos blockchain include gambling platforms such as W3Poker and OwlDAO, and a mobile game called Monkey Empire.
However, Nguyen emphasized that none of these games are guaranteed to be available through GameStop Playr.
AJ Dinger, Head of Business Development at the Telos Foundation, expressed optimism that this collaboration will attract new customers to the Web3 gaming space.
“By combining GameStop Playr with Web3 games utilizing Telos’ high performance blockchain infrastructure, we can break down many of the barriers currently deterring Web2 players from embracing Web3,” said Dinger.
