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Words With Friends Co-Founder Raises $46M for Web 3 Game Studio
Paradigm led the round for The Wildcard Alliance, the new Web 3 subsidiary of Playful Studios.
By Brandy Betz
Updated May 11, 2023, 4:17 p.m. Published Jun 14, 2022, 1:11 p.m.
Playful Studios, an independent game studio from Words with Friends co-founder Paul Bettner, has launched a new Web 3 subsidiary called The Wildcard Alliance and raised $46 million in Series A funding led by crypto native investment giant Paradigm.
- Other participants in the funding round included Griffin Gaming Partners, Polygon and venture capitalist Sabrina Hahn.
- Wildcard – the upcoming first game from the subsidiary – is a hybrid multiplayer online battle arena, real-time strategy and collectible card game on the Polygon blockchain.
- The game is framed as “the ultimate spectator sport” where competitors can interact and transact directly with their in-game fans and supporters.
- Texas-based The Wildcard Alliance is helmed by Bettner and his wife, Katy Drake Bettner. The team is rounded out by game industry veterans from titles such as Age of Empires and Halo Wars.
- Founded in 2012, Playful Studios is best known for the 3D platform game series Lucky’s Tale and sandbox adventure game Creativerse.
Read more: The Metaverse Will Make Gamers of Us All
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