Anomaly, a gaming studio, is at the intersection of two cutting-edge fields: Web3 and artificial intelligence (AI). With two games already under its belt and a host of technologies that it is developing, the company aims to revolutionize gaming for the everyday player, launching titles that are engaging, fun, and speak to the ethos of Web3.
Long Do, the Founder of Anomaly, sat down with us for a quick interview, giving us an inside look into the company’s background, vision, and goals moving forward. Check it out here in full — we hope you enjoy.
Could you identify yourself and the role you play at Anomaly?
My name is Long Do, the Founder of Anomaly, a pioneering gaming platform and Layer 3 blockchain that leads in the integration of gaming and AI technologies. Online, I go by the nickname Whale Drop.
Why did you decide to get involved in Web3 gaming – do you have a crypto origin story?
Honestly, it all began the moment I got my hands on an NES controller and played Contra on Nintendo — that’s when my love for gaming really took off. I’ve always been super competitive, competing in hundreds of tournaments, and I’ve even snagged top spots in big events like the World Cyber Games and Team Liquid Opens. Not to mention, I’ve had my fair share of success in strategic card games like Yu-Gi-Oh. Streaming on Twitch took things up a notch, where I hit partner status and pulled in over 12,000 live viewers during my Hearthstone tournaments.
In 2021, with Web3 blowing up, I jumped at the chance to create my own NFT game. I dove into smart contract development, bringing new features to the table like smart contract wallets and on-chain point systems. This project really got some attention and even led to Virtually Human Studios acquiring my tech at a time when the market was hot, showcasing games like ZED RUN.
Jump to 2023, and I created a quest tool that caught Moku’s eye, helping me lead awesome questing campaigns for Sky Mavis, including projects like Pixels and CyberKongz. This whole journey is a testament to my deep love for gaming and shows how I’ve been riding the wave of Web3 gaming.
How did this company start – what is its genesis story?
Right from the start, my involvement in Web3 was driven by a desire to innovate beyond the bounds of traditional gaming. I realized our work was not just about creating games; we were at the forefront of merging gaming with cutting-edge technologies such as AI.
My growing fascination with the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence inspired me to establish a studio that not only adapts to changes but thrives on them. We embrace the unconventional and the avant-garde, which is why we chose the name ‘Anomaly.’
This name, evoking images of science fiction, mirrors our ambitious goal to advance AI towards achieving sentience. Drawing inspiration from concepts like Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), we named our venture Anomaly Games Inc., underscoring our dedication to leading the exploration and development of uncharted territories in gaming and technology.
Tell us a little bit about the two games you have currently – Dicestone and Wildstone.
Dicestone is an engaging, competitive dice game designed to be played against a Large Language Model (LLM). The rules are communicated to the LLM in natural language, coupled with updates on the board’s state at each turn.
This approach enables the LLM to serve as an adept opponent, requiring no further programming. With additional refinement, the LLM can mimic specific playing styles — possibly emulating various members of the gaming community — thus offering a diverse array of challenging adversaries.
Wildstone redefines the card game genre, merging classic card game elements with innovative AI technology to create a unique gaming experience.
Drawing inspiration from Marvel Snap, the leading mobile game of 2023 with $100M in revenue, Wildstone introduces a progression system that rewards players with in-game currency, the opportunity to level up, and access to an extensive card library. This AI-enhanced system ensures every card introduced to the game enriches the strategic depth and excitement of building a dynamic deck.
Do you have plans for future games and if so, could we get a sneak peek?
We do have plans for future games, one of which may or may not involve a balding man and literal hair pulling!
Right now we’re still honing Wildstone, which aims to be as engaging as the Mobile Game of the Year, Marvel Snap, but with added layers of community interaction, player agents, an AI-driven game engine, and more. We are thrilled at the prospect of creating a game that redefines the interaction between AI and users, offering a unique and transformative gaming experience.
But overall, we are on a mission to create a vibrant community for AI and Web3 enthusiasts, engaging with them on popular platforms like Telegram. Our ambition doesn’t stop here; we plan to expand our reach to other social networks and tap into the gaming world, introducing innovative technologies and game mechanics to a new audience.
Our excitement is palpable for our upcoming project: a gamified cloud node service. Blockchain projects such as Xai and Gala have begun to popularize the concept of mining and running node validators, enabling investors to participate.
While Bitcoin mining has become well-known, its complexity and the significant resources required put it out of reach for most. Our goal is to democratize the process, allowing anyone to become a node validator without facing any complex setups.
What are the unique angles you’re taking to Web3 gaming – things that other companies aren’t doing?
Anomaly distinguishes itself in the Web3 gaming sphere with its innovative AI-powered SDK, designed for the swift development and distribution of mini-games on social media platforms, including Telegram and Discord. Its cutting-edge AI features, such as player-model training, efficient matchmaking, automated quest generation, and dynamic in-game asset creation, are poised to redefine the gaming landscape.
Leveraging Arbitrum’s Orbit, Anomaly delivers an exceptionally fast gaming experience, while integration with Gelato’s leading Web3 solutions enables automated gameplay in a zero-gas fee environment. Moreover, this model promotes fairness with on-chain randomness. Anomaly has also expanded its capabilities through strategic partnerships with Socket Protocol and Blockscout, introducing advanced features like native account and chain abstraction, further enhancing its platform’s utility and appeal.
What interesting things are you doing by meshing Web3 gaming tech with AI?
As a pioneering Layer 3 blockchain platform, Anomaly is crafted to transcend the limitations of traditional blockchain technology, with a keen focus on fostering a groundbreaking decentralized gaming ecosystem. At the heart of Anomaly’s innovation is our commitment to bolster gaming privacy through DePIN – a strategic initiative aimed at safeguarding user data without detracting from a rich,
interactive gaming experience.
Further enhancing our robust DePIN framework, Anomaly employs cutting-edge roll-up technology to significantly boost scalability and efficiency. This ensures that our blockchain platform is fully equipped to meet the rigorous demands of contemporary gaming and complex AI computations, all while maintaining exceptional speed and delivering an unparalleled user experience.
What is ‘Social Gaming’ and how are you integrating it into your titles?
Social gaming, particularly in the Web3 realm, merges gaming with social platforms through blockchain to boost user interaction, ownership, and rewards. The gaming industry is nearing a major shift with the introduction of mini-game apps on social platforms like Telegram and Discord, opening new avenues for user acquisition and engagement in Web3.
By allowing instant play without the need for app store navigation or lengthy downloads, social gaming enables quick access within chat apps or community servers. This ease of access encourages spontaneous play and easy sharing, increasing virality potential. Also, integrating social interactions with gaming enhances the overall experience.
Web3 takes social gaming further by applying blockchain’s capabilities, such as true asset ownership, provable scarcity, and real-world value transactions. At Anomaly, we’re using gaming’s social aspect to develop new engagement methods on our Layer 3 blockchain platform, which aims to overcome traditional blockchain limitations.
Our platform, featuring DePIN, prioritizes user privacy while ensuring an engaging gameplay experience. With roll-up technology, we’re boosting scalability and efficiency, allowing our blockchain to support complex gaming and AI needs while maintaining fast transactions and a smooth user experience. This strategy not only advances our vision for social gaming but also supports Web3’s broader objectives of a more open, connected, and user-centric digital world.
Do you have a particular company philosophy or motto at Anomaly that guides everyday operations
Understanding the user base, in Web3, that means understanding what Degen is. Build actual working products first, don’t just sell out on what’s hyped, but actually follow through. We want to build fast, build unique experiences, stand out, and be an anomaly.
What is a day in the life of a team member at Anomaly?
What is sleep? Coffee. Meetings. Build. Play games in my free time. Eat delicious food. Walk doggo. Repeat.
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Although play to airdrop is becoming a big fad, we do think in rewarding users for their time. As game developers and infrastructure builders, we want to make sure every user who joins us is properly rewarded for being early, and gets an appropriate reward through our point systems.
Where can our readers find you?
Our website is https://www.anomalygames.ai/
We are also on Twitter, Discord, and Telegram! Come follow us on our journey.
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