Hey Hangry Animals Community,

We’re back with another exciting update from our journey through the Thirdweb Cohort 2 Accelerator Programme. This week, we’ve been diving deep into sessions on marketing strategies, refining our product-market fit, and designing game mechanics that can bridge multiple gaming experiences. These discussions are shaping the future of Hangry Animals, and we can’t wait to share our progress with you. Alongside that, major news from Unity and the ongoing Web3 AI Summit in Dubai has given us a lot to think about as we push forward into the next development phase.

Marketing has been a key topic in the Thirdweb cohort this week, and this couldn’t be more important for Hangry Animals. As a game built on purpose, with an ecosystem designed to generate social impact, our marketing approach must resonate with gamers, creators, and investors alike.

In our sessions, we explored strategies around community-driven growth, the power of authentic storytelling, and how to leverage Web3-native marketing tools like tokenised incentives. These are crucial as we prepare for our game’s launch and the broader ecosystem rollout.

Community engagement remains at the heart of our strategy. By creating shared ownership and incentivising participation through in-game rewards and collectibles, we aim to build a loyal player base that feels connected to our mission. Whether through token rewards, exclusive NFTs, or playable content, every aspect of the game will be designed to empower our community.

Another pivotal theme from this week was developing a startup mindset, focusing on iterating rapidly while staying aligned with our product-market fit. Building a successful game in the Web3 space means constantly fine-tuning based on player feedback, market trends, and technological advancements.

We’ve been encouraged to think of Hangry Animals not just as a standalone game but as the first piece of a much larger puzzle – our gaming ecosystem. This ties directly into our plans for an ecosystem token that spans multiple indie and AA games. Our goal is to create an interconnected gaming economy where players can take their in-game assets (think NFTs, collectibles, and tokens) and use them across different titles. It’s an ambitious vision, but one that will make Hangry Animals a cornerstone in a broader Web3 gaming movement.

In these product-market fit sessions, we were reminded that success comes from balancing innovation with sustainability. While we’re pushing boundaries with blockchain mechanics and social impact, we need to ensure that our game is fun, engaging, and delivers value right from the start.

A key focus for our team this week has been blockchain metadata and how we can use it to enhance the player experience. The potential here is enormous – by leveraging blockchain, we can enable gamers to own and carry their digital assets across multiple games, creating a sense of continuity that’s never been possible before.

For example, a rare collectible earned in Hangry Animals could also unlock bonuses or exclusive content in future games within our ecosystem. This is not just about interoperability; it’s about creating a shared digital economy that spans a multitude of gaming experiences. By doing so, we’re laying the groundwork for a new kind of player engagement where digital ownership holds real-world value.

We believe this will be a key differentiator for us, and it’s what sets Web3 gaming apart from traditional gaming ecosystems. The ability to take an asset earned in one game and use it across others – whether to trade, unlock content, or enhance gameplay – adds a layer of excitement and investment that players won’t want to miss.

In other major news, Unity has just announced that they are canceling the controversial Runtime Fee after extensive consultations with the gaming community. Here’s a snippet from their official release:

This is huge for developers like us. Unity’s initial announcement of the runtime fee had raised concerns about long-term profitability, especially for indie studios and Web3 projects like Hangry Animals. Now, with the cancellation of the fee, we can continue building confidently on Unity without worrying about unforeseen costs.

Unity Personal will remain free, with the revenue cap raised to $200,000 USD, giving smaller studios more flexibility to scale. Additionally, Unity has announced updates to its Pro and Enterprise plans in 2025, which include more tailored solutions for larger teams. While we’re not quite at the Enterprise level yet, knowing that Unity is focusing on supporting developers of all sizes gives us a boost of confidence as we continue to build Hangry Animals using their tools.

With some of our team attending the Web3 AI Summit in Dubai, we’ve had the chance to dive into discussions around the future of game development and how AI is going to reshape the industry. Large game development projects often take six or more years to complete, with costs that can reach into the millions. In such a fast-paced market, the risk of missing trends or themes by the time a game is ready to launch is very real.

From a CTO and Game Studio perspective, one of the most exciting developments is how AI can revolutionise productivity, especially in large-scale projects. AI tools are already being used to block out levels quickly, generate procedural landscapes, and even automate the creation of 3D assets. What used to take months or years can now be done in a fraction of the time, giving developers the ability to adapt to new trends as they emerge.

For us, this is crucial. As we expand the Hangry Animals universe and create new games for our ecosystem, we need to stay agile and responsive to the market. AI will allow us to experiment more freely with new ideas, speed up development timelines, and create higher-quality assets faster than ever before. The next 18 months are going to be incredibly exciting as we explore the full potential of AI in game development.

As we head into another busy week, we’re feeling energised and inspired by all the progress we’ve made and the opportunities on the horizon. From marketing strategies to game mechanics, from Unity’s renewed commitment to developers to the limitless possibilities of AI – we’re moving full steam ahead.

Hangry Animals isn’t just a game; it’s the foundation of a much larger vision for a Web3 gaming ecosystem with real-world impact. Our mission to build a sustainable and socially responsible gaming environment is more alive than ever, and we’re thrilled to have you along for the ride.

Stay Hangry!