Chainmonsters - a blockchain monster catching game - is releasing its latest beta on Monday, December 6th 2021 at 10AM UTC! It's possible there might be a slight delay with being able to get access right at 10AM, given the history of launches and minor hiccups, but there's a lot to look forward to. Most notably, the change from top down art and movement to full blown 3D visuals.
In the above video we can see some of the dynamics in the world with what appears to be moving cloud cover/wind affecting the lighting on the grass. It's certainly an impressive transformation from the game's original Kickstarter roots.
This closed beta will require an NFT for new players to access - an interesting approach to allow access to be resold. Players with existing alpha/beta access will be able to access as well (determined by the status on the account page) though may not be receiving a beta access NFT given the prior access status. From the account page, it seems that older alpha/beta accounts that were already activated are registered outside of the NFT flow.
This is detailed more in the official blog post around Closed Beta access.
Gameplay wise, battles may be more full featured than previous versions in the new beta with more mechanics and stats influencing the outcome. Items and in game currency will also be able to be earned, assumedly both through gameplay and unlocking Season Pass tiers. Some of the Season Pass tiers will be available for free, while a full pass will grant more unlockable tiers - Alpha/Genesis players will be granted full Season Pass access. Player versus player battles are included and should prove an interesting test of mechanics and balance.
With the Closed Beta, players can get a head start on building their collections of Chainmons - progression will carry over to the full release of the game!
Thanks for reading, and if you enjoy discussing blockchain gaming, or discovering new blockchain games, consider joining the Crypto Gaming Guild on Discord.