Web3 and VR gaming studio Thirdverse raises $15 million in latest funding round

Quick Take

  • MZ Web3 Fund led the round with participation from Dash Ventures, OKX Ventures and Yield Guild Games.
  • The company is working on a game based on the 1980s manga Captain Tsubasa with fellow gaming company Blocksmith&Co. 
  • It raised a Series B in 2021 that included funding from Animoca Brands.

A company making a blockchain game based on the popular 80s football manga Captain Tsubasa raised $15 million in its latest funding round.

Tokyo-based web3 and VR gaming studio Thirdverse received backing from round leader MZ Web3 Fund as well as 8DAO, B Dash Ventures, Double Jump.tokyo, Fenbushi Capital, Flick Shot, Holdem Capital, Kusabi, OKCoinJapan, OKX Ventures and Yield Guild Games.

The company previously raised $20.3 million over three rounds, including most recently its 2021 Series B featuring web3 gaming giant Animoca Brands. It did not respond to a request to confirm if this round is its Series C or to share its valuation.

The funds will be used for hiring and developing more titles including VR games. Thirdverse currently has three on its books, two of which launched this year and a third that is in development.

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Thirdverse is also working on its first blockchain game. Earlier this month, the company announced a partnership with Polygon and will launch Captain Tsubasa Rivals on the chain by the end of this year.

While the name Captain Tsubasa will mean little to those with no interest in manga or football, over 80 million copies of the manga have been sold worldwide since it was launched in 1981. The upcoming blockchain game will allow players to train an NFT avatar and take part in PvP battles.


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About Author

Callan Quinn is an NFT, gaming and metaverse reporter. She started her career working for the expat magazine City Weekend in Guangzhou, China. She also has worked as a business journalist in the UK, Somaliland and the republic of Georgia. Before joining The Block, she was a freelance journalist covering the Chinese tech industry. She speaks Mandarin, French and German. Get in touch via Twitter @quinnishvili or email [email protected].

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