In an interview with Insights Success, Michael Kirkham, the Lead Developer of NEVERDIE Studios, unveils his valuable insights on taking the company to the fore-front of new technology and global culture. The Company is bridging the abyss between independent games and virtual worlds by providing turnkey API for interoperable utility and skill tokens on the blockchain.
Below are the highlights of the interview:
Give us a brief overview of your company, its uniqueness and its vision.
NEVERDIE has been at the forefront of pioneering Virtual World economies since 2003, and was instrumental in the creation of intrinsic value in Virtual Real estate, setting the Guinness World Record for the Most Valuable Virtual Item inside Entropia Universe. As the founder of the MMOWC, NEVERDIE is also an early pioneer in Massive Multiplayer Online eSports and has licensed and developed major IP for virtual worlds including KING KONG in Partnership with Universal and Pop Icon Michael Jackson.
Recently, we launched the NEVERDIE Coin (NDC) and Teleport token (TPT) as well as a myriad of Ethereum ERC20 Skill and Attribute tokens to support an inclusive and interconnected Virtual World economy on the blockchain, designed to create real jobs and opportunity for gamers in online worlds by enabling them to earn interoperable tradable skills as they play.
The Developer API is the first of its kind that provides the fastest onboarding solution to game developers who want to integrate blockchain technology into their projects. The biggest advantage to developers is that they get to tap into a large community of gamers with gaming assets and skills that are interoperable. This revolution in gaming, promises to bring longevity to games, which has never existed before, by enabling gamers to monetize their time spent in playing one game and carry it forward into the next game.
What are the cutting-edge products/solutions offered by your company?
The NEVERDIE Crypto Wallet, Developer API & Dragon King. Each product offers an integral component to completing the vision of an interoperable decentralized gaming ecosystem. The NEVERDIE Wallet acts as a tool for gamers to track, trade, and store their blockchain gaming assets while at the same time providing a simple method to interact with other crypto assets including Litecoin, Bitcoin and all Ethereum tokens.
Our Developer API creates the fastest way for non-crypto centric developers to integrate their games into the blockchain with a turnkey solution to providing their players with interoperable skills with intrinsic value. We set out to bridge this gap by creating simple and elegant methods for developers to interact with the blockchain and the NEVERDIE Wallet.
Dragon King is the first game created using our Developer API. Dragon King uses the blockchain to send/receive crypto assets, store users’ items/inventory and decentralizes the outcome of battles within the game. Since Dragon King allows players to gain crypto assets it is critical that users can verify that the methods in which decisions were made can be independently verified.
Describe the experiences, achievements or lessons learnt that have shaped the journey of your company.
NEVERDIE was a driving force in the explosion of Virtual Worlds from 2003-2010 after which the growth of highly immersive MMORPG’S stagnated despite their popularity and the licensing of AAA IP.
The biggest lesson of all is that No Game can be an Island and expect to survive and maintain growth. We’ve evidently comprehended that connecting games and creating a legitimate virtual goods ecosystem is essential to continued growth.
What are the challenges faced while providing API solutions and how is your company serving to tackle them?
The biggest challenge faced was ensuring that we could take the complexity of the blockchain and widdle it down to a format that would be appealing and powerful for developers.
What according to you could be the potential future of API solutions and how does your company envision sustaining its competency?
It is essential to minimize the cost for game developers to create games for the blockchain. API solutions are the key to off the shelf functionality and connectivity. We will sustain our competency by remaining active in the balancing of interoperable skills, items and utilities to be used as a standard in blockchain gaming.
NEVERDIE understands the hopes and aspirations of gamers like no other developer and was a major catalyst in driving the first round of investment into game development on the blockchain. NEVERDIE’s ambitious ideas are always food for thought even for the biggest game developers in the world as they enter the new world of the blockchain.
About the Developer
Michael Kirkham is the lead developer at NEVERDIE Studios with over 15 years of experience on the cutting edge of Fintech and Media. His contributions in the Fintech Space have culminated in the launch of 4 AAA Game titles including projects for Universal Studios.
Michael has spearheaded advanced game engine development for Cryengine, Unreal and Unity with a principal focus on bringing fintech tools into the games market