SIP-17: New Horror Game, Deep Sea Episode 2

[Geraldine]

Council recommendation

Neutral

TL;DR

What	We’re looking for €80,000 to finance the development of Episode 2 of the saga. Deep Sea episode 2 is a new experience (1x2) with survival horror features inspired by Lovecraft’s universe and a NFT collection. With the new features enabled by the 0.10, we think it is possible to have experiences further closing the gap between The Sandbox and other gaming communities. It takes place right after the events of the first Deep Sea, where you follow one of the survivors that fled and crashed in the Arctic. Aim, shoot, explore and manage your resources to face the undead and the cold of the Arctic. We would like to fund a new Saga of horror games, episode by episode, with the same level of ambition, quality production, new environments and a plot that unravels over the course of each episode.
Why	After a first success during the Builder Challenge with Deep Sea episode 1 and Chapter 0, we aim to produce a true survival horror game on The Sandbox, with weapons, craft, ammunition and resources management. We seek to create a new saga on The Sandbox, with a reactivable NFT collection with NFTs expected to have an impact on the game: NFT pass for secret area access, playable equipment, wearables, Avatar. The horror entertainment sector is thriving and growing, UK +37%, South Africa +42%, USA +45% and Mexico +57% (@Statista Consumer Insights - July 22 to June 23)
How	With a team of mainly 5 people (3D artists, game designers & a Game Maker expert) working full-time on the game for 3 months, we are requesting 80,000€ to help us fund the experience. The rest would be funded by the NFT sales. With a pool of premium NFTs (higher catalyst value, special effects in-game, secret area) sold from 100k SANDs (reasonable estimation) to 300k SANDs (sold out) In the event of a total sell-out of NFT, this will enable us to contribute to the production of the next episode of the Saga.
When	This experience will be launched in April 2025 (Deep Sea 1:-65, -119 Deep Sea: Chapter 0: -65, -120 Deep Sea 2: 1x2 TBC)
Who	Yobiké is an independent video game studio creating its own IPs on PC, VR (etc.) and has developed an expertise in metaverses, notably The Sandbox. Experience pages: Deep Sea Deep Sea: Chapter 0, The Smurfs (for The Sandbox) Marcel Pagnol en Provence (for WhatTheProd). As part of the splitting of Yobike’s activities in the production of large video games (PC and VR) and the creation of games on existing platforms (The Sandbox, Fornite, Roblox…), the DeepSea game will be ported by Metavest (another company of the group with an official KYB at TSB) and will join our other productions such as Smurfs, Pagnol en Provence, Croix Rouge, …

SIP Details

Background/Context

Eight months ago, we self-published Deep Sea, an original license in The Sandbox, with the aim of offering the metaverse community a brand new horror gaming experience.

We were convinced that it was possible to produce dense, mature and demanding content using The Sandbox tools, which is why we highlighted the most advanced features of Game Maker (GM 0.8 and 0.9), both in terms of visuals and gameplay.

Deep Sea Episode 1

As a result, as well as becoming a showcase for Game Maker’s capabilities, Deep Sea proved that there was a target audience within The Sandbox community who were passionate about this kind of experience.

On the strength of this reception, we accompanied Deep Sea with a complementary experience that we called Deep Sea: Chapter 0. Conceived as a prequel, this experience tells the story leading up to the events of the main Deep Sea experience.

Today, we want to continue to explore this license that we imagined and extend its lore (freely inspired by Lovecraft’s work, The Call of Cthulhu) by offering a new experience: Deep Sea Episode 2.

Game Concept

Deep Sea Episode 2 is the sequel to the first Sandbox experiment. It follows the adventures of the only known survivor of the crew of the Deep Sea oil rig (events of the first experience), who escaped on board a submarine and sank in the Arctic.

A team from a scientific base not far from the wreck rescues him and discovers traces of mutilation on his body, along with an ancient artifact. What do these mutilations mean, what is this artifact and why was he shipwrecked here? These are the questions these isolated scientists will try to answer.

In Deep Sea Episode 2, the player takes on the role of one of the crew of scientists returning from a multi-week mission to explore a climatic phenomenon. On his return to base, he discovers the wrecked submarine, his base devastated and its crew mysteriously decimated.

The player must then investigate the scene in the hope of finding the missing members of his team, while a threat is about to awaken.

Game Key Features

With Deep Sea 2, we’re aiming to develop an even more intense experience than our previous episodes by offering a real Survival Horror thanks to the new Game Maker 0.10 features.

In fact, they give us the opportunity to build the experience around new gameplay mechanics that are key to the survival horror genre:

• Gun battles from a distance (enabled by Raycast functionality)
• Resource management (item collection coupled with the inventory system enabled by the Consumables feature)
• Environmental puzzles (based on observation and precision thanks to the Raycast function)
• Crafting system (objects collected can be combined to create new tools or consumables: ammunition, healing packs, etc.)
• Cold management (gauge equivalent to oxygen when the player is exposed to the cold, manageable via the various systems on display: items to craft, heat zone to activate, etc.)

These different pillars will enable us to challenge players with gameplays that are more focused on survival, and to offer a more dynamic and immersive experience.

Deep Sea Episode 2 is the ideal opportunity for us to take full advantage of the technological evolution of Game Maker, but also to contribute to the diversity of gameplay experiences offered in The Sandbox.

Click to see the early prototype showcasing the gun made in Deep Sea.

The Saga

The objective is to make Deep Sea a saga with many episodes (on average 3 per year). SIP’s role is to finance the second step of the Saga, which will then become self-financing with the sale of NFTs (NFT Pass and Utilities).

Chapter 0 (March 2024): the origins of evil

Episode 1 (March 2024): The oil station is hit by an unknown disease, investigate to find out what happened and try to save the crew members infected by a strange virus that has turned them into Zombies.

Episode 2 (April 2025): A member of the oil station manages to leave this evil place thanks to the rescue submarine. Unfortunately, he unknowingly causes the downfall of a polar research center by introducing this unknown virus.

Episode 3 (estimated July 2025): In the ruins of Teotihuacan, archaeologists discover a secret crypt containing an occult history of mankind. When they break an ancient seal, they unleash terrifying creatures that have lain dormant for millennia. As one of the archaeologists, the player must explore the ruins to restore the seal and prevent the awakening of the god Cthulhu.

Episode 4 (estimated November 2025): Set in the swampy depths of Louisiana, players take on the role of a private detective investigating a series of mysterious disappearances. When clues lead to the heart of the bayou, where ancient rituals are said to have awakened a terrifying creature that lives in the bodies of water, the player must find and stop the creature while confronting the few locals who are inexplicably hostile to the detective’s arrival.

To be continued…

Benefit to the ecosystem

The game production will mainly be supported by The Sandbox and it is up to you to choose what new kind of game you will play on the platform.

With Deep Sea Episode 2, the community will get a fresh new experience further developing the gaming aspects possible on The Sandbox in the popular genre of survival horrors.

A new NFT collection will be on sale on which you can invest your SAND. Here are some of the proposals:

• NFT Pass to access a part of the land (secret zone giving access to additional lore and/or numerous resources: ammunition, healing, etc.).
• NFT Wearable, which makes it easier to fight the cold.
• NFT Equipment, which lets you fire your weapon without having to search for ammunition.
• NFT Cosmetics, which allows you to buy symbolic assets for the game.
• Playable Avatar

Some examples of the NFTs we could create based on Deep Sea Episode 1 & 0:

Risk analysis

We want to work on highlighting and implementing the new features enabled by Game Maker 0.10. However, this work remains to be done and we may not be able to implement all the features we want to develop due to features evolution of the GM.

We have different anticipated production levels with a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) and two key features around which we first want to focus for the experience:

• Raycast, to simulate a firearm and enable remote confrontations
• Cold Management, with a gauge equivalent to the oxygen system on land

Zombies and limited ammunition, for example, are two other important features around which we want to build the experience but which we can just as easily remove from the scope if we don’t manage to develop and integrate the feature satisfactorily (without bugs and without worrying about optimisation).

Budget breakdown

Total: 80,000€

Creation of the experience		75,000€
2 voxel Artists	3+3 months
1 lead game designer	3,5 months
1 expert game maker	3,5 months, part time
1 producer	3 month
1 marketing manager	1 month
Creation of the NFT collection, communication and live support		5,000€

Implementation Plan

3 months of development from December 24 to April 25 with the aim of a release, following the timetable below:

Milestones	Completion	Expected completion date	Unlock Payment
#1 Production of the blockout & Gameplay: Creating and setting up the backgrounds and environment (assets, FX, etc.) Integration of story and dialogue	Proposal for a map in different cuts, distribution of action zones, detailed quest proposal, suggestion of different graphic universes.	February 2025	20,000€
#2 Level design & assets:* Creation of assets, setting up the game mechanics, implementation of new mechanics, enemies	List of all the game’s assets, detailed description of all the quests, drafting of the game’s overall gameplay, quest scripting		20,000€
#3 Testing & Optimisation (Beta)	Bug free experience, link to the experience page, once we receive the ok from the evaluators, we will open the experience to the public for everyone to enjoy.	March 2025	15,000€
#4 Launch- Experience published on the LAND & Communication	Trailer, démo & communication support present to the community.	April 2025	20,000€
#5 Post-Launch - Bug Fixing	Dashboard with important metrics. Gamemaker upgrade.	May 2025	5,000€

Team/ Background

Yobike is a video game studio made up of passionate people. Over the past 6 years, we’ve produced several PC and VR games (including Papaye Bang Bang released on Quest 2 and Pico 4 in 2024). We’ve also created several Metaverse experiments inside The Sandbox for brands such as Martell, Celio and Croix Rouge, as well as for the Smurfs (5 games).

• 2 voxel Artists (Maxime & Ewen) : XP on The Sandbox => Pagnol, DeepSea, Smurf
• 1 lead game designer (Yohan) : XP on The Sandbox => Pagnol, DeepSea, Red Cross, Celio
• 1 expert game maker (Matthis) : XP on The Sandbox => DeepSea, Smurf (5 games)
• 1 producer (Rodolphe) : XP on The Sandbox => Pagnol, Smurf
• 1 marketing manager (Johan) : XP on The Sandbox => Pagnol, DeepSea, Red Cross, Celio

Metrics for Success

Player’s engagement:

• Number of hours played
• Number of players
• Number of quests achieved
• Number of players joining the Deep Sea channel in our public discord

NFT purchases:

Our goal is to create a community of horror game fans on The Sandbox offering episodes as terrifying as ever. Through a dedicated discord, we also want to involve the community in defining new themes for the saga.

The NFT holdings (Pass or Artistic), will give roles to saga fans and help animate the community.

• NFT-Pass
• Wearables
• Equipement
• Cosmetics
• Avatars

NFTs will be available in various forms (props, wearables, avatars…) and some will give access to dedicated areas in the game, but also to certain Discord channels, and to specific advantages (beta tester, contribution to the scripting of future episodes, presence in the Credits…).

Voting Options

• Voting Options: Yes, No, Abstain

APPENDIX

Alternatives Considered

We had imagined selling artistic NFTs during Episode 1 and Chapter 0, but unfortunately the current NFT market would not allow us to finance new productions.

With Alpha 4 and the introduction of the NFT Pass, we opted for this option, which enables fans of a particular theme or an IP to finance projects and bring them to life. This SIP allows us to kick-start this saga and make DeepSea a license that should be successful in the long term.

Amendments

We’ll be opening a dedicated discord right from the beginning of Episode 2’s creation, to allow the community to preview the experience and give us feedback before the official launch.

This community will then be involved in the production of new episodes, and will participate in the choice of future themes.

Expectations for DeepSea:

The objective is to make a game to interest gamers who are fans of the “horror” universe. So we need a game with a narrative, where the games are quite long. We’re intentionally moving away from today’s Speed Runs, in order to create an immersive, addictive universe.

Replayability is ensured by players’ determination to succeed in all the quests that unlock access to hidden spaces. Saga’s logic also encourages replayability, as certain elements of the new episodes will make reference to the old ones.

Chapter 0 (no communication): 6,300 players (12 min of play) - target 10,000 players

Episode 1 (in just 8 days in Alpha4): + 12,400 players (17 min of play) - target 20,000 players

Episode 2: Target 25,000 players (+20 min playtime)

Promotion of the game:

Our goal is to reach out to a Gamer audience. As we did with one of our VR games (Oculus Quest and Pico), we could make a free game in Fortnite, with the aim of promoting DeepSea and encouraging people to come and discover the full version in TSB. This would be in addition to animating the community on Discord and buying traffic via specialized platforms/influencers.

Revenue sharing:

Following various exchanges with the community on the DAO forums, we have decided to move closer to what is done in the video game world (Studio/ Publisher) by proposing revenue sharing on the sale of NFTs: 30% of the net amount of NFT revenues will be transferred to the DAO to help finance other projects, and set up a virtuous circle.

Additional Resources

Here are some of the videos trailers showcasing the previous Deep Sea experiences and their TSB pages:

• Deep Sea launch trailer
• Deep Sea Gameplay trailer
• Deep Sea: Chapter 0 launch trailer

Experience pages:

• Deep Sea
• Deep Sea: Chapter 0

Teaser for DeepSea 2

• Deep Sea 2 Teaser

References of past SIP Ideas: A New Horror Game Series for The Sandbox?

[DAO]

I love the Deepsea experience that your studio has done! Very immersive and well done.

Here is my concern.

This is a single experience.

The DAO will fund your project but get no part of it.

This is what I’d like to see fixed.

1. Funding is too high. 80k EUR is 84.4k USD. That’s 138k SAND (60cents per SAND). Bring it down 30%.
2. DAO gets no return on the sale of your NFTs. Allocate a portion of the proceeds to the DAO.
3. Ensure that you mention that the experience is funded in part by the DAO.

The liberty to adjust both 1 and 2 is yours, i.e cut down 30%, offer low % of proceeds from nft sale to DAO, or vice versa.

[Johan]

Hello,
I’m Johan (founder of Metavest and Yobike) and we’re in charge of this project.
It’s an approach that seems to me to correspond well to the video game market and suits us completely. I’ve already had occasion to share this point on the DOA TSB forums.
Lowering production costs seems complicated to me because we want to be able to offer high-level games to meet gamers’ expectations and try to attract this new and challenging audience to TSB.
On the other hand, it’s totally possible (even normal) to share part of the revenue from NFT sales with the DAO. We could imagine giving 30% of sales to the DAO, so if episode 2 is a success, the DAO might be interested in continuing to support future DeepSea episodes. It’s up to the community to decide.
What do you think of this approach?

[cryptodiplo]

I am leaning towards yes on this, but do agree the price is high.

My reasoning is that I want to kickstart this game funding engine, and this team is one of the best to do it with. If you haven’t played Deep Sea you should go try it, I might say it’s the most immersive game I’ve played on Sandbox.

In the mid-term I will want to be more conservative with the budget and have the game studios use us as a jumping off point to start generating their own revenue, but the tools to make NFTs valuable and worth paying money for are relatively limited in the Sandbox today.

@Johan Have you considered delaying starting this project for another month or two until the Game Maker 0.11 is released? Or potentially starting with story and asset design and waiting for release to start development on game mechanics. I would feel more comfortable voting yes if so given I expect it to significantly improve the polish of the game.

[DAO]

Would you mind sharing the link to the topic you mentioned about DOA TSB forums.

I will still like to see the budget come down, otherwise it may be a pass for me.

And lastly,

@DAO

Ensure that you mention that the experience is funded in part by the DAO.

[Johan]

@cryptodiplo
We’ve been lucky to partner with TSB since 2021 and have access to new GM versions ahead of time.
When we carried out the Smurfs experiments (5 in total), we worked on the current versions and as soon as we had access to the new GM version, we made improvements.
In our experience, the GM roadmap varies quite often, as the TSB teams often wish to add new features, which is why we’ve chosen this schedule, and it can be modified, in agreement with the community, if new features essential to the game can be added.
Do you agree with this approach?

[Johan]

@DAO

Ensure that you mention that the experience is funded in part by the DAO

I can confirm that we will indicate that the DAO is co-financing this project.

[cryptodiplo]

Yes I didn’t know you were aware of future features, in that case you should have the ability to make good decisions regardless of launch.

[sebga]

(scroll for version)
Bonjour,

Prenez ceci en considération:

JE SUIS UN UTILISATEUR COMME TOUT A CHACUN ET N’AI AUCUN INTERERET A ME METTRE DES GENS A DOS.
JE PREND LE RISQUE DE M’EXPOSER ET NE SUIS PAS REMUNERER.
J’AI TOUT A PERDRE CONTRAIREMENT A VOUS QUI DEMANDEZ DES FONDS.
MERCI DE VOIR DANS MA DEMARCHE UNE VOLONTE SINCERE DE FAIRE PROGRESSER LA DAO ET NOTRE ECOSYSTEME.

Je n’irais pas par quatre chemin car il y a un gros manque de transparence ainsi qu’une volonté d’utiliser les fonds de la DAO pour un usage personnel.
Donc, en l’état, je suis totalement contre.

1- j’ai demandé , et tu l’as proposé également , un vocal avec toi (@Johan) pour aborder le sujet des projets financés par la DAO. Evites-tu la discussion?

2- Vous semblez être bien implanté dans l’écosystème TSB, et avoir déjà travaillé, donc avoir reçu des fond de TSB ou d’autres marques/licences pour différentes expériences.
Pourquoi ne pas financer VOS licences avec VOS fonds, à moins que vous ne cédiez la licences DEEP SEA à la DAO. Mais je ne pense pas que vous soyez d’accord avec ça, n’est-ce pas ?

2b- De plus, vous dites être multiplateformes, la licence étant financée par la DAO il semble normal que son rayonnement sur les autres supports soit également inclus dans le partages des recettes.
Prévoyez vous donc de céder à la DAO une part des revenus issus de la vente des divers produits liés à la licence DEEP SEA ?

3- Cédez 30% des ventes des NFTs à la DAO ? Vous faites la promotion de votre studio, de votre licence, et en plus vendez des NFTs avec l’argent de la DAO.
Vous trouvez vraiment cela juste ?

4- Dans le cas où il s’avèrerait que la DAO approuve ce financement : Vous avez dit travailler pour d’autres plateformes, donc vous conviendrez que le fait d’être financé par la DAO, considérant les montants réclamés, cela fait de vous des employés de la DAO et de ce fait il vous sera interdit de travailler sur quelque autre projet durant toute la durée de la création du dit projet ?

5- Quelle est votre part d’investissement personnel dans ce projet ?

6- Tout doit être écrit et signé sous forme de contrat, contrat stipulant clairement les devoir et obligations de chacune des parties. Dire qu’il y aura des mentions est très loin d’être suffisant.

7- Le vote, quand bien même serait accepté devrait être soumis à des conditions de validités, notamment la signature du dit document engageant les 2 parties. Est-ce qu’il y a un problème avec cela ?

8- Vous dites avoir travailler sur Red Cross, qui est déjà un projet financer par la DAO…

– Vous êtes un Studio français, merci de me répondre en français. Vous pouvez pour le confort de tous ajouter une traduction en anglais.

Good morning,

Take this into consideration:

I AM A USER LIKE EVERYONE AND HAVE NO INTEREST IN MURDERING PEOPLE.
I TAKE THE RISK OF EXPOSING MYSELF AND ARE NOT PAID.
I HAVE EVERYTHING TO LOSE UNLIKE YOU WHO IS ASKING FOR FUNDS.THANK YOU FOR SEEING IN MY APPROACH A SINCERE DESIRE TO ADVANCE THE DAO AND OUR ECOSYSTEM.

I wouldn’t beat around the bush because there is a big lack of transparency as well as a desire to use DAO funds for personal use.
So, as it stands, I am totally against it.

1- I asked, and you also proposed it, to speak with you (Johan) to discuss the subject of projects financed by the DAO. Are you avoiding discussion?

2- You seem to be well established in the TSB ecosystem, and to have already worked, therefore to have received funding from TSB or other brands/licenses for different experiences.
Why not finance YOUR licenses with YOUR funds, unless you transfer the DEEP SEA licenses to the DAO. But I don’t think you agree with that, do you?

2b- In addition, you say that you are multiplatform, the license being financed by the DAO it seems normal that its influence on other media is also included in the revenue sharing.
So do you plan to give the DAO a share of the income from the sale of various products linked to the DEEP SEA license?

3- Give 30% of NFT sales to the DAO? Do you promote your studio, your license, and also sell NFTs with money from the DAO.
Do you really think this is fair?

4- In the event that it turns out that the DAO approves this financing: You said you work for other platforms, so you will agree that the fact of being financed by the DAO, considering the amounts claimed, that makes you employees of the DAO and therefore you will be prohibited from working on any other project during the entire duration of the creation of the said project?

5- What is your share of personal investment in this project?

6- Everything must be written and signed in the form of a contract, a contract clearly stipulating the duties and obligations of each party. To say that there will be mentions is far from enough.

7- The vote, even if accepted, should be subject to validity conditions, in particular the signing of the said document binding the 2 parties. Is there a problem with this?

8- You say you worked on Red Cross, which is already a project financed by the DAO.

– You are a French Studio, please answer me in French. For everyone’s convenience, you can add an English translation.

[Johan]

Bonjour Sebga,

Dans un premier temps, je trouve ton implication très importante et c’est l’essence même d’une DAO, donc merci pour cela et pour ta franchise. Tes questions sont très intéressantes car elles relèvent des points importants et je vais essayer d’être le plus clair possible dans mes réponses.

Je vais les reprendre une à une :

1- C’est avec grand plaisir que j’échangera en visio avec toi. C’est d’ailleurs moi qui ai émis cette proposition. J’attendais juste de voir si d’autres personnes voulaient nous rejoindre. Tu peux m’envoyer un message en MP et on pourra se caler un Google Meet.

2- Mes sociétés ont porté plusieurs projets dans TSB, en amenant des marques (elles ont financé à 100% leurs projets), en portant des projets en partenariat avec TSB (l’ensemble des revenus générés par ces expériences sont partagés entre TSB et la licence concernée, je ne suis que prestataire de production) et en essayant de développer mes propres IP. C’est le cas de DeepSea pour lequel je sollicite la DAO. Pour cette licence j’ai porté le coût de Chapter 0 (sorti il y a un mois environ) et de Episode 1 (qui sort demain – 1er Décembre – dans l’Alpha4). Ces développements m’ont coûté plus de 100k€ d’investissement de la part de mon studio, mais je trouve intéressant de tenter ce genre de projet dans TSB, car créer une Saga attire les gamer (et pas seulement le Crypto et NFT fans) et donne des RV aux joueurs donc les fidélise dans la durée. C’est en cela que sollicité la DAO est mutuellement intéressant, car je fais porter une partie importante de ma prod par la plateforme, mais je travaille à la croissance et au devenir de TSB.

2b- Être multiplateforme sous-entend essayer d’aller chercher du trafic sur les plateformes à fort volume comme Fortnite et Roblox et de les amener à rejoindre TSB pour s’offrir des NFT et une relation particulière avec le jeu. Ces plateformes ne génèrent aucun revenu, mais donne une forte visibilité.

3- Ma proposition reprend le mode opératoire des relations que je peux avoir avec les Publishers du secteur du jeu vidéo pour mes jeux plus « classiques » (Steam, Meta, Pico…). Dans le secteur, le Publisher prend en charge tout ou partie de votre production et 100% du marketing et de la comm, puis se rémunère sur vos ventes. Ici nous sommes sur une licence qui a financé ses deux premiers Opus, une proposition 30% / 70% parait saine, d’autant que l’objectif de ces jeux est de faire croitre la communauté de TSB.

4- Je ne comprends pas trop la logique « d’employé de la DAO », mais pour répondre indirectement à ta question, oui les équipes identifiées sur le projet et durant la durée indiqué, ne travailleront que sur ce projet jusqu’à sa finalisation, comme nous l’avons fait sur chacune de nos expériences.

5- Le budget global de DeepSea 2 devrait être aux alentours de 100k€ + la partie gestion de communauté autour de la vente des NFTs. Nous saurons rapidement, si l’audience est au RV, et les ventes de NFT aussi. Cela nous permettra de voir combien d’épisodes par an nous pourrons sortir suite à l’Episode 2.

6- Bien entendu, la SIP proposée est là pour échanger et pour pouvoir soumettre au vote une « approche contractuelle » qui répond aux attentes de tous d’une manière équitable.

7- La SIP votée par la communauté nous engage dans le temps, c’est tout l’intérêt d’un métavers Web3, et de part nos nombreuses productions dans TSB, nous avons toujours mis la barre haute dans tous ce que nous avons produit.

8- Oui, nous travaillons (en grande partie bénévolement) pour la Croix Rouge Française, afin de pouvoir leur montrer que le métavers et la communauté Web3 peut aussi participer au financement de projets dans le monde réel. Ce projet est directement soutenu par TSB qui a un accord de partenariat directement avec la Croix Rouge.

J’espère avoir répondu à tes questions et je te laisse revenir vers moi pour que l’on se cale un moment en visio pour continuer notre échange.

Bien à toi.

---

N ENGLISH

First of all, I find your participation very important and that’s what a DAO is all about, so thank you for that and for your honesty. Your questions are very interesting because they touch on important points, and I’ll try to be as clear as possible in my answers.

I’ll take them one by one:

1- I’d be delighted to talk to you on video. In fact, I was the one who suggested it. I was just waiting to see if anyone else wanted to join us. You can send me a PM and we can set up a Google Meet.

2- My companies have carried several projects in TSB, bringing brands (they have financed 100% of their project), carrying projects in partnership with TSB (all revenues generated by these experiences are shared between TSB and the license concerned, I am only a production provider) and trying to develop my own IPs. This is the case with DeepSea, for which I am applying for the DAO. For this license, I carried the cost of Chapter 0 (released about a month ago) and Episode 1 (to be released tomorrow - December 1 - in Alpha4).
These developments have cost me more than 100k€ of investment for my studio, but I find it interesting to try this kind of project in TSB, because creating a Saga attracts gamers (and not just Crypto and NFT fans) and gives RVs to players, thus building their loyalty in the long-term. That’s why it’s mutually beneficial to work with the DAO, because I’m using the platform for a large part of my production, but I’m also working on its growth and future.

2b- Being multi-platform means trying to get traffic on high-volume platforms like Fortnite and Roblox and convincing them to join TSB to get NFTs and a special relationship with the game. These platforms don’t generate any revenue, but give high visibility.

3- My proposal follows the same modus operandi as the relationships I have with Publishers in the video game sector for my more “classic” games (Steam, Meta, Pico…). In the industry, the Publisher takes charge of some or all of your production and 100% of the marketing and comm, then gets paid on your sales. In the present case, we’re dealing with a license that has financed its first two opuses, so a 30% / 70% proposal seems reasonable, especially as the aim of these games is to expand the TSB community.

4- I don’t quite understand the “DAO employee” logic, but to answer your question indirectly, yes, the teams identified on the project and for the duration indicated will only work on this project until its completion, as we have done on each of our projects.

5- The overall budget for DeepSea 2 should be around 100k€ + the community management part around the sale of NFTs. We’ll soon know if the audience is there, and NFT sales too. This will enable us to see how many episodes per year we can release following Episode 2.

6- Of course, the proposed SIP is there for discussion and to be able to put to the vote a “contractual approach” that meets everyone’s expectations in a fair way.

7- The SIP voted on by the community commits us over time, which is the whole point of a Web3 metaverse, and because of our numerous productions in TSB, we’ve always set the standard high in everything we’ve produced.

8- Yes, we’re working ( mostly voluntarily ) for the French Red Cross, to show them that metavers and the Web3 community can also help fund real-life projects. This project is directly supported by TSB, which has a partnership agreement directly with the Red Cross.

I hope I’ve answered your questions, and I’ll let you get back to me so that we can have a moment of video chat to continue our discussion.

Best regards.

[DAO]

1. What are your metrics for success in terms of launching episode 2?

2. Should the DAO expect you to request further funding of subsequent episodes(80k EUR/episode)?
   If so, how does the DAO benefit from your success other than the NFT sales(which may/may not bring in notable returns seeing as how most projects have not been able to sustain themselves consistently with NFT sales)

3. The request to fund 80% of a SINGLE episode of Deepsea (by your estimate of 100k in production cost) is too steep. Are you intending to revise your asking amount by the end of this discussion, before you move into voting.

You must understand that while we are supportive of helping an established studio like yourself fund an IP project of your own, we have to consider the reality that you’ll come back to request for further funding of subsequent episodes, which if the DAO refuses to continue funding, that IP may cease to exist and this in turn becomes DAO funds wasted.

Thanks.

[Johan]

To answer your questions :
1- There are three criteria that will define the success of Episode 2:
=> The number of players in the experience, the objective is to see the number of players grow and each episode become an expected RV for fans of the saga.
=> Time spent/completion of all quests. This will indicate how popular the episode is with players, and whether our game is living up to expectations. We’ll also be looking at feedback on the forums.
=> NFT sales: the aim is to create a special bond with fans of the experience. NFTs will provide benefits (participation in the scenario of the next episode, being a beta tester, access to secret rooms…).

2- The interest is twofold: financial, as we propose to share the fruit of NFT sales with the DAO (30%), but also the development of the community. Today’s TSB “players” almost all come only to earn Sand by doing Speed Runs on each experience, without really being interested in the gameplay. This has to change, because it’s costing TSB a lot of Sand and isn’t growing the community. We need to reach out to gamers, offer them real games and encourage them to come back as often as possible. Our aim is for the sale of NFT to finance future episodes, without the need for DAO.

3- If we cut the budget, we’ll reduce quality. Considering that we’ve already financed Chapter 0 and Episode 1, our real demand is for DAO funding of 80k€ / 220k€ of overall investment.

[sebga]

Dispo en fin de semaine, si c’est bon de ton côté nous pourrons faire un call vendredi ou samedi.

[Johan]

Bonjour Sebga,

Avec plaisir, je suis dispo sur les créneaux suivants :

• Vendredi 10h ou 17h

• Samedi 10h

Je te laisse voir ce qui t’arrange et m’envoyer une invitation.

Bonne journée,

Johan

[Geraldine]

Hi @Johan, the council gave its recommandation, which is negative, until those questions are answered in the SIP:

Deep Sea 2 Experience looks great and innovative, but there are many missing elements:

• Share the KPIs of Deep Sea 1: (# of Players, Community Size, Play Time, Rating etc). - how will it engage more users through NFT drops, selling NFTs to offer a better experience.
• There should be a revenue share and recouping on first revenue to refund the DAO for the advance of payment.
• How is it engaging in web3 like PickaxeMaster or 3verest so it builds a community: will there be a collection of weapons, of avatars, of equipments and boosters? what is the replayability ?
• what are the expectations of KPIs with Deep Sea 2 ? what is the marketing plan to attract more players outside of The Sandbox ?

Could you answer the questions and I will update the SIP with those information?

[theKuntaMC]

Just made a post from the DAO’s X account to drive more traffic to this discussion. Let’s all try to amplify posts like these so we can get more of our fellow LAND and SAND holders involved with the DAO! – x.com

[Johan]

Hello Géraldine,

I’m in touch with many people on the forums on these and other subjects. I’ll give you a full SIP update this weekend with all these elements.

Have a nice day,

Johan

[Beyon]

If this is Yobike’s project I have no doubts. I’ve played their experience, and I really really enjoy what they’re making. I support what they’re making.

[DrMetaverso]

Hey there,

Since you’ve worked on games like The Smurfs, among others, within The Sandbox, I’m guessing you’re a pretty established studio based on what you’ve shared.

That said, I do think the budget you’re asking for seems a bit on the high side, and I’m not sure the ROI for just one experience justifies it at this point.
There are other studios in our ecosystem, with far less funding, who were able to secure more than 100K SAND by participating in Builder’s Challenge 1 and 2.

A couple of questions:

1. Have you considered taking part in Builder’s Challenge, which is the new version of the Game Maker Fund? If not, what’s holding you back from going that route?
   [ I think this could be a great move for your project, as it would help you gather important metrics like player numbers, playtime, and engagement, things that can make future funding requests more compelling. ]

2. Have you had any success selling assets you’ve created for The Sandbox? If so, could you share what you sold and how many units?

3. What’s your plan for ensuring the sustainability of your game series and its NFT collection beyond the initial funding? Do you have long-term plans in place to keep players engaged and invested in future episodes?

Personal Notes:
I don’t believe NFT sales are profitable at this point for any studio in our ecosystem. As a player and builder, I find it extremely difficult to sell assets. Even when we do sell, it’s usually because the IP is well established within the SandFam community, or the NFTs have some sort of utility. I could be wrong, but I haven’t seen any studio completely sell out a collection unless it’s tied to utility or an event with a prize pool.

Thanks!
DrM

[Lanzer]

Hi @Johan !

Are you available to do a podcast episode on SANDDAO? I’ll be doing a readthrough of mine (SIP-16) for a separate episode and would love to do a live Q&A with you on yours.