Playstudios, a NASDAQ traded mobile gaming platform and developer, is venturing into the web3 world with a new blockchain division and investment fund. The gaming studio accumulated a massive portfolio of free-to-play games — like MGM Slots Live, myVEGAS Slots, Tetris, and others — that provide players the ability to earn real-world rewards through its loyalty program playAWARDS.

The gaming entity is now launching a new blockchain-focused division playBLOCKS which will use “rewarded play” to leverage blockchain technology and deliver more rewarding experiences to users across its portfolio of games. The company also announced a $10 million investment, Future Fund, to back companies building rewarded play options.

“Each of these strategic initiatives is focused on fully realizing our vision for our playAWARDS platform and rewarded play model, and will solidify our leadership as the richest and most rewarding entertainment ecosystem in gaming today,” said Andrew Pascal, founder and CEO of PLAYSTUDIOS in a press release.  “As we enter into the web3 space, we’ve kind of been doing play-to-earn for 10 years, so I’d argue we’re the pioneers in the world of play.”

The new division will be built upon the acquisition of blockchain-based loyalty platform for games WonderBlocks, as well as a strategic alliance with blockchain infrastructure gaming developer Forte.

“A lot has been made in the promise of web3 games,” Pascal said. “The fact that people can acquire assets that are no longer specific to one game, it’s really massive that it can enrich over time as that asset can be incorporated and leveraged across games. Interoperability is one of the more exciting dimensions of what web3 gaming can unlock.”