Unveiling the Pioneering World of Paima Engine and On-chain Gaming - AW_Research

AW Insights

Welcome to AW Insights, a character interview series presented by @AW_Research.Today, we have invited Sebastien Guillemot, Co-founder of PaimaStudios & dcspark to discuss web3 game engines and on-chain gaming together.

In this segment, we will delve deep into the realms of onchain gaming and the autonomous worlds, engaging in conversations with pioneers who have made significant contributions to these fields.

Our mission is to conduct exclusive interviews with the trailblazers, innovators, and visionaries of the blockchain gaming world. We aim to unveil their unique perspectives, gain profound insights into their innovative projects, and explore the intersection of blockchain technology and gaming.

Exciting Recap

Introducing the Paima Engine and onchain games built on it, Jungle Wars, Volcanees NFT, Wrath of the Jungle, Tarochi, and Oracle RPG;
Compare Paima engine with MUD, DOJO, World Engine, and curio;
Why Paima chose to deploy on Milkomeda;
How onchain games to autonomous worlds;
The different game designs modle of Paima;
How to improve the user experience of on-chain games and solve user acquisition problems.

Host: Kaikai

Guest: Sebastien Guillemot

Paima Studios

Paima Studios is the framework for onchain gaming, and created onchain game from Japan.

Paima Studios are also the core developers of the Paima Engine: a novel layer 2 solution that allows the creation of on-chain games where the game state can be associated with NFTs.

Paima Engine

Paima Engine is the industry-leading framework to create Layer 2 solutions for gaming, gamification, and autonomous worlds. Paima addresses the top 4 barriers to web3 adoption1. Expensive development costs; 2. Security risks; 3. Difficulty in user acquisition; 4. Challenges in iteration. Prima Engine gives 4 solutions: 1. Simplified development costs; 2. Safer interactions; 3. User acquisition made easy; 4. Smooth iteration.

Based on the Paima Engine, the team has also developed several on-chain games, including the playable Jungle Wars, Volcanees NFT, and Wrath of the Jungle, as well as the ongoing development of Tarochi, Oracle RPG and more.

Jungle Wars: NFT Rumble

Jungle Wars is a causal PvP on-chain game which is the first to show off the potential of trustless web3 gaming. Thanks to being built with Paima Engine, the game enables a brand new gameplay style where all of a player's moves are recorded onto and replayable from blockchain data. Furthermore Jungle Wars highlights a brand new gaming primitive, Stateful NFTs, where the player's stats are accrued into an ever-evolving NFT as the player plays the game.

Volcaneers NFT

Volcaneers are the first Stateful NFTs to ever be launched. This new class of NFTs opens up a new world where the value of your NFT will accrue based on the achievements, stats, and other in-game accolades that your NFT achieves. Volcaneers are the first stepping stone into the up-and-coming world of Stateful NFTs.

Wrath of the Jungle: Tower Defense

Wrath of the Jungle: Tower Defense is a fast-paced game where players choose to play as either attackers or defenders. As an attacker, players lead hordes of enemy creatures through the jungle to destroy the defender's base, while defenders use a variety of towers to fend off attackers.

With several maps to choose from, players can upgrade their towers and gain new abilities to maximize their defensive capabilities. The game offers a thrilling gaming experience for both aggresive attackers and valiant defenders.

About Sebastien Guillemot

Hi, l am Sebastien Guillemot. I am the Co-founder of PaimaStudios & dcspark. About 5 years ago, I entered the crypto space professionally, and my interest in Cardano led me to live in Japan, where Cardano originated. I joined as the second engineer at the company responsible for starting Cardano and eventually became the leader of the Cardano R&D team at a company called America.

After working there for approximately 2.5 years, I decided to venture out and establish my own company, dcSpark. dcSpark specializes in general infrastructure and focuses on building Layer 1 blockchains and developer tools. During my time at dcSpark, we became increasingly intrigued by Layer 2 solutions.

Our focus shifted to Layer 2 for non-EVM (Ethereum Virtual Machine) blockchains as we observed that most attention was on Layer 2 solutions for scalability, while we saw potential in Layer 2 for intra-probability – aiming to add EVM support to non-EVM blockchains. This led us to develop and deploy Milkomeda, our Layer 2 solution, which was an optimistic upgrade to our brand, including support for Cardano.

Upon further evaluation, we realized that DeFi was already a heavily explored area, and we wanted to pursue something different that others had not yet tackled. It became evident that gaming was a promising domain, and we noticed a lack of well-optimized Layer 2 solutions for gaming use cases.

With this realization, we founded Paima Studios about a year and a half ago with the primary goal of being a Layer 2 solution focused on on-chain games. We strive to create a platform that enhances the gaming experience and brings innovation to the on-chain gaming ecosystem.

About Prima Engine

AW Research: Can you introduce the Paima engine from another angle?

Sebastien: It seems that most Layer 2 solutions primarily focus on execution, similar to how Layer 1 execution works, such as in Ethereum. However, you have taken a different approach with Paima by considering it as a Layer 2 that focuses on data rather than execution. This means you are more concerned about how data is written, read, and synchronized between chains, as well as how it is associated with user accounts and different NFTs. It's a unique paradigm that you have chosen, and it seems to be driven by your interest in zk cryptography.

You mentioned that you have tried building games with zk, but encountered scalability issues due to maximum circuit size limitations and increasing proving times. To address this, you believe that an autonomous world, like a large fast world, needs a robust data management platform at its core. Games often revolve around data management, handling user accounts, item ownership, and various interactions that heavily rely on data management.

You see zk as a core component of your game, and that's why Paima serves as the foundational base layer for these autonomous worlds, emphasizing the importance of data management in ensuring scalability and efficiency. By focusing on data, you aim to create a more scalable and sustainable solution for building complex and interactive game worlds.

AW Research: Currently, the game engines used to build on-chain games include MUD, DOJO, World Engine, and curio. What are the differences between the Paima Engine and these game engines? Could you please provide an introduction?

Sebastien:

In the realm of autonomous worlds, It's interesting to see that different projects in the autonomous worlds space are taking different approaches to address specific aspects.

For instance, MUD pioneers the Entity-Component-System (ECS) architecture and mainly focuses on using solidity to build their component system. On the other hand, Argus concentrates on charting and aims to connect game worlds between different chains. DOJO is heavily invested in core zk tech, striving to create zk platforms effectively.

As for Paima, our main emphasis lies in scalability and user acquisition for autonomous worlds. We see a common use case in integrating AI, where AI generated content for the game.

A significant challenge faced in the current systems is the one-sided flow of information. The large floor model is mostly unidirectional and unable to update the world states. Paima aims to revolutionize this process and make it more dynamic and programmable by enabling bidirectional interaction. We achieve this by processing user actions through the powerless power lecture and using the data to update user NFTs, effectively closing the loop.

This unique approach sets Paima apart from other engines, as we pursue a more innovative direction. Despite appearing as competitors, these Engines can actually be synergistically combined. One can make progress through various World Engine's charting solutions, utilize MUD power for smart contract states, and then have Paima the power like your parallel on top of it.

By combining these diverse approaches, we can create more comprehensive and powerful solutions for autonomous worlds, greatly enhancing the overall gaming experience.

About onchain games build on Paima Engine

AW Research: Could you introduce the first on-chain game, Jungle Wars, built on the Paima Engine?

Sebastien:

Jungle Wars was the first game deployed on Milkomeda C1, showcasing the capabilities of the Paima Engine to create simple yet engaging on-chain games. It features a battleship-style gameplay where players select their favorite character from a roster of six fierce jungle animals and engage in exciting turn-based combat against other players.

Following the success of Jungle Wars, the Paima Engine evolved to version 1 (Paima v1). This update introduced several key features, including gas transaction support, multi-chain compatibility, and state entities. Players can now possess NFTs that level up based on their in-game actions, adding a dynamic and interactive element to the gaming experience.

Currently, the team is actively working on Paima v2, which will extend its support to layer two solutions like Arbitrum and optimism. This advancement will enable players to use NFTs on Ethereum while leveraging the cost-effectiveness of layer two solutions for gameplay settlement.

Moreover, the team is focusing on the development of Tarochi Game, an on-chain RPG game that promises to bring more immersive and innovative experiences to the world of blockchain gaming.

With continuous enhancements and innovations, Paima Studios strives to lead the way in creating enjoyable and rewarding on-chain gaming experiences for players.

AW Research: Why Jungle Wars, Volcaneers NFTs, and Wrath of the Jungle are all deployed on Milkomeda C1?

Sebastien:

First and foremost, my historic background includes working on Cardano itself, which has given me an in-depth understanding of the Cardano community. Over the years, they have been incredibly supportive, and I have a personal connection with them.

Secondly, when we consider the gaming industry and what is essential for games to succeed, it becomes evident that passionate gamers are crucial. Unlike other sectors that may require large liquidity providers or institutional investors, gaming thrives on enthusiastic players. The Cardano community is well-known for its passion and dedication, making it an ideal ecosystem for NFTs in gaming. This is particularly true for use cases that don't heavily involve complex DeFi financial instruments and instead focus on creating engaging experiences. The Cardano community can serve as a source of passionate support for our gaming projects.

AW Research: Can you introduce the on-chain game Oracle RPG, built on the Paima Engine, which seens like a decentralized chat-based GPT?

Sebastien:

The concept of Oracle RPG was developed as an on-chain AI system for autonomous games. Many autonomous worlds incorporate AI components, and Oracle RPG was created as a proof of concept to address this need. In the game, players join and start with a blank NFT, which represents their character. They then describe their character within the game, and the NFT visually updates to reflect the character's attributes. As the game progresses, the NFT dynamically changes based on the player's actions, such as entering a forest.

This demonstrates how Paima's parallel system allows for bidirectional interaction, enabling the large floor model to provide feedback and update the NFT, thereby impacting the state of the game. The decentralized nature of the system ensures there is no reliance on centralized AI providers like OpenAI, making it a fully decentralized experience.

As we explored this concept further, we initiated the Shinkai Network project. While demonstrating the Oracle RPG demo to various projects, they expressed interest in using this AI system to power NPCs (non-player characters) within their own autonomous worlds. However, scaling the AI for multiple NPCs would pose significant challenges. To address this, we realized the need for a peer-to-peer decentralized network specifically designed for AI agents with on-chain identities. Each NPC in the world has its own identity and interacts with others off-chain through the Shinkai Network. When NPCs make decisions, they submit relevant information on-chain.

The Shinkai Network serves as a peer-to-peer network of AI agents with unique on-chain identities, making it a viable solution for powering NPCs in on-chain games built with Paima.

AW Research: Last year you designed a new zero-knowledge game called "zk nonogram" using Mina. Could you please give a brief introduction to this game? If possible, could you share some interesting aspects of it in detail?

Sebastien:

So the reason we were interested in Mina Protocol is because for Paima that we wanted ZK Layer, we have two main requirements. One: we need support for private inputs.

If you look at a lot of ZK platforms right now, they don't support private computation. Everything has to be public. I think that's not good for gaming because you really want to like private cards or these kinds of private state. We need a platform as zk platform can support of private inputs. Mina was one of the few platform provides that,as well as we wanted something that's easy to write. Yeah, only because like you just write javascript and the paima turn it into the onchain game for you.

Actually, Mina had the same philosophy, so mina allows you to write as Zk circuits using javascript. So it means that because we use transcripts and these transcripts as well. Through paima, you'll be able to write both your game and the Zk circuits for your game, all the same program language, all the same environment. It's also from this perspective, it is like a really good match.The reason we were interested in Mina Protocol is that, for Paima, we had two main requirements for a ZK Layer. First, we needed support for private inputs.

Many existing ZK platforms do not support private computation, and everything has to be public. However, for gaming, it is essential to have private cards or private states. We needed a ZK platform that could support private inputs, and Mina was one of the few platforms that provided this feature.

Secondly, we wanted something that is easy to write. With Paima, you can write games using JavaScript, and Paima will turn it into an on-chain game for you. Fortunately, Mina shared the same philosophy. It allows you to write ZK circuits using JavaScript. This means that through Paima, you will be able to write both your game and the ZK circuits for your game using the same programming language and environment. This compatibility makes Mina a great match for our needs.

About onchain games and autonomous worlds

AW Research: Can the games you have built be considered autonomous worlds? If not, have you considered building autonomous worlds in the future?

Sebastien:

We are gradually progressing towards the vision of Autonomous Worlds. One example of our efforts is Tarochi Game, where we are building an entrepreneur RPG to move towards creating these game worlds. Additionally, we have been focusing on Shinkai Network to develop AI for these worlds. Partnering with Mina Protocol allows us to build private states and provide verifiable world states, which aligns with our ultimate goal.

Creating Autonomous Worlds is a complex undertaking, but we are steadily making significant strides in that direction. Through our determination, dedication, and collaboration with various partners, including Shinkai Network, we are actively pushing forward to realize this ambitious vision.

About onchain games design

AW Research: Compared to the Play 2 Earn model, Onchain games have different characteristics in game design and player experience. What you think?

Sebastien:

That's a great question. I think this is something that everyone is still trying to figure out. In my opinion, the reason why autonomous worlds are more powerful than "Play 2 Earn" is because "Play 2 Earn" is essentially companies subsidizing the gaming experience. In contrast, autonomous worlds derive real value by creating meaning and value themselves. Therefore, I believe a key aspect is to have a flexible world where users can drive value to the platform. This is precisely what we are aiming to achieve with the Paima engine, as it allows people to modify the game rules if they want.

You can think of it as the difference between a board game and a video game. In video games, the rules are typically hard coded by developers, and that's it. But in a board game, as long as you and your friends agree on the game rules, everyone is happy. Paima takes this more loose interpretation of game rules.

Paima is like a sovereign roller, which is quite different from optimistic or zk solutions. It means that the game rules are mostly decided by the community, and people can introduce new game rules. As long as everyone agrees on these new rules, the game world can update over time. This is what we are striving for – to create something flexible enough that players can come in and figure out how to drive inherent value to the game world.

AW Research: How does the game based on Paima Engine design the game model? Can you give an example of one of the games as a reference?

Sebastien:

For example, in Tarochi Game, it functions as a monster-catching game where players catch monsters represented by NFTs. Through Paima, these NFTs upgrade over time based on in-game actions. The level, health points, and move set of each monster are associated with its NFT, meaning the NFT's value increases with progress. Paima focuses on this upgradable NFT system, known as Stateful NFTs, as its main focus. In another game we released, Tower Defense, players can play for free, but to access the ranked mode, they need an NFT. All wins and losses are tracked within the NFT, which appears on the leaderboard. This incentivizes players to continue playing and improve their NFT's attributes and standings.

Moreover, Paima provides templates for other companies, including a trading card game template. In this template, the entire deck is represented by a single NFT, and each card within the deck is included as Stateful NFTs. Unlike other trading card games where each card is a separate NFT, Paima's approach reduces gas costs and minting expenses. Players can earn new cards during gameplay without creating new NFTs each time. If they decide to sell cards, they can split their deck into separate tradable NFTs representing individual cards. These cards can be listed on platforms like OpenSea, and when someone purchases the card, they can integrate it back into their deck.

This demonstrates how Paima uses Stateful NFTs to encode more complex states, create efficient and flexible systems, and still allow for tradeability on the open market.

Future plans

AW Research: Can you share the future plan of the paima engine and other projects?

Sebastien:

Certainly, our main roadmap for Paima is focused on implementing the cross-NFT system. Currently, we are already working on supporting Tarochi Game, enabling their Layer 1 NFTs to function on Layer 2. Moving forward, we plan to expand this feature to support other games as well. For instance, we aim to enable games on Polygon to utilize NFTs from Ethereum or games on Milkomeda to utilize NFTs from Cardano. The ultimate goal is to create a modular gaming stack, allowing developers to choose different chains for settlements, wallets, and NFTs, and seamlessly connect them together. This vision aligns with our efforts to integrate the zk layer and the Shinkai Network for the AI layer.

Another important aspect we are working on is the implementation of an auto-sign mechanism. In the context of on-chain games, constantly signing transactions can be cumbersome and time-consuming. Paima provides a solution to this issue by ensuring that each game or app is its own Layer 2 within the platform, meaning they have their own isolated data format. This allows us to enable a safe and easy-to-use auto-sign mechanism. By implementing this feature, users won't need to create temporary wallets or new recovery phrases for each game. They can enjoy a streamlined and user-friendly experience.

As we move forward, we are excited to bring these features to life and continue enhancing Paima's capabilities for the benefit of the gaming and autonomous worlds ecosystem.

On-chain games face challenges

AW Research: On-chain games face challenges in user acquisition due to the entry barriers and complexity, which may not be suitable for ordinary players. How can on-chain games address the difficulty of user acquisition?

Sebastien:

I agree. To address this difficulty, Paima has been putting a lot of effort into finding solutions. One of the ways Paima is addressing the issue is by working on an auto sign mechanism. This mechanism aims to simplify the user experience by automating the signing process for transactions, making it easier and more seamless for players to interact with on-chain games.

Additionally, Paima has been working on cross-chain and NFT support, as well as cross-wallet support. By enabling interoperability across different blockchains and wallets, Paima aims to broaden the user base for on-chain games and attract players from various blockchain ecosystems.

Moreover, Paima has focused on improving the onboarding process for developers. They have built various templates that developers can use to kickstart their projects, making it easier for them to build autonomous worlds and experiment with different game ideas. By reducing the development barriers, Paima hopes to enable developers to iterate faster and find the right product-market fit more efficiently.

Overall, Paima is committed to overcoming the challenges of user acquisition and enhancing the user experience in on-chain games. With these efforts, they aim to make blockchain gaming more accessible and appealing to a broader audience, thus driving the growth of the autonomous world's ecosystem.