Anichess Elevates Chess with $1.8M Funding for Web3 Gaming Expansion

Anichess, the innovative chess-based strategy game, has recently secured $1.8 million in funding from leading investors such as Sfermion and Amber Group. This investment will be utilized for game development, marketing, and expanding the Anichess team. With its unique gameplay and engaging features, Anichess aims to bring a new twist to the classic game of Chess.

A New Way to Play Chess

Anichess, a joint venture between Animoca Brands and Chess.com, has reimagined traditional Chess by incorporating spells and new strategies into gameplay. These elements could make the classic game more accessible to a wider audience. The free-to-play model allows players to enjoy all the intrinsic values of Chess while exploring new challenges and lore within the game’s world.

Rapid Growth in User Base

Since its launch in 2023, Anichess has gained over a million registered players and maintains a daily active user base of 150,000. The introduction of the player-versus-environment (PvE) daily chess puzzles in January 2024 has been a major factor in attracting players to the platform. These players have collectively solved over 50 million puzzles, showcasing the game’s popularity and engagement.

Anichess has also implemented a Season 1 leaderboard, ranking players based on their puzzle-solving skills and collection of Orbs of Power. This has further invigorated the community and created healthy competition among players. As Anichess plans to roll out its online player-versus-player (PvP) game mode in the second quarter of 2024, anticipation within the community continues to build.

Industry Leaders Recognize Anichess’s Potential

Dan Patterson, a general partner at Sfermion, believes that Anichess has the potential to redefine Web3 gaming and engage Chess.com’s vast user base, stating, “The future of gaming is community-driven and player-owned, and we believe that, with Chess.com’s existing community of 150m+ players and Web3 communities such as Mocaverse, Anichess has the potential to onboard tens of millions of players into that future.”

Yat Siu, co-founder and executive chairman of Animoca Brands, recognizes Chess’s enduring appeal: “With its popularity, accessibility, and incredible strategic depth, Chess is a classic game that has stood the test of time. One of the benefits of a game whose appeal is measured in centuries is the sophistication and passion of its community, and we are thrilled for Anichess to showcase our new and updated interpretation of the game of kings in partnership with Chess.com.”