The Arbitrum Foundation, creator of the Ethereum-based layer-2 network, is keen to stimulate the cryptocurrency gaming landscape. The foundation has recently allocated approximately $215 million of its own tokens, Arbitrum (ARB), to foster gaming initiatives over the next three years. This new venture is structured under the Gaming Catalyst Program (GCP), created to boost the interaction of gamers and developers with Arbitrum, Orbit, and Stylus for immersive gaming experiences.
With a proposal first surfacing in March, the initiative was solidified on June 7, gaining the approval of over 75% of votes. It entailed lobbying the Arbitrum decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) to set aside 200 million ARB over two years, purposely to drive game development on their blockchain system. Notable sponsors of this game-changing proposal include L2Beat, Wintermute, and Treasure DAO—a gaming-focused organization—among others.
Addressing the allocation of funds, a substantial portion will be assigned to publishers, while newer developers at the early stage of their journey could receive grants worth up to 500,000 ARB (roughly $483,000). Meanwhile, veteran developers have the chance to solicit investments with value-centric components like tokens or equity. Residual funds will be targeted towards infrastructure-related ventures and operational costs, contributing to the overall growth and enhancement of the ecosystem.
The GCP will implement a dedicated team to manage day-to-day operations, meanwhile, a council composed of gaming, venture capital, data analysis, and DAO governance experts will oversee strategic efforts and provide guidance. A financial cap is also in place for operational costs standing at $25 million. However, any substantial expenditures surpassing this limit will need the green light from the DAO. In related news, in March, The Arbitrum DAO rejected a proposal to fund the legal defenses of Roman Storm and Alexey Pertsev, developers of Tornado Cash.