Unveiling the Game-Changing Opportunities: An Exclusive Interview with Everplay

@Wiligut

Growth hacker, tech enthusiast, journalist, futurist, writer, entrepreneur.

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The development of games has taken a new spiral, and now Web3 is entering the gaming industry. Could this change people's attitudes towards cryptocurrencies? What benefits will users receive? Will there finally be mass adoption of cryptocurrencies through games?

We will discuss this in this interview with EVERPLAY co-founder Stepan Semenchuk.

About Stepan Semenchuk:

Stepan is an experienced manager with a great passion for gaming and esports.

He has over 15 years of professional experience in Management, Marketing, and Growth in leading international Esports, Entertainment, IT, and FMCG companies. Before joining the EVERPLAY team, he spent more than five years leading the publishing of League of Legends, Wild Rift, and TFT at Riot Games in the Russian and CIS markets.

Now, he works at making the EVERPLAY platform the easiest entry point into esports for casual gamers around the world, as well as developing B2B solutions that can increase player engagement and bring a competitive experience to Web3 games.

About EVERPLAY:

A platform offering exciting new opportunities for gamers, streamers, and partners. Gamers can explore various ways to earn by winning online games and tournaments. Streamers can utilize EVERPLAY's tokenization tools to significantly increase profits and engagement with their audience.

They can easily tokenize their activities, minting FUN tokens and launching NFT collections, which they can then distribute to their audience. Partners can profit alongside EVERPLAY by introducing new players to the platform and receiving a portion of their deposits.

What is EVERPLAY? Why did you decide to give the project that name?

EVERPLAY is a player-versus-player competition platform for casual gamers, streamers, and tournament organizers, which allows them to earn money by playing mobile and PC games, completing various missions, inviting friends to the platform, and so on.

The name of the platform was not chosen by chance. First, it highlights the core message of the platform itself and its availability for everyone. It's a place where every player can play their favorite games with other players every day.

Secondly, the name of the platform refers to the name of the Everscale blockchain, which is our technology partner and helps us navigate the world of Web3 and develop our own solutions.

And lastly, EVERPLAY is written in capital letters to attract attention, add a little intrigue, and also better differentiate itself from competitors.

Tell us about your team and its experience. Have you had experience creating similar platforms?

EVERPLAY has a team of around 30 talented individuals with diverse expertise, ensuring a comprehensive approach to product development. Key members of the team have relevant experience in the gaming industry, demonstrating the ability to understand and meet the needs of the target audience.

The leadership team consists of first-class specialists and top professionals in their areas:

• Stepan Semenchuk (CEO) - ex-Publishing Lead at Riot Games (6 years), ex-Digital Lead at Philip Morris International (3 years), and ex-Digital Manager at Unilever (1.5 years)
• Slava Semenchuk (CBDO/Business advisor) - serial entrepreneur (founder of Life Pay, My-Apps, blockchain.ru, akselerator.ru, BitCoen, Svoi.dev, Block-Chain.com, ProtoLend), serial investor, and author of several business books
• Vadim Vinogradov (CTO) - More than 15 years of experience in large technical systems and internet systems based on open-source technologies—over ten years of experience in complex projects for telecom operators.
• Den Vishnevskiy (CMO) - ex-CMO (click2money, Evergaming, The Memessenger), ex-Head of Events (Let It Cash, Pin-up Partners).

Thus, this combination of strong leadership and a qualified team creates a sense of confidence in the future success of the platform.

Please tell us about the tournaments. What are they, and how do you take part in them?

Every week, the platform hosts more than 400 mini-tournaments in various games. Among the most popular games now are ML:BB, PUBG Mobile, CoD Mobile, Brawl Stars, and others. We have free and promo tournaments, as well as tournaments with paid participation. On weekends, there are larger tournaments with bigger prizes that attract more players.

You can come to the platform at any time and start playing your first tournament within the first 15 minutes.

Also, from time to time, we invite partners to organize sponsored tournaments that provide a real Esports experience to our players, with live broadcasts, professional hosts, invited pro Esports teams and players – everything like that. The latest event of this kind we did for Venom this summer – it gathered more than 1,000 participants. Our players love to feel like real Esportspersons.

What sets EVERPLAY apart from other blockchain-powered gaming platforms?

We noticed that nowadays, all large and well-known tournament and Esports platforms primarily operate in the Web2 paradigm. Most of the platforms that relied on Web3 technology failed and no longer exist. And this is not an accident.

The fact is that completely decentralized services require a certain level of understanding of Web3 technologies from users and experience in using financial tools, like non-custodial wallets, cross-chain bridges, etc. And at the same time, they do not offer any alternative. This turns off most players because they are simply not adapted to these technologies yet.

Our platform combines Web2 and Web3 solutions, which allows players to better navigate when they just start using the platform. Players want to use their Discord accounts to quickly log in to the platform; they want to communicate with real people to get quick help if they have any issues. They want to deposit using fiat money, and so on. We offer tools and features that players are used to and mix them with some Web3 innovations that most players are just getting familiar with.

Product-wise, EVERPLAY offers quick games (where you are able to find and play a tournament in just 15 minutes) and instant prize payouts. This is very important, especially for mobile gamers, who are not used to waiting.

We also have monetization opportunities for tournament organizers and streamers, something our competitors don't offer. A streamer or the owner of a gaming community can come to us, and we will offer them a solution for monetizing their audience.

What are some of the popular Web3 games supported on EVERPLAY?

At the moment, the EVERPLAY platform itself is focused on popular mobile games, such as MLBB, PUBG, Wild Rift, etc., and does not hold any tournaments for Web3 games.

However, EVERPLAY is actively working in this direction and is launching partnerships with developers and publishers of Web3 games. One such project is the GemPION platform, launched jointly with the Korean project GemHUB based on EVERPLAY technology. On the GemPION platform, players can compete with each other in casual Web3 games such as Find Bird, PushPush Cat, Number Shoot, Jelly Snake, and others for valuable rewards.

In the future, we plan to expand the functionality of the platform and add Web3 game competitions to our platform as well.

How can product owners apply their games to your platform?

Today, this is mostly an individual process. Product owners can send their requests to our Player Support through any of the supported channels (Discord, Telegram), or just send a Telegram message to @bebebews

What measures does EVERPLAY have in place to ensure fair competition and prevent cheating or fraudulent activities?

As gamers, we understand very well how painful it is when the game is unfair. We also understand that there are no anti-cheat solutions that guarantee 100% protection, or at least close to this figure. This is especially true when it comes to PC games, such as CS, where cheaters usually ruin the game for everyone else.

Taking into account the points above, we are currently focusing on the mobile gaming segment, where cheaters are not a critical problem, since for mobile games, there are far fewer cheats or types of software that give an advantage in games. Moreover, the developers of such games themselves are actively fighting against cheaters.

In turn, EVERPLAY fights for fair competitions and ensures them with the help of tournament marshals. In fact, any player can appeal the results of a match if they do not agree with the results. In this case, a specially trained specialist will manually review the complaint, correct the result, and impose punishment on those responsible, if necessary.

Are there any restrictions on the types of video games or platforms that can be played on EVERPLAY?

Technically, the platform supports PC and mobile games. Console games will be added in the future as well. Usually, adding a new game requires basic integration with the platform, such as adding a game to the platform catalog, linking certain types of tournaments to the game, setting up an administration panel, and so on.

At the same time, it is important to understand that not all types and genres of games are suitable for the platform. I mean that, firstly, the game must have a competitive component, and secondly, it must be an online game.

Thus, the platform can host tournaments for any competitive PC or mobile game, from Tetris to League of Legends. In the first case, these will be individual competitions based on ratings and leaderboards, and in the second, team competitions based on the Olympic elimination system. The platform has a large number of different settings and competition types that can be applied to different games.

How does EVERPLAY plan to attract more gamers and streamers to join the platform and grow its user base?

We plan to attract users in waves as EVERPLAY enters new markets. Our marketing and user acquisition strategy is built around tools and activities that have proven themselves in test and pilot projects.

At the moment, I can say that we have the following activities that will form the core of our strategy:

• Own Esports events hosted on our platform and targeting local gaming communities, with invited pro teams and broadcasters
• Promotion via gaming and Esports influencers
• Native promotions within gaming communities
• Publications in niche media outlets
• SMM and community management in local languages (FB, VK, Telegram, Discord, etc.)

On top of that, there will be evergreen User Acquisition through Google/FB/IG and other channels, including hyperlocal ones.

Are you planning to become a hub in the Web3 gaming sector?

We can call it a hub, but I would rather say that it will be a platform for player-versus-player competitions.

We actually plan to bring Web3 games to our platform that fit our general idea of competitive play. We are going to conduct different competitions for these games so that we will enrich the overall player experience and make it much more interesting to play them. Thus, we will primarily be a place where players come to compete with each other and earn some money by playing various games, including Web3 ones.

Can you tell us more about the process of converting earned crypto and NFTs into real-world value?

Everything is very simple. For winning tournaments, as well as completing missions, etc., players receive platform Coins or on-chain tokens, such as EVER and VENOM. I think that everything is clear with tokens – they just receive them directly to their connected wallets, and that’s it.

The platform Coins are currently implemented as off-chain tokens and serve as the universal currency of the platform. One platform Coin is equal to 1 USDT, so in fact, this is a sort of an off-chain stablecoin. The Coins exist only within the platform in the form of balances on user accounts. The Coins serve as a bridge between Web2 and Web3: players can choose to convert them into cryptocurrency or fiat money (in regions where this option is already available) and withdraw them from the platform. Thus, Coins have value in the real world.

As for NFTs, we have plans to add cosmetic items to the platforms, which players will use to customize their player accounts, like avatars, icons, and so on. Something that will emphasize the individuality of each player. These NFTs can be obtained as rewards and can also be bought or sold on the NFT marketplace directly on the platform.

What are the plans for future development and expansion of EVERPLAY?

This year, we plan to focus on improving the functional part of the product and achieving target indicators in key metrics.

Next year, expansion and launches will begin in selected focus markets, including large-scale marketing and user acquisition activities.

Among the major product features, next year, we plan to release mobile applications for iOS and Android, advanced matchmaking, and our own anti-fraud solution, and we will also significantly improve the “quick game” functionality so that players can instantly find competitions that are suitable for them and get an even better experience from using the platform.

How do you see the development of the Web3 Game industry? What do you think it lacks now?

I believe that Web3 gaming is growing at a very fast pace. It may even be a little ahead of the adoption of Web3 technologies by most players.

Unfortunately, today in the industry, there are a huge number of scam projects that aim to quickly collect money from trusting users, which is definitely not good for the industry. Most of the released and operating Web3 projects are developed by indie studios rather than professional game developers, which affects the quality of these games.

But global trends, in my opinion, look very positive. Many well-known game development studios are currently exploring the opportunities of Web3 technologies or even integrating Web3 solutions into their games. And some are already preparing such games for launch. You can google it yourself. But we must understand that the development cycle of AAA games can take two to three years or more, so this does not happen quickly. But as the large players arrive in the industry, they will take on the function of introducing their customers to Web3 technologies. They will explain to them why they need them and what benefits they will bring. The situation will begin to change dramatically and very quickly. I'm sure it's just around the corner, and the wait won't be long.

Therefore, at EVERPLAY, we have chosen a development strategy that is based on these emerging trends. We will be well prepared when the future comes.

Anything else you would like to tell our readers?

Take it seriously. Video games and Esports are no longer just entertainment for teenagers. There are more than 3 billion gamers in the world. This is a huge industry that is increasingly penetrating our daily lives. The revolution is happening right now; the giants of the entertainment industry are building their businesses around video games. It's part of technological progress, whether you like it or not.

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If you have any questions or if you need help —?you can write me on Twitter or Linkedin.