“Ready Player One” helped popularize the concept of a vast, shared metaverse, and the novel and film franchise are being turned into a metaverse game world of their own, as revealed earlier this year. Now, its creators have shared a first look at what’s planned.
The Readyverse, as it’s called, will debut with a battle royale game experience called Open, as teased in the initial trailer embedded below.
Like the source material, the Readyverse will bring in many notable brands and IP, with the teaser showcasing the classic DeLorean car (as prominently featured in the “Back to the Future” films) along with Reebok sneakers. It also promises to be “interoperable”—though to what extent has yet to be fully detailed.
Described as the “hero” experience of The Readyverse, Open will feature “nostalgia-infused biomes” (aka classic characters and franchises) with a game show-like competitive format. One such “biome” is based specifically on the “Ready Player One” franchise itself.
“Challengers embark on game-show styled, multi-round collaborative and competitive game modes, but only one hero can emerge victorious,” the official Open description reads. “Hone and showcase a vast array of gaming disciplines, where tactical positioning, sly movement, strategic shooting, and driving skills take center stage, as you join forces with worthy allies, plan together for strategic advantages, and engage in intense gameplay sessions.”
Battle royale games are typically shooters—such as Fortnite, PUBG, and Apex Legends—that challenge players to survive in a frenetic, anything-goes fight to the death. However, there have been other types of games that have used the “winner-takes-all” format, such Nintendo’s Tetris 99 and F-Zero 99. The Readyverse’s Open sounds like it will take cues from various genres.
The Readyverse is being developed by Walker Labs and will be published by Readyverse Studios, an offshoot of blockchain startup Futureverse. “Ready Player One” author Ernest Cline and the film’s producer Dan Farah also co-founded the publisher. The game is being created with Unreal Engine 5, a powerful development platform used widely across the industry.
The trailer also features imagery from the NFT projects Cool Cats and Fluf World. Fluf World is owned by Futureverse, which raised a $54 million Series A round last year, while Cool Cats previously announced a strategic alliance with Futureverse.
The trailer appears to show the Atari 2600, Nintendo Entertainment System, and Sony PlayStation consoles, too—but while the designs are familiar, they are not clearly identified, and The Readyverse has not announced partnership or licensing deals with any of those brands.
Open will be released on PC and “current-gen platforms,” suggesting unspecified console systems. The Readyverse was previously announced to debut in 2024, though no date was specified for the platform or Open in the latest announcement.
Edited by Ryan Ozawa.
