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Anichess, a non-fungible token (NFT) chess game under Animoca Brands, has revealed a partnership with Team Secret to boost game development.
Team Secret, established in 2014, is an esports brand known for bringing together top gamers for global competitions, alongside providing advertising, sponsorship, and talent development.
In this collaboration, John Yao, CEO of Team Secret, joins Anichess as an advisor. The aim is to solidify Anichess’s presence in esports by offering a new platform for players to compete and improve their skills.
Additionally, Team Secret will lend support and design guidance for Anichess’ upcoming player-versus-player (PvP) mode set to debut in Q2 2024.
“For how ancient the game of chess is, its esports scene is a fresh, rising star in terms of viewership, player base and tournaments,” said Yao. “Anichess is a promising twist on chess,” he added.
Anichess, unveiled in January, is the result of a collaboration between Animoca Brands, Chess.com, and five-time world chess champion Magnus Carlsen. It aims to modernize traditional chess by integrating blockchain technology and narrative-driven features to captivate players.
Last month, Anichess concluded a $1.8 million funding round led by Sfermion and Amber Group, adding to the $1.5 million raised in 2023.
Anichess is part of a broader trend to infuse innovation into the traditional game. In 2021, the International Chess Federation (FIDE) became the first global sports organization to introduce an NFT marketplace centered on chess.
ChessBase introduced its first collection of Chess World Champions NFTs in December 2021, and Chess.com unveiled Treasure Chess in April 2022, a marketplace for creating, trading, and selling NFTs based on Chess.com games.
