NFT
You’ve never played chess like this before.
In a new crossover, chess video game Immortal Game and electronic musicians Polo & Pan have teamed up to put a vibrant new spin on the 1,500-year-old board game.
The collaboration will launch a limited edition collection of 500 unique digital chess pieces that will be sold as NFTs on the Ethereum scaling network Polygon.
Immortal Game is a fast-growing Web3 project of the “play-to-earn” genre that offers players rewards in the form of CMT tokens for winning games and moving up the game leaderboards.
Music just met Chess! Immortal Game and @Polo_and_Pan team up to bring music to chess, through a unique and limited collection of chess pieces 🌈
Join the whitelist 🔗 https://t.co/l7tbj8QUBt to access the drop! pic.twitter.com/goaW7qt2JT
— Immortal Game (@TheImmortalGame) May 12, 2023
French electronic music group Polo & Pan was founded in 2013 by Paul Armand-Delille, also known as ‘Polocorp’, and Alexandre Grynszpan, better known as ‘Peter Pan’.
The duo’s music has a distinctive style that combines electronic music with tropical and world music elements. The co-designed chess pieces also draw from the same playful and vibrant aesthetic of the artists.
Polo & Pan, immortal chess pieces. Source: Immortal Game/Polo & Pan.
Using Web3 technologies, Immortal Game adds strategic depth to the timeless game of chess. Known as “Immortals”, the unique tokenized digital chess pieces at the core of the game are linked to optional quests that promote specific playstyles.
The Polo & Pan-designed NFT chess pieces unlock new missions, provide access to private tournaments, and provide visual animations and audio soundtracks from the performers.
Holders also get access to real benefits, including concert tickets, curated Spotify playlists, the ability to play against Polo & Pan online, and voting rights on future collections.
Queen chess piece from collection. Source: Immortal Game/Polo & Pan.
“Our vision is that chess is more than just a game. It is a cultural phenomenon and a platform that draws inspiration from music, art, sports and entertainment,” said Thomas Zaepffel, co-founder and CEO of Immortal Game. Decrypt.
“We are thrilled to be working with Immortal Game on this exciting new project,” Polo & Pan said in a prepared statement. “As longtime fans of chess and gaming, we are excited to bring our music and aesthetic to this new digital medium.”
Chess goes Web3
Immortal Game seeks to bring chess to a wider audience and create a unique crossroads for artists and gamers in the digital world.
“Online chess has been around for 15 years and our goal is to reinvent the online experience for players through the use of blockchain and NFTs,” said Zaepffel. “We also intend to foster a sense of community, something that Web3 enables.”
Digital chess has a huge audience, with an estimated 800 million players worldwide and 20 million games played online every day across different platforms, explains Zaepffel. The game’s popularity rose early during the COVID-19 pandemic and was further boosted by the Netflix series ‘The Queen’s Gambit’, whose producer Scott Frank now advises Immortal Game.
Chess has won something from one cool factor too, with plenty of Twitch channels live-streaming games featuring stars, some of whom are still very young. One such star is 17-year-old Elliot Papadiamandis, an international chess master who has been an ambassador for Immortal Game for a year.
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“This platform is not exclusive to professionals; anyone can play and potentially earn money,” Papadiamandis said Decrypt. “In addition, the introduction of quests, especially in Blitz games, is a new feature that enhances the gaming experience, making the fun of chess accessible even to those who may not be experts at the game.”
Starting last Friday, collectors and fans have one week to sign up to an eligibility list on Immortal Game’s platform for the chance to acquire these unique digital assets co-designed by Polo & Pan. Official sales begin May 19, with 400 NFT pieces for $39 each and 100 special edition pieces for $399 each.
