The Red Village

What The Red Village does

The Red Village is a blockchain-based dark fantasy "Play and Earn" gaming platform built around collectible NFT champions and competitive gameplay. The product is delivered through a web-based interface at theredvillage.com, where players connect cryptocurrency wallets, acquire NFT characters through a Summoning mechanism, and deploy them in scheduled Tournaments (daily at 18:00 ET) and direct 1v1 combat. The game is built on Ethereum using the Unity engine, with all in-game economic activity denominated in Wrapped-Ethereum (WETH). A dedicated Bridging Portal, powered by Umbria Network, enables ETH-to-WETH conversion for participants. The full game is being developed under a multi-year partnership with Animoca Brands at its award-winning studio Blowfish Studios. The operating entity is Big Kid Studios, headquartered in Sydney, Australia, founded in 2021.

The company addresses two overlapping customer segments: traditional gamers, drawn in through a lore-rich dark fantasy universe featuring characters such as Barbarians, Druids, and Generals and a broader Blood Queen narrative, and web3-native GameFi users who trade NFT assets and participate in play-to-earn economics. It positions itself against the perceived weakness of existing GameFi products by emphasising accessible, narrative-driven gameplay rather than purely financial mechanics. Distribution is community-led via Discord, Twitter, Medium, and YouTube, with no app store listing; access is direct via the website.

The Red Village generates revenue through primary NFT sales (pre-launch and ongoing), secondary marketplace transaction fees on traded champions and items, and tournament entry/stakes denominated in WETH. The company is privately held and venture-backed, having raised a $6.5 million seed round in June 2022 co-led by Animoca Brands and GameFi Ventures Fund, with a broad crypto-native investor syndicate that includes Polygon Studios, KuCoin Ventures, Paribu Ventures, Fundamental Labs, and others.

Name

The Red Village

Legal name

Big Kid Studios

Website

https://theredvillage.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Red Village is a blockchain-based dark fantasy Play-and-Earn gaming platform built around NFT champions and competitive tournaments, targeting both traditional gamers and web3-native users through a WETH-denominated in-game economy co-developed with Animoca Brands and Blowfish Studios.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Blockchain Gaming

akta.pro primary industry

Blockchain Game Studios & Game Development (FSAPAGAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Web3/Blockchain Game Studios (MPAFAAAO), Gaming NFTs & In-Game Asset Marketplaces (FSADANAF), Digital Game Marketplaces & Item Economies (NFT/Skins/Trading) (BPAMAKAJ)

Keywords

• Blockchain gaming
• NFT champions
• Play-to-earn
• Tournament gaming
• Crypto gaming

Headquarters

HQ city

Sydney

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. NFT Sales: Pre-launch and ongoing sales of in-game NFT characters and items. The game sold NFT characters and items before launch, generating significant secondary market sales.
2. Secondary Market Transaction Fees: NFT marketplace activity where players trade characters and items creates a secondary market with transaction fees.
3. Tournament Entry/Stakes: Players compete in tournaments with prize pools funded by game mechanics, creating engagement and value capture through competitive gameplay.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Red Village is a blockchain-based dark-fantasy Play and Earn gaming platform built on Ethereum where players collect NFT champions, participate in scheduled tournaments and 1v1 battles, and acquire new characters via a Summoning mechanic using Wrapped-Ethereum (WETH) as the in-game currency. The ecosystem includes tournaments, 1v1 combat, champion collection, summoning, barracks, and a bridging portal for ETH-to-WETH conversion.

Product overview

The Red Village is a blockchain-based dark fantasy gaming ecosystem built around NFT characters and competitive gameplay. The platform operates as a unified product with interconnected modules: Tournaments and 1v1 Combat serve as the core competitive modes where players deploy NFT Champions; Summoning enables acquisition of new champions; Barracks provides inventory management; and the Bridging Portal facilitates cryptocurrency conversion (ETH to WETH) for in-game currency. The ecosystem also includes Darklands for lore and narrative content, and a Cinematic Teaser for marketing. All in-game activity uses Wrapped-Ethereum (WETH) as the currency, with the entire ecosystem developed in partnership with Animoca Brands and Blowfish Studios.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Tournaments The primary competitive gameplay mode where players select NFT champions to battle in scheduled tournaments with cryptocurrency prize pools. Tournaments are scheduled daily at 18:00 ET with multiple class options.
• 1v1 Combat Direct player-versus-player combat mode where NFT champions can challenge other players to one-on-one fights with configurable prize pools and scheduled fight times.
• NFT Champions NFT-based collectible playable characters that players can acquire, search, manage, and deploy in tournaments and 1v1 combat. Champions have different classes (Barbarian, Druid, Generals) and availability settings for matchmaking.
• Summoning A summoning mechanism where players can acquire new NFT champions using Wrapped-Ethereum (WETH) as the in-game currency.
• Barracks A feature allowing players to manage their NFT champion inventory and view barracks within The Red Village ecosystem.
• Bridging Portal A cryptocurrency bridging interface powered by Umbria Network that allows users to convert Ethereum (ETH) to Wrapped-Ethereum (WETH) and vice versa for in-game currency operations including Tournaments and Summoning.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Blowfish StudioscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAward-winning game development agency under Animoca Brands. Responsible for game development, creating an immersive, lore-rich dark fantasy game expanding the existing tournament mode.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Illuvium: Illuvium is a blockchain-based open-world RPG built on Ethereum with NFT creatures and play-to-earn mechanics. It is one of the most well-funded Web3 gaming studios and directly competes for GameFi player attention and capital alongside The Red Village.
• Axie Infinity (Sky Mavis): Axie Infinity pioneered the play-to-earn model with NFT creatures battling in tournaments, with revenue from NFT sales, breeding, and competitive gameplay — closely mirroring The Red Village's tournament and NFT champion structure. Both target similar crypto-native and emerging-mainstream gamer segments.
• Big Time Studios: Big Time is a blockchain-based multiplayer action RPG with NFT cosmetic items and token-based economies. It is a direct competitor in the narrative-driven Web3 RPG space, targeting traditional gamers with a polished, lore-rich experience similar to The Red Village's positioning.
• Star Atlas: Star Atlas is a blockchain-based space MMO built on Solana with NFT ships and crew used in competitive gameplay. While the theme differs, the play-to-earn mechanics, NFT asset structure, and tournament-style economy are directly comparable to The Red Village.
• Gods Unchained (Immutable): Gods Unchained is a blockchain trading card game on Ethereum with NFT cards that can be earned and traded on secondary markets. It shares The Red Village's NFT-based competitive gameplay model and Ethereum infrastructure, and also targets gamers with high-quality gameplay over pure financial mechanics.
• Parallel (Parallel Studios): Parallel is a blockchain-based sci-fi card game featuring NFT cards used in strategic PvP combat. It competes directly with The Red Village for the same Ethereum-based competitive gamer audience and shares the NFT-driven, skill-based competitive gameplay positioning.
• Vulcan Forged: Vulcan Forged is a blockchain gaming studio operating multiple NFT-based games with play-to-earn mechanics, marketplaces, and staking. It is comparable in scale and category to The Red Village, both operating as multi-game Web3 studios with NFT economies.

Others

• Blowfish Studios (Animoca Brands): Blowfish Studios is The Red Village's co-development partner and an Animoca Brands subsidiary. While not a competitor, it is a directly comparable Web3 gaming development house with award-winning traditional and blockchain game production experience.
• Animoca Brands: Animoca Brands is The Red Village's lead investor and strategic partner, and the parent of co-developer Blowfish Studios. It is one of the largest investors and operators in the Web3 gaming space, providing both distribution and ecosystem context for evaluating The Red Village's positioning.

Broad incumbents

• Sorare: Sorare is a licensed NFT fantasy sports platform on Ethereum where users collect, trade, and use digital player cards in competitive gameplay. While focused on sports rather than dark fantasy, it shares the NFT-based competitive gaming economy and Ethereum infrastructure with The Red Village.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/theredvillage
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCo3R8iGZrLgQMuVy1SBN49w
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/big-kid-ventures

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors22 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Red Village