Parallel Ethereum Game Studio Releases Shooting Game on Base Network B3

The developers of Parallel, the Ethereum NFT card game that released on the Epic Games Store in June, have embarked on yet another new project, announcing a 3D first-person shooter codenamed “Project Tau Ceti” at Token2049 in Singapore on Wednesday.

In Tau Ceti, players will battle on a sci-fi planet using Parallel NFT avatars. Unlike the upcoming AI-centric game Colony, which is set to be released on the Solana blockchain, Project Tau Ceti marks a return to Coinbase's Ethereum layer-2 network Base, but this time on its recently released B3 layer-3 gaming network.

“B3 has the right technology and team experience to support what we are looking for,” a Parallel Studios spokesperson said. Decryption“B3 is heavily focused on gaming, and as the hottest new network on the Base, we felt this was the right choice for us.”

B3.fun launched in August after development team NFC Labs, founded by ex-Coinbase employees, announced a $21 million investment round in July. The chain launched alongside a web-based cryptocurrency arcade platform called BSMNT.

Parallel is a popular Ethereum and Base game that brings a cryptocurrency twist to Hearthstone-like competitive card battles. It's free to play but features optional NFT cards that can be collected and traded, and the ability to earn cryptocurrency token rewards.

According to the team, Project Tau Ceti represents an effort to expand into parallel universes with an entirely different kind of game.

“Just recently, our art team got together to think about what a shooter set in a parallel universe might look like,” the team says in the pre-alpha trailer. “What started as a side project quickly grew beyond our expectations.”

“Bolstered by the incredible community response to the idea, and driven by your passion and feedback, we embarked on a journey to create vast new environments, detailed characters, formidable enemies and unique creatures, each thoughtfully designed to enhance and expand the parallel world,” they added.

Tau Ceti will use Parallel's 3D asset library, including characters, weapons, creatures, etc. to enhance the new game experience. According to Parallel Studios, Project Tau Ceti is being developed using Unreal Engine 5 in partnership with an as-yet-unnamed third-party studio.

“While we continue development of Tau Ceti, Parallel remains focused on delivering meaningful updates to the TCG and Colony alpha,” the team wrote on Twitter (aka X).

According to an interview published on NFT marketplace OpenSea, Project Tau Ceti plans to begin initial alpha testing on PC in 2025. Future mobile and console versions are likely to follow the initial PC release.

Editor: Andrew Hayward