Chew on it: ASX-listed iCandy reveals Web3 gaming vision

It’s been four years since iCandy Interactive released its first blockchain game, CryptantCrab.

But the company’s foray into Web3 foray is just about to begin with a bang. Last week, the Australia-listed gaming group released its earnings for the first half of the year, posting AU$15.7 million (US$10.7 million) in revenue for H1 2022 – a 1,600% upswing from the previous year.

ICandy also reported that it was operationally profitable for the first time in the company’s seven-year history, with an EBITDA of AU$4.4 million (US$2.99 million).

Image credit: iCandy Interactive

In the report, iCandy attributed its revenue growth to topline contributions from Lemon Sky Studios, a Malaysian game animation company that the listed firm acquired earlier this year for US$32.4 million. Lemon Sky makes its revenue from art outsourcing work for major video-game titles such as the Final Fantasy series, SimCity, Diablo, and Call of Duty.

The acquisition of Lemon Sky Studios for US$32.4 million was made with cash and newly issued iCandy shares which were sold to institutional investors, including Web3 gaming giant Animoca Brands.

In response to accusations that the move amounted to shareholder dilution, iCandy chairman Lau Kin Wai says that the shares were issued to raise funding for growth and that the move did not intend to dilute shareholder stakes.

Riding on the next wave of Web3 games

For Lau, iCandy has come a long way since its birth as a spin-off from the Fatfish Group, a venture builder that was originally funded by the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), a statutory board under the Singapore government. Lau has been the managing director of Fatfish Group since 2013.

“We have demand pent up for the next three years,” Lau tells Tech In Asia, adamant that the H1 revenue numbers were not a fluke. “Our vision is to be a Web3 gaming leader in Southeast Asia,” he adds.

Lau is anchoring his optimism on two factors. The first is iCandy’s own pipeline of six major Web3 games, comprising two AAA-quality games and four hypercasual mobile games. The latter is an overall trend within the gaming industry that has seen traditional gaming companies – particularly those from Korea – make higher-quality Web3 games.

These titles are likely to be released by the middle of next year, says Lau. ICandy’s own AAA Web3 game, Metal Genesis, is set to be the company’s flagship product and will be released for testing by the end of October.

ICandy game Metal Genesis / Image credit: iCandy Interactive

Lau predicts that there will be a huge rush of gamers toward Web3 gaming by the end of 2023 because the products in the pipeline are “amazing.” He adds that the animosity that gamers currently have against NFTs is largely due to price speculation.

Building through restructuring and inorganic growth

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