MetaOps - Fight, shoot & earn your way through the battlefield

Introduction

If you like the fast-paced action of games like Modern Warfare and Call of Duty, then you will probably enjoy what MetaOps has to offer. It is a First Person Shooter that feels similar to these well known FPS titles, complete with rustic maps, and many ways to outmaneuver your enemies. 

As of writing, the game is in early alpha, so the game modes and goals are pretty simple. You can now play a 6v6 Team Deathmatch, where the surviving team wins, or you can play a match of Capture the Flag. Both are well known game types within the FPS world. 

In these matches, you can choose your weapons, like submachine guns or sniper rifles, to best fit your playing style. The MetaOps team is working to make all items like weapons tradeable NFTs, so that you can play or trade your way to rarer gear.

If you are less competitive or don’t like to fight other players, the team is also building an extensive lore around the game complete with a PvE campaign. Here you can still earn credits and upgrade your weapons and character, but with a different sort of challenge. 

The team is currently also working to give each MetaOps player their own Bunker. This will function as your hub where you can manage inventory, friends, upgrades etc. The more you play, the more accessories for the Bunker you will and the more you can make it your own, unique space. 

Gameplay

The gameplay mechanics are similar to that of other FPS games. You work with your team to dominate your enemies through your preferred style of weapons and knowledge of the terrain. If you hit an enemy, they will take damage, and if the entire enemy team is out of health or hit points, you win. 

The team is also planning to make your choice of Profile Picture (PFP) matter. There are four different types of PFP, all equipped with a different backstory and exoskeleton. These exoskeletons will be deployable in battle with their own abilities, as of writing, adding a bit of a Valorant element to the game.

As of writing, it seems that the rarity of weapon NFTs does not directly affect your stats. Rather, the system looks like the Counter Strike way of dealing with customisation, where rare items can drop and be used for personal customisation or sold on a market place. This creates an In-Game economy and incentive for playing, aside from the credits players can earn. 

This also means that you don’t step into a Pay-to-Win type of game and can still earn by increasing your skill steadily as you play more. The better you get, the more credits you will earn and the more chances you have for finding rare items. You will also get a set of default weapons upon signing in, so that you do not have to make any payments in order to start playing. 

Roadmap

The MetaOps team is currently in phase 2 out of 4 regarding development. Their current focus is on the first batch of NFTs, consisting of the founder's passes and the earlier mentioned PFPs. This phase will also see the bunkers being rolled out for all players. 

The following phases will see a focus on more game utility like having more maps and game modes, starting up the game’s story, and expanding bunker utility. The roadmap is expected to be expanded when the full whitepaper releases, as opposed to the current litepaper. 

Team & Partnerships

MetaOps is being developed by Open Portal Studios. This studio launched in September of 2021 and MetaOps is their launching title. Because of this we can’t check earlier projects to get an idea of their work or co-productions. However, not the entire team is fully doxxed, which makes measuring experience a bit of a challenge. 

A couple of key figures are doxxed, like the CEO and Founder Jacob Sloan. Jacob has some prior experience in securing funding, getting teams together and running marketing for other block chain start-ups. He also created the NFTs realm marketplace on Fantom as its founder. 

Another doxxed key figure is the Head of Game Development Gabe Rocha, who has about 17 years of experience as a developer, most of which spend at ExxonMobile. Here Gabe spent several years as technical lead developer, indicating he has experience leading a team through the development process.

The MeetaOps team has acquired some strategic partnerships such as the 3D Gamers Guild. This is a group of esports gamers who help web3 games by providing gaming streams as promotion, but also as research, bug testing, and generally furthering progress. 

The team also partnered with the Fractal launch website, which keeps an overview of which crypto based games are either launching soon or holding a tournament. This helps developing games to get attention and hold it with more ease than launching events on their own. 

Assets & Ecosystems

Credits

The main currency in the MetaOps world is currently called ‘credits’, though they have not launched yet. Because the currency has not launched, there are no specific tokenomics yet, either. The team does have a basic plan for how to integrate them into the game. 

As the team wants to create a fun game for both ranked and casual players, the idea is to have players earn a basic level of credits by playing the game, with a rate of ‘x’ credits per hour spent in battles. Next to that, bonus credits will be given based on performance metrics like a Kill:Death ratio, to incentivise building skill in the game. These credits can also be used to buy loot boxes for NFT chances. 

NFTs 

Next to the credits, the team will be launching their NFTs through the solana chain. These will have an effect on your earning power. Currently, there are only the Founders Pass and PFP NFTs which we spoke about earlier. The team is also looking to implement more sorts of NFTs, possibly in the form of weapon & character skins, but this is not yet properly announced. 

The supply of these NFTs will be calculated per gaming season, lasting a couple of months each, and are dependent on the amount of active users the game currently has. Distribution will happen through the loot boxes that platers can buy with their credits or through ranked gameplay rewards. 

Each NFT held by you will generate a passive income of credits, depending on the rarity of the NFT and the amount of NFTs you hold. The rarer the NFT is, the higher its base rate of credits is and the higher the NFT multiplier will be. You can hold 1% of the supply of any given rarity of NFT at the maximum, to avoid whale behavior. 

How to get started

Step 1. Buy a PFP on the MagicEden NFT marketplace. As of writing the floor price is 0.58 SOL, or around $23.2. 

This seems to be a necessity for as long as the game is in Alpha / Beta. 

Step 2. Download the game from their site and register your account and PFP. You are now ready to conquer.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the MetaOps project is still in an early stage of development regarding its crypto aspirations, but the base game is fully functional and has acquired a modest player base. For now, crypto enthusiasts will have to wait a while longer until the full tokenomics are released before they can decide if the RoI will be worth their time on the battlefield.