The classic Ragnarok Online gaming franchise is coming to Ethereum thanks to a partnership between developer Gravity and Ronin, a sidechain gaming network. Gravity will launch Ragnarok: Monster World, a strategy game based in the Ragnarok Online universe, on Ronin.

Ragnarok Online, an iconic massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) that has amassed over 167 million downloads globally since its 2002 launch in South Korea, is making its blockchain debut with Ragnarok: Monster World.

Developed by Web3 studio ZERO X AND, the game combines tower defense and monster collection elements. The game was first announced in December.

"Ragnarok holds a special place in the hearts of our core audience in South East Asia, including many of our own team members who grew up as avid fans," said Trung Nguyen, CEO and co-founder of Sky Mavis, the studio behind the Ronin network. "We are committed to bringing IP that will transcend gaming culture through our bleeding edge technology and can't wait to see the ‘Ronin Effect’ on Monster World."

Scheduled to launch on Ronin in Q3 2024, Ragnarok: Monster World will allow players to tame and collect Ragmons, the game's unique monsters, and then train them and engage in player-vs-player (PvP) battles to earn rewards. Future updates will introduce additional features, as well as benefits tied to community participation.

"We're thrilled to collaborate with the team behind Axie Infinity, who has spearheaded a new paradigm for play-to-earn and NFTs," said Seokjun Kim, founder of ZERO X AND, in a press release. "By leveraging the skills of our team members experienced in Web2 alongside Sky Mavis' Web3 expertise, we aim to cultivate a stronger gaming and blockchain community."

Ronin was launched alongside Sky Mavis’ Axie Infinity game, and has since expanded to onboard games from third-party studios. The network recently saw a jump in activity around the debut of Pixels, a crypto farming game, plus it supports other games such as Apeiron and The Machines Arena.

Editor’s note: This article was written with the assistance of AI. Edited and fact-checked by Andrew Hayward.