Star Atlas Continues Innovation: Debuts Inaugural Web3 Economy Simulation Game Despite Team Downsizing

Despite its recent team downsizing, metaverse space exploration blockchain game Star Atlas is pushing ahead with its first-ever Web3 economy simulation game with real-time gameplay, SAGE Labs.

Amid doubts within the Star Atlas community due to recent financial challenges, CEO & Co-founder Michael Wagner previously provided reassurance that the remaining team will focus on delivering the upcoming SAGE browser game.

Star Atlas claims that the gameplay release will open up the game’s economy to a worldwide audience. 

“We also believe that with a smaller footprint, more focused approach, and greatly reduced burn rate, we will be able to more readily attract capital investments that may enable us to ramp up production on more product lines,” Wagner said in a letter to the Star Atlas community in July.

The team asserts that SAGE Labs provides a lucrative play-to-earn (P2E) and web3 gaming experience, offering immersive fun and rewards for players’ in-game time, enabled by secure, player-owned Star Atlas assets.

Star Atlas said that the gameplay launch will expand integration to other features within the game and the Solana network. Additionally, it introduces Web3 elements to the StarPath referral program, granting new players a 10% discount and referrers a 25% purchase value share.

Launching soon on Solana Mainnet, the game aims to set itself apart from other Web3 games with its decentralized economic game module, allowing developers to create tools and gameplay solutions using its programs and infrastructure.

Focusing on deep space resource extraction and crafting, SAGE Labs has a 2D interface designed for economic participation and is playable in any Solana-enabled web browser. The gameplay will also be fully integrated into the Star Atlas ecosystem.

Named after the forthcoming full-feature Star Atlas browser game, SAGE Labs originates from the Star Atlas Golden Era (SAGE). 

Initially designed as an econometric game development tool, it presents real-life economic gameplay in a two-dimensional format. The current launch offers players a chance to grasp SAGE’s mechanics and contribute to its future enhancements.

The game activates players-owned assets from the Galactic Marketplace, enhancing the utility of in-game currency ATLAS and its circular economy. Players can also freely use game items across various present and upcoming gameplay elements.

“This is the dawn of a truly open economy. Players can trade any item — resources, components, items and Golden Tickets with others, and spend their in-game currency in a myriad of ways, such as buying in-game items and ships in the Galactic Marketplace, storing it in the ATLAS Locker and buying merchandise,” Michael Wagner, Co-founder of Star Atlas and CEO of ATMTA, Inc., said in a statement.

In its current version, SAGE Labs announced that it will offer a limited user interface and a smaller set of gameplay loops. SAGE Labs hinted at the upcoming debut of “SAGE: Starbased,” which builds upon the foundation laid by its forerunner, “SAGE: Escape Velocity.” 

The forthcoming “SAGE: Starbased” will introduce improved 3D graphics, an expanded immersive gameplay experience, and integration of approximately 20 intricate Solana programs directly on-chain.

Meanwhile, “SAGE: Escape Velocity” has achieved an impressive total transaction volume of 80 million transactions.

Star Atlas plans to bolster its appeal to potential capital investments with the upcoming gameplay launch. This strategic move is aimed at facilitating the team’s expansion of production across multiple product lines.