The unit's closure marks a retreat from a strategy the Web3 company had championed as recently as this year: building "casual degen" games—bite-sized titles laced with crypto incentives—for crypto enthusiasts who don't consider themselves traditional gamers.
Given the current market environment, the team said it made the decision to shutter the publishing division, cut 35 jobs as a result, and give Yield Guild more runway as it pursues an AI-driven pivot.
"Sunsetting YGG Play is a heavy decision, but it is a market decision, not a product decision," said Yield Guild co-founder Gabby Dizon, in a statement. "I am proud of what this team achieved under such tough conditions, and what they built is a testament to their talent and dedication. Although this business unit is sunsetting, YGG's vision and mission hasn't changed. We are still fully dedicated to using technology to open up new economic opportunities for people globally."
The YGG Play website, its launchpad, and games including LOL Land and Waifu Sweeper will be retired by August 1. Two of the games on the platform, Gigachatbat and Ragnarok Breaker, will continue operating under their original developers, following a transition.
YGG said it will redirect its resources toward supplying data for artificial intelligence training, wagering that video game players' decision-making can generate valuable behavioral datasets for AI developers. The company reported a treasury of $20.6 million worth of assets as of Q1, which it said should extend its operating runway to four years following the restructuring.
Yield Guild’s YGG token is up about 4% on the day at a recent price of $0.023, but has fallen about 84% in the last year. It remains down 99.8% from its peak price of $11.17 set in 2021.
