This newsletter is to update you on the progress of Grant Ships development. Grant Ships is currently participating in Gitcoin's GG20 in the dApps & Apps category. We'd love to have your support to help Grant Ships grow.
The Grant Ships beta grant round is now underway!
For those new to the game, Grant Ships is an innovative platform designed to redefine the way community funding is allocated. It's structured as a strategic game to distribute grants more effectively and inclusively. By gamifying the grant distribution process, Grant Ships aims to enhance participation, effectiveness, and transparency. Grant Ships aims to fund high-quality projects, teams, and developers by making the allocation process competitive. As the best allocators surface, they will receive the highest amount of funding to distribute.
Probably one of our first lessons learned, as the grant round was being prepared, is that this process needs to be decentralized as soon as possible. Our team had made the decision to hand-pick the first round of operators. We had an internal, unwritten rubric focusing on specific qualities and skills we were looking for in the first round. This was initially challenging as we had spent significant time selecting the desired domain. As our deadline for applications approached, we ended up getting flooded with excellent applications. So many, in fact, that we realized we had a major problem on our hands: How do we say "No" to any of the applicants?
In the end, we picked the right candidates and for the right reasons. It was a combination of involvement in web3 gaming, grant awarding experience, and DevRel connections that was the deciding factor in our choices. Believe me, there were a number of other applications that easily could have been picked and would do a fine job. We really hope that they all stick with us as we build more grant rounds in the future.
To see the game in action, visit app.grantships.fun
The domain that we are supporting in the beta round is Arbitrum gaming. We felt this was an underserved domain for funding, as we observed in other grant rounds on Arbitrum. There seems to be a groundswell of activity and development in gaming within the Arbitrum ecosystem, so we believed it was an area where we could make an immediate impact by providing funds to projects working in that domain.
We're very pleased to present the beta round Ship Operators. They are currently accepting applications. Please check out their Ship profiles and strategies. If you feel you align with their funding requirements, please apply directly to them though the Grant Ships App. Check out the game rule book for a full overview of the game.
Funding Vision
Allocation Strategy
Considering the size of the allocation and the innovative grant funding approach that grant ships introduced we will have a highly adaptive grant funding approach and allocation strategy. This involves first sourcing grant applications and finalizing the allocation strategy only after the grantees have been picked to ensure maximum impact of the allocation. We will also asses the risk involved in funding the project vs the magnitude of the project and other highly relevant criteria. The allocation strategy will be posted in this doc: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1HDCfUtZZxSj_G-KEvsuwBwdgHhd4Uxh8i9dGa-jbano/edit
How to Apply
1. Projects must enhance gaming innovation within the blockchain space using the Arbitrum network. This includes introducing novel mechanics to existing games, developing standalone games with blockchain integration, adding cool features, or creating tools for the Arbitrum gaming ecosystem.
2. Builders must demonstrate creativity and uniqueness, introducing features that distinguish projects in the onchain gaming landscape. This could involve groundbreaking mechanics, fun addons, original game concepts showcasing blockchain integration potential, memetics, etc
3. Milestones should easy to follow up and projects should clearly outline objectives emphasizing tangible outcomes within the Arbitrum gaming ecosystem. This includes fostering talent growth and enhancing gaming experiences on Arbitrum.
4.Ideally projects should understand technical requirements and limitations in game development on Arbitrum. This includes compatibility with existing tools and implementing scalable solutions. We will also consider other factors such as community engagement:, alignment with Arbitrum and other more subjective metrics.
We reserve the right to deny certain applications if we believe they are not appropriate for this grant program! The submission guidelines will be published here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1HDCfUtZZxSj_G-KEvsuwBwdgHhd4Uxh8i9dGa-jbano/edit
Contact:
Funding Vision
Allocation Strategy
We're looking for projects that are either:
1. self contained, small indie games, with addictive and fun game loops
2. new features in existing games that will be developed from inception to completion during the duration of the grantHow to Apply
Overview of the feature or game What is different/interesting about the game loop? What are the on-chain actions the game/feature will have? Background on team If a prototype exists or an overview document exists include that + screenshots If this is just an idea then include at max a 2 page summary of:
What it is?
Why does it benefit the Arb gaming ecosystem?
Why do you think you'll be able to get it done?
What is going to get people to come back and play this over and over again?
Contact:
Funding VisionAllocation Strategy
Project Types - Educational Games: Projects with an emphasis on learning and teaching individuals. - Environmental Games: Projects creating game mechanisms that support environmental action. - Social Games: Projects focusing on social engagement and coordination. Strategy With a month timeline our approach is a hackathon model where we will select a few projects to fund for the hackathon. Our model is 50/50 split where the initial projects funded will receive half of the available funds for development and the rest will be split based on project judging. - Development Pool (6075 Arb) - Split evenly between 3-5 projects to develop their project in the round. - Most Regen (3005 Arb) - Given to the project that best aligns with the regen game focus. - Best Game Experience (2024 Arb) - Given to the project that creates the best game that's easy to play and is fun. - Community Favorite (1046 Arb) - Awarded to the project most loved by the community from a vote during the judging period. Hackathon Timeline - Project Submission (April 22nd - April 27th): Teams submit their project ideas for the operators to approve with 3-5 selected. - Hacking Window (April 29th - May 19th): Project hack away at their project ideas with support from the ship operators. - Project Judging (May 16th - May 19th): Judging starts towards the end of hacking with the judges being . Desired Funding Impact - Sustainable Growth: We aim to support projects that show potential for long-term growth and sustainability within the Arbitrum gaming ecosystem. - Regenerative Innovation: We encourage the development of games that positively impact the environment or society. Grant Effectiveness Evaluation - Weekly Reports: We will require updates and detailed reports on the progress of funded projects for hackathon. - Project Reviews: We will conduct assessments after project completion to ensure that outcomes align with established goals.
How to Apply
Screening Criteria:
- Projects must align with the theme of "Gaming on Arbitrum".
- Projects must have an emphasis on regenerative, educational, or social actions.
Requirements:
- Have at least 1 github repo for the grant.
- Have built a game or past experience with game development. Agreements: - Projects will commit to regular weekly reports of progress.
- Projects will abide hackathon guidelines found at Greenpill Dev Guild Charmverse.
- Project source code, designs, and other relevant details will be public.
- Teams will meet bi-weekly with operators for a total of 3 meetings during hackathon.
Contact:
You can view and join @grantships right away.
All of the Ship operators also have a public channel in the Grant Ships telegram.
Sometimes recognition is a major part of any grant application. So with that in mind, here is all the projects that have created a profile on the Grant Ships app. (Clicking the image will take you to their full profile) Good Luck to all of them!
As this is still just our beta round we want to invite people that have used the dApp to make suggestions on improvements we can make or features you would like to see added. We have created a couple channels in our telegram for feature requests and bug reports.
One big improvement we would like to have is fluid TCR voting, purpose built for the app. While we make no promises, it is very high on our "nice to have" list.
We currently have an AIP Idea proposal up on the Ape Coin DAO forums. If you hold Ape Coin, we'd love your support in helping us move the idea to the next stage, which is making an AIP to the DAO. We want Ape Coin to use Grant Ships as their primary grants distribution method on ApeChain.
To help us with our pitch to Ape Coin DAO, we made a customized version of the application, which anyone can use, if you want to try out the app. You'll need some Ether on Arbitrum Sepolia to use it. Here's a faucet to get you started.
We're excited to highlight the strides we're making in the Arbitrum gaming domain through our beta grant round. Our approach to decentralized grant distribution continues to evolve, aiming to empower high-quality projects, teams, and developers. We invite you to support our journey and participate actively as we expand the horizons of funding distribution. For those looking to apply or engage further, visit our application portal and join our community discussions to shape the future of Grant Ships.
boiler
