Novel Labs and Faraway are currently developing Serum City, an independent city-building game that will use ApeCoin as its primary in-game currency. The game will feature Mutant Apes as the main characters, with Mutant Ape Yacht Club (MAYC) being among a few NFT collections that will provide owners access to the game. The developers will expand upon the Mutant Cartel’s lore, which will explore the Mutant Cartel Expanded Universe and the characters Blaksoot and Darkfang.

A screenshot from Serum City. Image: Novel Labs

A screenshot from Serum City. Image: Novel Labs

A screenshot from Serum City. Image: Novel Labs

Serum City is set in a dystopian world where Bored Apes are the ruling class, and Mutant Apes are the underlings, relegated to the fringes of society because they have consumed the Serum. The main storyline of the game will explore this world and its characters, providing a transmedia-type experience that is both a game and a story. Serum City’s gameplay details have not yet been revealed, but the developers promise a richer and more appealing play experience compared to early NFT-based games.

While Serum City is wholly unaffiliated with Yuga Labs, the $4 billion startup lets NFT holders use and commercialize their owned artwork, allowing countless Ape holders to build brands around everything from packaged goods to restaurants to video games like this one. Serum City developers believe that the game is a step towards interoperability, with items crafted in the game being NFTs that can be transferred and used in future Novel Labs games. The Faraway Developer Platform potentially opens up expanded interoperability down the line, with plans for cross-game and cross-universe events once Serum City launches in August.

To create a more immersive and authentic experience, the developers have incorporated Mutant Apes’ lower value and prominence, turning it into Web3 gaming lore. Serum City will gradually open up access with each new in-game season of content, and owning one of the required NFTs is mandatory to play the game at launch. Serum City’s assets will be on Ethereum’s mainnet, which, while expensive in terms of gas fees, is the most interoperable blockchain, making it worth it to have the ultimate interoperable asset.