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⌐◪-◪ → Yuga Labs just sold the IP to Heavy Metal (HV-MTL) and Legends of the Mara (LotM) to Faraway games.

The general consensus is that “this is a good thing” because it helps Yuga Labs focus on their core collections — which I agree with.

With that said, some are questioning Yuga’s decision to acquire Moonbirds and let go of HV-MTL, which does seem like a weird trade in isolation, but as we all know, there were other elements to that deal.

Some context on Faraway Games that people might not be aware of:

• Backed by prominent investors like Lightspeed, Sequoia, a16z

• Chief Product Officer is Yuga’s former Chief Gaming Officer

• They helped create the game Dookey Dash: Unclogged

The history between Yuga and Faraway means that HV-MTL and LotM are probably in good hands, and tells me that their collaboration on these projects is far from over.

If you want to read more on this, check out:

• Tweet from Yuga Labs CEO

• NFT Now interview with Yuga CEO + Faraway Co-Founder

Maybe the yacht isn’t sinking after all.

⌐◪-◪ → It looks like TikTok’s parent company ByteDance is interested in web3, after announcing a partnership with L1 blockchain Sui.

According to a statement from BytePlus, the company plans to leverage its existing knowledge of artificial intelligence and data warehousing to empower the Sui ecosystem, with a specific focus on Web3 gaming and SocialFi.

Meanwhile, Elon Musk just ran a Twitter poll asking if he should bring back Vine, which people are 69% in favor of.

While TikTok’s foray into web3 is definitely exciting, they might be dealt a devasting blow if Elon has Vine ready to launch the day the U.S. TikTok “ban” goes into effect.

Meanwhile, Farcaster is still chugging along and leading the way for SocialFi.

⌐◪-◪ → There is a real renaissance happening on Bitcoin right now, and Taproot Wizards is leading the way under the direction of Udi Wertheimer, Eric Wall, and 0xFar.

They just unveiled their CatVM proposal, packaged in a fun and vibrant way — definitely check it out, it’s not your average whitepaper.

The proposal makes a case for using OP_CAT as a new method for navigating Bitcoin’s scaling layers.

The core idea here is about enhancing flexibility and autonomy in transaction processing, potentially extending Bitcoin's capabilities without needing pre-signed transactions.

While still in its early stages, CatVM represents a bold step forward, and also beautifully captures how a simple meme can help rally people together and drive real innovation/change.

I’m still on the sidelines, but Taproot Wizards and Bitcoin Shrooms are the only Ordinals projects that have somewhat captured my attention.

NFA, DYOR.

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