The final day of the YGG Play Summit featured a packed Ronin Happy Hour session with Jeffrey “Jihoz” Zirlin and Cagy, who had recently earned Content Creator of the Year at the GAM3 Awards. The session arrived only a day after Ronin won Best Ecosystem and Axie Infinity: Atia’s Legacy won Most Anticipated Game, adding momentum to a strong showing for the Sky Mavis ecosystem throughout the week.
The discussion focused on upcoming tests for Atia’s Legacy, the role of destruction in MMO economies, and how Sky Mavis is approaching an endgame-first design philosophy.
Building For Players Beyond Web3
Cagy opened the discussion by stating that developers need to look at both Web2 and Web3 to make games that reach a wide audience. “You have to learn about what is working in Web3 and Web2 to build an experience that is attractive to anyone,” he said.
Jihoz agreed and emphasized that the focus is on building a game that stands on its own for players outside of crypto. “We are building a game that players want to play, people who are outside of the Web3 gaming space,” he said.
Targeting Q1 2026 For The Next Gameplay Test
Jihoz announced that the team aims to run its next major playtest in Q1 2026, with a new gameplay loop at the center of it.
“For the next test, the plan is to drop into dungeons with many teams inside,” he explained. “You fight in the center of the map. It is a PvP and PvE experience where coordination is required. Last man standing wins.”
He also mentioned the team's intention to test destruction mechanics. “We want to have war and destruction. Your gear and Axie get eliminated. War and destruction are great because players can test economies. It is perfect for MMOs to have those elements.”
Risk That Drives The Economy
Cagy suggested that risking real Axie NFTs would add significant meaning to battles. Jihoz concurred, stating, “If you can kill Axies in war it stimulates the economy. If you breed, you should be able to destroy through gameplay too.”
Hands-On Development To Refine Movement
Jihoz highlighted that Sky Mavis co-founder Trung Nguyen has been directly involved in movement tuning. He shared an anecdote where the movement felt "jank" during a test, prompting Trung to fix it himself. “We were playing and it felt jank. That is when he went in. We are very hands-on to make the experience the best possible,” Jihoz said.
Building The Endgame First
When Cagy inquired about elements from older MMOs Jihoz wishes to incorporate, Jihoz stated that the priority is a strong endgame.
“It is simple to make an MMO that is fun for a few weeks,” he commented. “What creates a generational hit is the endgame. The social parts. The PvP competition.”
He cited World of Warcraft and Diablo as influences on his thinking. “With WoW that was raiding and PvP. Diablo had the PvP at level 99. High level PvP stimulated the economy with item markets,” he recalled.
For Atia’s Legacy, the team is adopting a top-down approach. “We want to work backwards by doing the endgame first. If we have no endgame, we have no product,” he asserted.
Live Demo And Community Battles
Following the discussion, Jihoz and Cagy presented a live demo showcasing the in-game shop, gold upgrades, and a boss encounter. They invited players onstage, including Muke, a LATAM creator focused on Ronin, and members of the Fishing Frenzy team, to compete in the current build.
Before concluding the session, Jihoz reflected on the past week's recognition for Axie and Ronin. “We won Ecosystem of the Year because we have the most builders who are doing things never done before,” he stated. “Axie created play to earn. Pixels did play to airdrop. Cambria has risk to earn. Fishing Frenzy has proof of distribution. These are flywheels that deliver the benefits of crypto to the world.”
He ended with a clear message: “Axie is the next Axie.”
More than five million players have pre-registered for Atia’s Legacy, and Sky Mavis has indicated that more updates are forthcoming as the next test window approaches.