Web3 gaming unicorn Mythical Games loses three top executives

Three leading executives at web3 gaming studio Mythical Games announced they were leaving the company yesterday in a further exodus of talent from a notable crypto firm.

After four years at the company, the startup’s co-founder Rudy Koch announced he was ready for a change on LinkedIn. 

“So, what's next? Well, I'm not finished with Web 3.0; far from it,” said Koch in the LinkedIn post. “I have a new venture cooking, and I can't wait to share it with you all in the next couple of weeks.” 

Mythical’s chief operating officer and head of game studios and publishing, Matt Nutt, also announced that he would be starting something new after less than two years at the company — alongside strategy and investments senior vice president Chris Ko, who had been at the company for less than a year. 

“I'll be in stealth mode working on something new starting next week,” said Nutt in a LinkedIn post. “Look forward to sharing more on what's next in the coming weeks!” 

Ko echoed similar sentiments in his own LinkedIn post. All three executives are veterans of the gaming industry having previously worked at the likes of Blizzard, Activision and Electronic Arts. 

"We are grateful to them for their leadership and the significant contributions they’ve made in helping the company get to this point, and wish them the best in the future," said Nate Nesbitt, a spokeperson for Mythical Games, in an email statement to The Block.

A gaming unicorn

The game development studio secured unicorn status in November of last year when it raised a $150 million Series C round, which brought its valuation to $1.25 billion. Andreessen Horowitz led the round. Other backers of the startup include FTX, Binance Labs, Galaxy Interactive, NBA superstar Michael Jordan and Alumni Ventures. 

Mythical Games has raised more than $270 million in funding, earning the majority of it — $225 million — in 2021, according to a company release. 

The startup planned to use the funding to continue to expand its team and build out NFT-based, play-to-earn games.

At the end of September, the startup released its first game Blankos Block Party, a 3D multiplayer game on the Epic Games Store, the company behind Fortnite. 

Mythical has three other web3 games scheduled for release next year including NFL Rivals, which it is creating in partnership with the football league. 

The executive exodus continues

Mythical isn’t the only company in the crypto industry to see executives depart. Yesterday Coinbase said Chief Product Officer Surojit Chatterjee has left the exchange as part of an overhaul of the exchange’s product team.

In recent weeks, top executives from leading crypto firms such as FTX, Nydig, OpenSea and Genesis have also stepped down from their positions. 

This story has been updated to add a comment from Mythical Games.