Ethereum gaming network Ronin has opened its doors for any developer to build new games, decentralized applications, or other projects in its ecosystem as part of a broader “Open Ronin” push.

Previously, Ronin has operated as a curated blockchain, with the Ethereum sidechain building a reputation for prominent crypto gaming experiences and developing a die-hard fan base in the process. Ronin’s RON token has grown to become the second largest gaming chain token by market capitalization at $720 million, according to CoinGecko, since it launched in 2021.

Ronin is the home to the popular farming game Pixels, strategy title Apeiron, as well as the seminal play-to-earn game Axie Infinity—which was developed by Ronin creator Sky Mavis itself. Over the past year, multiple developers have switched to the gaming network citing the “Ronin Effect,” referencing the apparent boost that games see from the Ronin audience.

As part of the Open Ronin announcement, Pirate Nation developer Proof of Play said that the game is expanding from Arbitrum to Ronin, with a Ronin NFT mint planned ahead.

“Over the past four years, we’ve cemented our status as the premier gaming chain, and now we’re evolving once again,” Sky Mavis CEO and co-founder Trung Nguyen said, in a statement. “With Open Ronin, we’re accelerating our growth—unlocking more games, DeFi applications, and dApps than ever before. I believe this moment will be studied for years to come.”

With this move, Sky Mavis has released the Ronin Developer Console as a toolkit to help those building on the network. The toolkit will aid developers in creating simple NFT listings, sponsored transactions (so that players avoid paying gas fees), and in-game marketplaces, plus will provide smart contract templates. 

“Today marks the dawn of Ronin’s golden age,” Nguyen said. “If you’re building something that will make sense to everyday people, we want you to build it on Ronin.”

Since its inception, Ronin has opted for a closed, curated approach—only accepting developers of projects they deemed high-quality enough. Sky Mavis and Ronin co-founder Jeff “Jihoz” Zirlin told Decrypt this is because there is an “overabundance” of games in crypto, while there remains a lack of gamers. But, even during that mid-2024 interview, he had an eye on the chain going “pervasively permissionless.”

“Now, with a more mature ecosystem and growing market demand, it makes sense to transition into a more self-serve model,” Nguyen told Decrypt in a statement, “allowing more developers and creators to build, experiment, and scale on Ronin while maintaining the quality and success that made it appealing in the first place.”

Zirlin said that by going permissionless, the number of games deploying on the gaming network would accelerate. In doing this, he hopes one of those games would help drive the growth of Ronin—like Pixels did in 2024, and Axie Infinity did during the play-to-earn boom of 2021.

“The endgame is to create an ecosystem that seamlessly blends gaming with ecommerce and payment apps,” Zirlin told Decrypt in 2024. "We believe the path to getting there is by bootstrapping adoption and attention through gaming, and then expanding into payments and ecommerce, thereby disrupting the predatory banking system and credit card industry.”

Edited by Andrew Hayward

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