The blockchain gaming world is largely populated by startups built specifically to pioneer the burgeoning industry of crypto games, whether it's Immutable with card-battler Gods Unchained, Sorare with its popular fantasy soccer platform, or Sky Mavis behind the Pokémon-inspired Axie Infinity. However, there is one very big exception: Ubisoft, one of the largest traditional game publishers in the world, and the storied brand behind mega-franchises like Assassin's Creed, Far Cry, Just Dance, and various Tom Clancy-branded shooters. The gaming giant, which has dozens of international studios, first signaled its interest in blockchain technology by unveiling a proof-of-concept prototype called HashCraft, a crypto-infused riff on Minecraft, in 2019. Ubisoft has since continued on in the space by working closely with crypto gaming startups and releasing its own small-scale experiments. The publisher's blockchain ambitions come from its Strategic Innovation Lab, which is headed up by Nicolas Pouard, Blockchain Initiative Director.