New zkEVM Ethereum Gaming Network from Polygon and Immutable
Technology company Polygon and gaming platform Immutable have teamed up to create an Ethereum-centric place for Web 3.0 developers, called Immutable zkEVM.
Two major Ethereum scaling companies, Polygon and Immutable, have formed an alliance to create a dedicated network for Web 3.0 gaming based on Polygon's highly anticipated zkEVM technology.
The strategic alliance was announced at the opening of the annual Game Developers Conference (GDC) in San Francisco. Polygon Labs and Immutable will work together to create Immutable's new Ethereum scarfing network, zkEVM, which will be a combination of Polygon's new zkEMV technology and Immutable's platform for games, built on the blockchain.
This is not a merger of the companies but a collaboration, and each of the companies will continue to work on their own projects. Polygon will be launching a beta version of its own zkEVM network on March 27 2023, and Immutable X's scarfing network, which is based on StarkEX's zk-Rollup technology, will continue to run alongside Immutable's new zkEVM network.
Robbie Ferguson, co-founder and president of Immutable, said the partnership is an "obvious step" that will allow the lead developers of both existing networks to join forces to drive the greater public adoption of Web 3.0 games.
"For us, this is the end game," Ferguson said. "This is how the next billion users will be involved in Web 3.0."
The two networks are designed to scale Ethereum. Polygon's primary network is a sidechain and Immutable X is a second-layer network. While they are different from each, they ultimately make Ethereum better suited for video games, large NFT projects and decentralized applications as they allow transactions to be made more quickly and cheaply than on the main Ethereum network.
The zkEVM solution, like those of Polygon and many others, is expected to take Ethereum scaling to a new level by combining cryptography-based transaction rollups with zero proof of knowledge, with full Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) support. This will mean it is a fast, secure solution that is natively compatible with Ethereum's own smart contract capabilities.
Both the Immutable X and Polygon scarfing networks have waged a competitive battle in the past to entice developers, brands and users to use their network.
Ryan Wyatt, President of Polygon Labs, admitted that initial discussions about the two companies' collaboration, which began about nine months ago, were a bit awkward initially.
"When we first got together - yes, it was definitely hard to deal with," Wyatt said. "It took a while for both parties to get their bearings: how does this actually make sense for all of us? The more we talked and the more time we spent together, the more it actually naturally aligned."
Although both Polygon and Immutable X have been competitors in the past, they have always been more focused on improving Ethereum's scalability, Ferguson explained. That common goal is what has led to them joining forces, instead of continuing to compete by creating a new network.
"[This] made it very easy to align philosophically," Ferguson added, "once we overcame the intense competition we've had on the gaming front over the last few years."
Immutable's zkEVM will be rolled out towards the end of the second quarter of 2023, according to Ferguson, a time when Immutable is "looking to get usable stuff into sharp operation." However, developers can already build on the Software Development Kit (SDK) to explore the technology.
The network will use Immutable's IMX token for transaction sequencing and gas charges. According to Ferguson, Immutable's X network will still work, and his team's goal is to create cross-rollup liquidity between networks.
Bridges are expected to be built to move assets between, for example, Immutable's zkEVM network and Polygon's own zkEVM network.
According to Ferguson and Wyatt, Immutable zkEVM is the best of both companies: a network that leverages Polygon's next-generation scaling technology and the gaming infrastructure created by Immutable, which is a potential place for developers looking to start building games in the Web 3.0 space.
According to Wyatt, Web 3.0 games are approaching the point at which they will become mainstream in video games, despite initial resistance from traditional gamers.
Source: decrypt.co
analyst opinion
Jakub Odvářka
Two major Ethereum scaling companies, Polygon and Immutable, have formed an alliance to create a dedicated network for Web 3.0 gaming based on Polygon's highly anticipated zkEVM technology.
The strategic alliance was announced at the opening of the annual Game Developers Conference (GDC) in San Francisco. Polygon Labs and Immutable will work together to create Immutable's new Ethereum scarfing network, zkEVM, which will be a combination of Polygon's new zkEMV technology and Immutable's platform for games, built on the blockchain.
This is not a merger of the companies but a collaboration, and each of the companies will continue to work on their own projects. Polygon will be launching a beta version of its own zkEVM network on March 27 2023, and Immutable X's scarfing network, which is based on StarkEX's zk-Rollup technology, will continue to run alongside Immutable's new zkEVM network.
Robbie Ferguson, co-founder and president of Immutable, said the partnership is an "obvious step" that will allow the lead developers of both existing networks to join forces to drive the greater public adoption of Web 3.0 games.
"For us, this is the end game," Ferguson said. "This is how the next billion users will be involved in Web 3.0."
The two networks are designed to scale Ethereum. Polygon's primary network is a sidechain and Immutable X is a second-layer network. While they are different from each, they ultimately make Ethereum better suited for video games, large NFT projects and decentralized applications as they allow transactions to be made more quickly and cheaply than on the main Ethereum network.
The zkEVM solution, like those of Polygon and many others, is expected to take Ethereum scaling to a new level by combining cryptography-based transaction rollups with zero proof of knowledge, with full Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) support. This will mean it is a fast, secure solution that is natively compatible with Ethereum's own smart contract capabilities.
Both the Immutable X and Polygon scarfing networks have waged a competitive battle in the past to entice developers, brands and users to use their network.
Ryan Wyatt, President of Polygon Labs, admitted that initial discussions about the two companies' collaboration, which began about nine months ago, were a bit awkward initially.
"When we first got together - yes, it was definitely hard to deal with," Wyatt said. "It took a while for both parties to get their bearings: how does this actually make sense for all of us? The more we talked and the more time we spent together, the more it actually naturally aligned."
Although both Polygon and Immutable X have been competitors in the past, they have always been more focused on improving Ethereum's scalability, Ferguson explained. That common goal is what has led to them joining forces, instead of continuing to compete by creating a new network.
"[This] made it very easy to align philosophically," Ferguson added, "once we overcame the intense competition we've had on the gaming front over the last few years."
Immutable's zkEVM will be rolled out towards the end of the second quarter of 2023, according to Ferguson, a time when Immutable is "looking to get usable stuff into sharp operation." However, developers can already build on the Software Development Kit (SDK) to explore the technology.
The network will use Immutable's IMX token for transaction sequencing and gas charges. According to Ferguson, Immutable's X network will still work, and his team's goal is to create cross-rollup liquidity between networks.
Bridges are expected to be built to move assets between, for example, Immutable's zkEVM network and Polygon's own zkEVM network.
According to Ferguson and Wyatt, Immutable zkEVM is the best of both companies: a network that leverages Polygon's next-generation scaling technology and the gaming infrastructure created by Immutable, which is a potential place for developers looking to start building games in the Web 3.0 space.
According to Wyatt, Web 3.0 games are approaching the point at which they will become mainstream in video games, despite initial resistance from traditional gamers.
Source: decrypt.co
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