If you're interested in the crossroads of crypto and gaming, then B3 is a chain worth checking out.
Developed by alumni from Coinbase and Base, B3 is built from the ground up to support open gaming—not just on its own layer, but in additional spinoff appchains built atop its infra.
The idea? Create an interconnected ecosystem and gaming economy where players and game creators can earn rewards for their activity. I'll cover all the basics below in case you want to dive in.
How B3 works
B3 is what's called a Layer 3 (L3) network. This is because the chain settles its transactions to Base, a Layer 2 (L2) on top of Ethereum.
Specifically, B3 is a type of scaling solution known as an optimium.
When you combine offchain execution with onchain data via fraud proofs, you get a regular optimistic rollup L2. When you do offchain execution and publish data offchain, e.g. like how B3 posts data to Celestia, you get an optimium.
This design introduces a trust assumption, namely that posted data will remain available. But in exchange for this added trust, optimiums can offer high transaction throughput, making B3 great for gaming use cases.
B3 is also developing a rollup engine that will allow games in its ecosystem to create their own L3 Gamechains for greater customizability while still sharing an interconnected economy with the wider B3 ecosystem.
How to get started
Since B3 is compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) and uses ETH as its gas token, it's easy to start exploring the chain if you already have an Ethereum wallet.
First you'll want to add the B3 network to your wallet, which you can do manually or using a service like ChainList.
Next you can bridge some ETH to your B3 account using a fast bridge like Relay, which makes it simple to deposit in from Ethereum, Base, and beyond.
Once you've got your wallet ready, start finding and trying B3 games through BSMNT (basement.fun), which is a streamlined “frontpage” discovery hub you can use to sort through titles by “Top Rated,” “Recently Added,” “Genre,” etc.
If you want to dive deeper, you can also consider acquiring some of the network's native token $B3, which lives on Base and is traded on centralized exchanges like Coinbase or decentralized exchanges like Aerodrome.
Holding $B3 lets you participate in B3 governance and receive early access to new BSMNT features, but the main opportunity is in staking, where you can deposit $B3 to earn tokens from future Gamechain launches.
What to watch for
The B3 team has already onboarded nearly 100 games to its network and ecosystem. Look for them to double down on welcoming bigger titles and facilitating more Gamechain launches this year.
Thanks to a recent announcement, we know B3 is on track for 5 Gamechain releases in Q1 2025.
The first and biggest Gamechain announced was Prime Chain, which is being developed by Echelon, the creators of the hit crypto trading card game Parallel.
Prime Chain will be used to support Echelon's next game, nicknamed Project Tau Ceti, a 3rd-person extraction shooter set in the Parallel universe that is slated for a Q3 2025 release.
If B3 can continue to foster collaborations like this, and a $B3 flywheel ensues, then the network's ecosystem will become an increasingly attractive hub for high-quality games—keep it on your radar accordingly.
FRIEND & SPONSOR: FRAX
The Fraxtal ecosystem is expanding at lightning speed—this month’s biggest highlight is IQAI.com, the newest Agent Tokenization platform from IQ and Frax. IQ is building autonomous, intelligent, tokenized agents launching on Fraxtal in Q1. Empower onchain agents with built-in wallets, tokenized ownership, and decentralized governance—all within a fast-growing Fraxtal ecosystem.
Not financial or tax advice. Bankless content is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. This newsletter is not tax advice. Talk to your accountant. Do your own research.
Disclosure. From time-to-time we may add links in this newsletter to products we use. We may receive a commission if you make a purchase through one of these links. Additionally, the Bankless team holds crypto assets.
