In the Project Spotlight series, we interview projects developing on the Binance Smart Chain (BSC). Previously, we shared interviews with ForTube, BurgerSwap, Bounce, Arkane Network, AnySwap, Bitquery, Blink, Tenderly, Defistation, PARSIQ, Injective Protocol, Mirror Protocol, and BunnyPark. The next project you’ll learn about is MOBOX.
IMPORTANT: Please note the following content does not constitute an endorsement or approval of any of the products or services of the project, organization, or individual.
What is your core business, can you expand on your business strategy to those unfamiliar with your project?
MOBOX: MOBOX is a unique and revolutionary system that combines the best of DeFi Yield Farming and Gaming NFTs to create what we call GameFi, a truly Free to Play and Play to Earn ecosystem. We have devised an innovative approach to gaming where users can earn just by staking their tokens and playing exciting and competitive games. Our goal is not to compete with all the other great projects but to add value to the already existing ecosystem. For example, instead of building a Swap or AMM like everyone else, instead we integrated the Pancake Ecosystem into our platform with the idea to provide users with a simpler interface to use all the great things Pancake Swap offers. This way users do not have to jump from platform to platform just to have fun on the MOBOX platform.
Lots of other DeFi Gaming and NFT platforms out there take a different approach. We studied many of them and realized that many of them try to incorporate DeFi mechanics into their platform or game, but this is extremely difficult because its difficult to find a balance between Game mechanics and DeFi. Given this, the MOBOX platform takes a different approach as we have tied the current DeFi ecosystem on BSC with our experience in developing games. Using this design, DeFi users can take advantage of optimized yield farming, Gamers can have fun with games, and DeFi x Gamers can enjoy both.
The platform had a fair launch (no pre-tvl, no seed, no pre-mine) on Apirl 6th, and during this time we have already reached several milestones including a TVL of 270,000,000, over 200,000 NFTs minted, and over 40,000,000 BUSD in NFT Trades.
The way the MOBOX system works is users gain KEYs (BEP20) token through staking their LP tokens or Single tokens. The KEYs can then be used to unlock a CHEST and the user will receive a random unique NFT through a blind box system. The NFTs have different qualities from common, uncommon, unique, rare, epic, and legendary. Each NFT has a unique Hash Power that is randomized on the blockchain. The NFTs can then be upgraded by consuming other MOMO NFTs to further increase their hashpower. The NFTs are then staked on the platform, giving users the opportunity to farm our MBOX DAO token, and allow them to use the NFTs throughout the Games that we will be releasing on the platform. The amazing thing about this system is that it shows true NFT interoperability between not just games but also platforms as we have been working with several partners to build unique NFTs that give special perks not only on our platform but also on theirs.
When was the idea behind MOBOX born, and what led to it?
MOBOX:The idea behind the MOBOX platform began in September of 2021 with the emergence of DeFi on the Ethereum blockchain. With the growth of DeFi we envisioned a new concept that can be coupled with our decade of experience in gaming. This concept is what we call GameFi where finance is gamified and games are financified. We then set out to build a unique infrastructure that combines the best of DeFi Yield Farming and Gaming NFTs to create the GameFi experience.
Before we started developing the MOBOX platform the first thing we did was to research and breakdown all smart contracts on the Ethereum network. More importantly, we gave extra attention to those smart contracts who have been attacked by bad actors. We then ensured that our smart contracts would not have the same vulnerability. For example, to prevent flash loan attacks the user’s deposit will not immediately trigger the operation of investing in the corresponding platform. Rather the strategy will be triggered and controlled by TimeLock to delay investing in the corresponding platform. Therefore Arbitrage cannot happen in the same transaction.
Can you tell us more about your team’s background and introduce the core members?
MOBOX:Our team currently has 30 members from Canada, Australia, and China with 20 of them being developers. We started in the web and mobile game publishing industry in 2010 and had some success taking the company IPO in 2014. We then exited in 2017 as we saw a new and innovative technology that gave us the ability to fulfill our vision, where users can actually earn and play games at the same time.
Our first DApp was an NFT game called Ether Online with 90% of the game running on Smart Contracts on the Ethereum blockchain. It was a unique decentralized RPG game that consisted of both PvP and PvE elements, NFT marketplace, level system, equipment system and much more.
We then started a new project on the TRON blockchain that became one of the top DApps across all blockchains, handling over 6 billion USD through our secure Smart Contracts. We were also lucky enough to be the first gaming DApp to launch on the Binance launchpad.
What are the main advantages of MOBOX for the user, compared to a similar project from a mainstream financial market?
MOBOX:We haven’t seen any similar projects in either the mainstream financial market, traditional gaming market, or in Dapps. The reason why no such product exists in the mainstream financial market and traditional gaming market is because the GameFi infrastructure is only made possible through blockchain technology and it’s DeFi ecosystem. In regards to similar projects in the Dapp market, we have yet to see anything that resembles a balanced combination of DeFi Yield Farming and gaming NFTs that benefits all stakeholders, whether you are a gamer, investor, or NFT collector.
User experience is something that we think about on a daily basis. Being in the gaming industry for over a decade, user experience is something we take very seriously. This is also why we integrated parts of the Pancake Swap ecosystem into our platform so that users do not have to jump from platform to platform just to reap the benefits of the platform. We also believe that a big issue in dapp adoption is the high barrier to entry. Therefore we have developed our own mobile APP on both iOS and Android as well as a chrome wallet plugin creating a truly cross-platform ecosystem and at the same time lowering the barrier to entry.
With the MOBOX platform users have the opportunity to experience a system where they can earn, play, and collect all in one ecosystem. Investors can stake their crypto and earn through our optimized yield farming smart contracts. Collectors can collect and trade MOMO NFTs in the marketplace. Gamers can battle it out and earn MBOX tokens.
As you can see there is something for everyone on the MOBOX platform. We also believe that the earning power for crypto should never be idle. With this in mind we have created a unique Rent System for NFTs. For example, a collector can rent out their NFT to a gamer for a certain fee. The gamer can then use it to earn MBOX within games. The original owner will continue earning MBOX tokens through staking as well as their rent fee.
MOBOX is truly one of the only platforms where Crypto is always earning no matter if they are stable coins, mainstream tokens, or NFTs.
What is your security strategy? How do you keep your users safe?
MOBOX: Before we started developing the MOBOX platform the first thing we did was to research and break down all smart contracts on the Ethereum network. More importantly, we gave extra attention to those smart contracts who have been attacked by bad actors. We then ensured that our smart contracts would not have the same vulnerability. For example, to prevent flash loan attacks the user’s deposit will not immediately trigger the operation of investing in the corresponding platform. Rather the strategy will be triggered and controlled by TimeLock to delay investing in the corresponding platform. Therefore Arbitrage cannot happen in the same transaction.
We have also completed our Smart Contract audits from CertiK 🙁https://www.certik.org/projects/mobox)with an average security score of 90.
Let’s say I want to start using MOBOX. Where do I start? Where can I find some how-to guides?
MOBOX:Getting started with the MOBOX platform is very easy. Other than joining the friendly and helpful community, we have also published multiple guides on how to have fun while earning. https://mbox.medium.com/
Why did you decide to build on the Binance Smart Chain?
MOBOX:The MOBOX platform was originally built on the Ethereum blockchain with the vision to add other chains in the future. We had our Alpha launch on Ethereum back in February. After a lot of user feedback, we realized that the high gas fees and slow transaction speeds created a very unfriendly user experience. As mentioned above, user experience is an extremely important part of our vision. Since we’ve had development experience on Ethereum, TRON, and EOS we set out to research other blockchains to see which would be the most suitable for us. When choosing we listed out several criterias that must be met in order for us to be successful. This included a healthy DeFi ecosystem, quick transaction speeds, low gas costs, comparatively lower barrier to entry for users, strong community, and strong ecosystem support. After diving deep we found that the only blockchain that checked off all the boxes was Binance Smart Chain. With a strong DeFi ecosystem through Pancake Swap, quick transaction speeds, low gas costs, lower barrier to entry for users with the use ethereum supporting wallets, extremely strong community that gets bigger by the day, and fantastic ecosystem support from the Binance Smart Chain team we decided to redo all of our smart contracts and launched on BSC. Definetly one of the brighter choices we have made thus far.
What do you hope to see next from the BSC community?
MOBOX:With the growing BSC community, we hope to see more developers work together to build a truly decentralized ecosystem where NFTs are used across platforms creating true interoperability. We have been working on this with other projects on BSC where MOBOX NFTs can be used on their platforms and their NFTs can be used throughout the games on the MOBOX platform. We believe that it’s important to build together to foster a great end user and developer community where innovation comes before competition.
What do you see as the main challenge for the future of DeFi?
MOBOX:Security is one of the main challenges to the future of DeFi. It is also something that we put a lot of weight on. No matter what stage a project is in, security will always be one of the main challenges.
Althought DeFi is developing rapidly, we believe that it is still in its infancy as there are still many things to explore. So far most activities are speculative, and as time goes on high returns will decrease. There needs to be more pratical product support.
Another challenge that is out of most developer’s hands is policies and regulations. Currently, there is no structure or framework in this regard which poses a barrier to adoption. As a company we hope that there are concrete policies so that our business is legal no matter the country or region.
Where do you see DeFi and BSC in five years?
MOBOX:We hope to see a bridge between traditional finance and DeFi within the next 5 years, and strongly believe that BSC will be playing a key role in this.
The development of BSC in the past six months has been very rapid, and has already surpassed many other blockchain in terms of activity. In 5 years the number of active users will exponentially multiply and only several public blockchains will remain active. We believe that BSC will be one of the few that will continually grow in usage and users.
In addition to DeFi and NFTs, there will be a lot more innovative Dapps as the industry and technology start to mature. As mentioned above, we have built Dapps on many blockchains, and we must say the BSC team has the greatest support for projects. No matter if its the community, technology, or how to get started, the BSC team is always available. We believe that as adoption increases more and more developers will adopt, build, and innovate in the BSC ecosystem, making it more prosperous as time goes on.
