The executive producer of world gaming phenomenon League of Legends (LoL) and Netflix series ‘Arcane’ has dropped by Manila recently. Vietnamese American Thomas Vu joined some of the globe’s leading game producers to formally launch Web3 metaverse gaming platform CRETA in the Philippines on June 27 through a gathering at the Grand Hyatt Manila.
Vu surprised many when he revealed that it was his second time in Manila after decades and that he used to be a refugee from Vietnam who sought temporary shelter in the country when he was a 7-year-old kid. That was why he said that the Philippines will always be special for him.
After leaving the country for the U.S., where he grew up and spent his teenage and young adult years, Vu worked hard to achieve three of his life dreams—to work for NASA, to build video games, and to produce films.
He managed to work with Sally Ride and ISS, where he took suborbital images of the planet, a job that was closest to his dream to work for NASA. Vu then began his career in gaming by accumulating experience in game design at big game development firms like Bandai Namco and EA. In 2011, his career took a pivot when he joined Riot Games, where he took the helm as Executive Producer and Franchise Creative Director for the colossal LoL. 
After more than a decade since LoL’s launch and within his watch, it is now the highest-grossing e-sports game in the world, with an annual revenue of over $3 billion and a global monthly gamer base of over 100 million. He is also instrumental in creating and making popular many of the most iconic characters in LoL.
At the same time, Vu realized another aspiration—to produce films. He is the Executive Producer of the popular Netflix animated series ‘Arcane,’ which has been earning acclaims like Emmy Awards (it earned 4) and Annie Awards (it won nine).
Partnership with CRETA
In December 2023, Vu entered into a partnership with CRETA, which has committed to back his ongoing game incubation efforts and collaborative initiatives in the production of media programs like games, animations, and even music.
“Oftentimes, when you see people build ecosystems, it’s piecemeal. With CRETA, our team has been really thoughtful and strategic about building all the pieces together harmoniously, and I think that connective tissue is really important. It’s designed to be ubiquitous in all these different ways, and I suspect that it’s going to catch a lot of people off guard,” said Vu. 
Aside from Vu, comprising the team of veteran producers and developers behind CRETA are Kay Youn, CEO of CRETA affiliate CCR and lead developer of the iconic game Fortress; Yoshiki Okamoto, the legendary developer behind Street Fighter 2 and Monster Strike; Joohyung Jang, the game producer behind iconic titles like Lineage and Aion; and Nakazato, Chief Creative Officer and Head of Japan.
“Currently, the team is working on some interesting business models, and the scalability of what we’re building is impressive,” said Vu. “When you think about it, very few teams have 25 plus years of gaming experience—this just doesn’t exist, so the next evolution of existing genres that CRETA is working on is going to be interesting.”
Their combined expertise ensures that CRETA delivers a next-generation gaming experience on a decentralized metaverse platform, where both gamers and professional game studios can provide Web3 games and new gaming services. CRETA also implements S2E (Share to Earn), which combines user video sharing platforms with typical P2E (Play to Earn) and C2E (Create to Earn) features.
During his presentation, Nakazato highlighted the platform’s integrated approach. “Within the CRETA ecosystem, any game can use our social media features. For instance, when you press the start button, our social media can pop up within the game. You don’t need Discord anymore; it’s all in one integrated environment.” 
Nakazato further explained the benefits of CRETA’s blockchain technology, “Another key differentiation for CRETA is its use of the low-cost blockchain, Locus Chain. It’s a very fast and scalable blockchain developed over seven years by our technology engineers who have been making games for 20 years. This ensures the platform is cost-effective and sustainable.”
Users will also be able to join in the evolution, as the platform is equipped with a proprietary Game Creation Engine that will empower them to develop their own games, with the freedom to publish and distribute their creations as NFT’s. Nakazato also announced the scheduled release of the Super Club, a gaming and Web 3.0 social media and community platform, that will begin in late-July.
The company’s goal is clear, according to Nakazato, “There are 3 billion gamers in the world now, but Web3 is very small [in comparison]. So we’re not trying to target Web3 gamers—we are trying to change the entire gaming industry.”
The CRETA token will be listed on local cryptocurrency exchange Coins.ph starting July 8, 2024.
Story combined with materials from Press Release.
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