Curio raises $5.7 million to launch onchain wagering strategy game Duper

Fully onchain game developer Curio has raised $5.7 million in a funding round co-led by its original lead investor Bain Capital Crypto, and SevenX Ventures. OKX Ventures also participated. With $2.9 million raised in 2023, this takes Curio’s total funding to $8.6 million. 

Founded in 2022, Curio has previously launched 4X strategy game demo Treaty. In conjunction with the recent funding news, the team has released season 1 of its flagship wagering strategy game Duper. Riding on the current rise of web3 wagering games, “poker for web3” Duper offers social team-play, where 5 players engage in 40 minute high-stakes matches. The game is browser-based and deployed fully onchain.

“While most crypto games attempt to imitate existing video games, we looked in another direction at classic board games and card games that are simple, infinitely re-playable, and integrate stakes with the game meaningfully, as part of the core game design. Because of this unique form factor, Duper is highly accessible,” commented Curio co-founder Kevin Zhang.

“We’ve worked with the Curio team since inception and continue to be impressed with their vision for how next generation games can leverage blockchain components,” said Bain Capital Crypto partner Stephan Cohen. 

“By focusing on emergent social dynamics and skill-based wagering, Curio combines the best elements of classic games like Poker and Mahjong with the immersive nature of video games.”