AEXLAB, the innovative studio behind the popular VR shooter, has launched a groundbreaking crowd-investment marketing campaign to fuel the game’s continued growth and success. According to the studio’s latest announcement, the multiplayer shooter has achieved significant commercial success, with revenues exceeding $5.5 million thus far, driven by a dedicated player base of over 300,000 individuals across PC VR, Quest, and other platforms?
Unlike traditional crowdfunding models that offer products in exchange for initial funding, the Miami-based studio is exploring fairness-based crowd investment to sustain ongoing support.
In a similar move to Virtuix’s support for the production of its Omni One VR treadmill in 2023, AEXLAB is now actively looking for individual investors interested in purchasing a stake in the company and supporting the ongoing manufacturing efforts. The studio’s website notes that it is currently open to minimum investments of $1,000 from individual investors, with a current share price of $36.52 per unit.
Notably, privately held companies’ shares often exhibit illiquidity, lacking a ready market for buying and selling akin to public exchanges. Securing returns on invested capital typically hinges on one of two primary scenarios: the studio is acquired by another entity, or it undergoes an initial public offering (IPO), both considered long-term exit strategies; according to the studio’s FAQ, this process usually takes roughly 5-10 years or longer.
As the pace of XR’s growth remains uncertain, it’s evident that AEXLAB is targeting individuals who aren’t just relying on rapid expansion in the XR industry by a specific timeframe, but also banking on the company’s ability to effectively steer and capitalize on such growth.
“With great pride, we’ve collaborated on something truly remarkable, and it’s only fitting that long-standing team members like yourself get to play a key role in our next chapter.” “That’s an alternative option for partnering with us as we push boundaries and achieve unprecedented success.”
How excessive can go? Since its debut on SteamVR and Quest in the past year, the game has successfully leveraged a distinctive free-to-play/paid hybrid model, offering its Citadel location at no cost, along with 1v1 battles and a playground to test drive its diverse programs and weapons, while selling access to the remainder of the game, including the full range of multiplayer modes. By all indications, the effort seems to be yielding positive results.
As of this writing, the game boasts a stellar 4.8 out of 5 stars on the Horizon Retailer for Quest, based on over 13,000 player reviews, as well as an impressive ‘Very Positive’ overall player rating on Steam from more than 2,300 user critiques.
