VEXI Villages (formerly Project Cerberus) is Gala Games mobile first utility game, built with The Sims creator Will Wright & powered by Unity. The game transforms Gala’s 35,552 unique avatars into fully playable, evolving characters with independent behaviours & progression paths. What began as three standalone initiatives, Plutus, Land Sale & Get Plucked, has unified into a cohesive idle gameplay experience that blends economy simulation, avatar ownership & land based mechanics. Designed to be accessible & frictionless, VEXI Villages simplifies blockchain complexity while enabling meaningful player ownership, progression & long term engagement within Gala’s broader ecosystem.
Gala
PLATFORM
- IOS
- Android
- Web
TEAM
- 5 × Stakeholder
- 3 × Developers
- 2 × QA Engineer
- 2 × Product Lead
- 2 × Product Designers
- 2 × Animators
- 1 × Game Designer
- 1 × Game Producer
- 1 × Marketer
PARTNERS
- AMC
- Coinbase
- DreamWorks
- Gallium Studios
- NBC Universal
- Trolls
- Unity
- Upland
CONTRIBUTION
- Product Strategy
- User Research
- User Interface Design
- Product Design
- Branding
- Social Media Marketing
- Animation
A game-verse where avatars grow, evolve & earn across dynamic worlds.
ABOUT THE COMPANY
Gala is redefining entertainment through a creator-first, decentralised ecosystem spanning Music, Games, Film & VOX. By leveraging blockchain, Gala empowers artists & fans with ownership of content & experiences. By breaking down industry barriers, Gala gives communities a stake in the entertainment they love, pioneering a democratized future.
ABOUT THE PRODUCT
The Player Revolution Starts Here...
▶ Will Wright
Creator of SimCity & The Sims
CONTEXT
Gala Games set out to build a world where 35,552 unique voxel avatars could live, evolve & play. To bring this vision to life, three projects were launched: Plutus focused on player earning & trading, Land Sale introduced digital land ownership, & Get Plucked brought voxel personalities to life. These initiatives converged as Project Cerberus, now VEXI Villages, a mobile-first game where every avatar is in control & every reward holds real-world value. Players can craft, merge, collect & grow. The platform simplifies blockchain, delivering an experience with ownership at its core, no technical knowledge required.
CONTEXT
Gala Games set out to build a world where 35,552 unique voxel avatars could live, evolve & play. To bring this vision to life, three projects were launched: Plutus focused on player earning & trading, Land Sale introduced digital land ownership, & Get Plucked brought voxel personalities to life. These initiatives converged as Project Cerberus, now VEXI Villages, a mobile-first game where every avatar is in control & every reward holds real-world value. Players can craft, merge, collect & grow. The platform simplifies blockchain, delivering an experience with ownership at its core, no technical knowledge required.
Gala was founded in 2018 as Gala Games, with the goal of creating a blockchain-based gaming ecosystem
Gala officially launches VOX in collaboration with The Sims creator Will Wright, DreamWorks, AMC & Unity amongst others
Gala recruits Lead Designer Ainam Mania to spearhead the creation of its player first user experience
Get Plucked, Land Sale & Plutus unite as Cerberus, expanding on Gala’s VOX IP
Gala rebrands & unveils a new mobile-first game “VEXI Villages”, which is built on the UX design foundation of Cerberus
▶ DreamWorks
Trolls come to the VOXverse
IMPACT
Ainam Mania led the user experience strategy for Gala Games’ Project Cerberus, the foundational initiative behind VEXI Villages, a blockchain game redefining player ownership. Collaborating closely with a cross-functional team, Ainam Mania innovated core systems for player earning, digital land ownership & avatar identity, crafting an intuitive experience that removes blockchain complexity & puts players first. This player-centric approach delivers real-world value rewards, drives deep engagement & expands blockchain gaming to a wider audience, setting a new industry standard.
IMPACT
Ainam Mania led the user experience strategy for Gala Games’ Project Cerberus, the foundational initiative behind VEXI Villages, a blockchain game redefining player ownership. Collaborating closely with a cross-functional team, Ainam Mania innovated core systems for player earning, digital land ownership & avatar identity, crafting an intuitive experience that removes blockchain complexity & puts players first. This player-centric approach delivers real-world value rewards, drives deep engagement & expands blockchain gaming to a wider audience, setting a new industry standard.
Get Plucked brought early avatar traits & utility to life through mini-games
Plutus tested how players earn, trade & interact with a tokenised economy
Land Sale introduced ownership mechanics through digital real estate
🦴 CERBERUS
The highly anticipated VOX mobile title
Design Tool Stack
DESIGN THINKING PROCESS
In the phase of Gala Games’ player driven economy, Ainam Mania led a human centered design thinking approach to rethink the future of blockchain gaming. By gaining insight & analysing player behaviour, motivations & pain points, Ainam Mania worked across design, development & product to align the team around a shared vision. Through prototyping & hands on iteration, core systems including earning, trading, digital land ownership & avatar identity were designed to feel seamless, intuitive & rewarding. By eliminating technical barriers & prioritising players, the team delivered a frictionless, engaging experience designed for real players, not just crypto natives.
EMPHATHISE
- Stakeholder Interview
- Data Analysis
- Surveys
- User Interview
- Competitor Analysis
DEFINE
- User Personas
- User Stories
- Problem Statement
IDEATE
- Brainstorm Sessions
- User Flow
- Navigation
PROTOTYPE
- Medium Fidelity Wireframes
- High Fidelity Prototype
- Interaction Design
- Motion Design
- Design Hand-offs
TEST
- Usability Testing
- Quality Assurance (QA) Testing
- Analytics
- Metrics
DESIGN THINKING PROCESS
In the phase of Gala Games’ player driven economy, Ainam Mania led a human centered design thinking approach to rethink the future of blockchain gaming. By gaining insight & analysing player behaviour, motivations & pain points, Ainam Mania worked across design, development & product to align the team around a shared vision. Through prototyping & hands on iteration, core systems including earning, trading, digital land ownership & avatar identity were designed to feel seamless, intuitive & rewarding. By eliminating technical barriers & prioritising players, the team delivered a frictionless, engaging experience designed for real players, not just crypto natives.
EMPHATHISE
- Stakeholder Interview
- Data Analysis
- Surveys
- User Interview
- Competitor Analysis
DEFINE
- User Personas
- User Stories
- Problem Statement
IDEATE
- Brainstorm Sessions
- User Flow
- Navigation
PROTOTYPE
- Medium Fidelity Wireframes
- High Fidelity Prototype
- Interaction Design
- Motion Design
- Design Hand-offs
TEST
- Usability Testing
- Quality Assurance (QA) Testing
- Analytics
- Metrics
▶ AMC
The Walking Dead VOX
01
DISCOVERY: EMPHATHISE + DEFINE
Shaping Gameplay Through Strategic Use of Player Discovery
From the ground up, Ainam Mania led the product discovery for Gala Games’ first mobile blockchain title. Leading the effort to shape a new game experience from scratch, Ainam Mania initiated a user-first process to align gameplay mechanics, UX strategy & Gala’s broader ecosystem goals. With no prior blueprint, the team conducted hands-on audits of early ideas, mapped potential friction points, & identified critical player motivations. This phase was followed by strategic working sessions across design, development & product, ensuring all creative efforts aligned with core technical requirements. Using design thinking principles, Ainam Mania translated player research into foundational gameplay systems: earning, land ownership & avatar identity, delivering product requirements & experience flows based on real behaviour. This process laid the groundwork for Project Cerberus: a frictionless, player-first blockchain game built for real users, setting the stage for Gala Games’ next-gen economy.
User Personas
User research revealed valuable insights into how different player types engage with blockchain games, in-game assets & progression mechanics. Through workshops, player interviews & gameplay observation, Ainam Mania uncovered a diverse range of motivations, frustrations & unmet expectations, shaping a clearer understanding of what modern players need from immersive gaming experiences.
These insights helped define key opportunities to simplify complexity, deepen immersion & reward meaningful gameplay. Drawing from this research, Ainam Mania developed clear player personas & narrative archetypes that captured the motivations, goals & behaviours of Gala Games’ core audiences, from casual collectors & social explorers to competitive earners & ecosystem builders. These profiles served as a strategic foundation for gameplay systems, UX flows & economy design. By aligning features with real world behaviours, the team was able to address key pain points, reduce friction & enhance long term engagement.
The personas remained a reference point throughout development, guiding key decisions around onboarding, ownership, social features & game economy mechanics. This player first framework ensured the product didn’t just serve a blockchain audience, but welcomed a broader generation of players into Gala’s ecosystem.
Background
The Builder is a strategic, economy-focused player who thrives on ownership, progression & long-term planning. They view the game as a sandbox for creation & control from land ownership to avatar management, they are invested in shaping systems & maximising customisation.
The Builder is a strategic, economy-focused player who thrives on ownership, progression & long-term planning. They view the game as a sandbox for creation & control from land ownership to avatar management, they are invested in shaping systems & maximising customisation.
Goals
They aim to establish thriving in-game economies through land management, crafting loops & avatar utility. They seek tools that reward their time & ingenuity, including rare item production, resource systems & customisable gameplay mechanics that support depth, experimentation & community trade.
Challenges
The Builder gets frustrated when systems lack transparency or economic depth. When land ownership feels static or crafting systems are oversimplified, their motivation drops. They are also hindered by poor marketplace interfaces or unclear earning mechanics that limit their ability to optimise gameplay.
User Story
The Builder wants a platform where creativity, ownership & progression intertwine. They want to design, refine & control economic outcomes, while collaborating with a thriving player base. When rewarded for their investment & strategy, they become core contributors who drive the in-game economy forward.
Background
The Collector is a rarity-driven user who values aesthetic design, provenance & long-term asset utility. They often enter the ecosystem through NFT collecting & stay for the opportunity to grow their collection while maintaining its prestige & exclusivity.
The Collector is a rarity-driven user who values aesthetic design, provenance & long-term asset utility. They often enter the ecosystem through NFT collecting & stay for the opportunity to grow their collection while maintaining its prestige & exclusivity.
Goals
They seek high-rarity, limited-edition avatars or assets with real-world utility & status. Collectors want to display, trade & flex their items in a meaningful way, whether through gameplay advantages, leaderboards or social recognition.
Challenges
The Collector loses interest when rarity is diluted or the value of their assets is unclear. Lack of transparency around scarcity, future utility or marketplace liquidity undermines their trust. They also disengage when there are no tools to showcase or interact with their collection.
User Story
The Collector wants a platform that treats digital assets with the same prestige as physical collectibles. They want to see their investment reflected in gameplay & community recognition & seek tools that allow them to showcase, verify & protect their collection in a thriving, prestige-driven ecosystem.
Background
The Gamer is an experience-first player who values immersive gameplay, responsive controls & consistent progression. They are attracted to play-to-earn mechanics, but stay for rich storylines, live events & the satisfaction of levelling up.
The Gamer is an experience-first player who values immersive gameplay, responsive controls & consistent progression. They are attracted to play-to-earn mechanics, but stay for rich storylines, live events & the satisfaction of levelling up.
Goals
They seek fluid, intuitive gameplay experiences that reward their time and skill. They crave narrative depth, seasonal content & live features like tournaments or time-based quests that keep engagement fresh.
Challenges
They disengage when the user experience & interface is clunky, progression feels gated, or events are repetitive. When play-to-earn mechanics feel like chores or lack excitement, they quickly shift to games with better feedback loops & polish.
User Story
The Gamer wants a responsive, immersive platform where gameplay comes first & rewards feel like a bonus. They want to explore stories, compete with friends & grow their skills over time. When their feedback is valued & systems evolve, they become loyal users who drive engagement.
Background
The Newcomer is a Web2-native player curious about blockchain gaming but hesitant about technical barriers. They are used to polished, accessible mobile games & are often introduced through social features or casual gameplay hooks.
The Newcomer is a Web2-native player curious about blockchain gaming but hesitant about technical barriers. They are used to polished, accessible mobile games & are often introduced through social features or casual gameplay hooks.
Goals
They want to get started quickly & easily, with minimal friction. They value clear onboarding, guided tutorials & simplified wallet integration. They are motivated by early wins & community support.
Challenges
They abandon when sign-up is confusing, wallet creation is unclear, or the value proposition is buried under jargon. Complex interfaces, unfamiliar terminology & poor onboarding cause them to bounce quickly.
User Story
The Newcomer needs a game that feels familiar, rewarding & approachable. They want to feel supported from the first tap, with helpful guides & community nudges that build confidence. When trust is earned & value is unlocked gradually, they convert into invested, long-term players.
Competitor Analysis Breakdown
Following a comprehensive analysis of leading platforms, we developed a clear understanding of the evolving blockchain gaming landscape. In-depth research assessed each platform’s strengths, limitations, & market positioning, with competitors categorised into four distinct segments based on core technology, gameplay architecture, avatar systems, & player ownership models.
This analysis revealed a clear opportunity for Gala Games to unify high-fidelity avatar integration, frictionless blockchain systems, & mobile-first gameplay within a single, player-owned experience. While no competitor has successfully integrated 35,000+ procedurally generated avatars into a seamless mobile environment, Gala Games differentiates itself through scalable avatar rigging, real-time optimisation, & dynamic player ownership. This positions Gala Games not only to compete in Web3 gaming but to define a new standard for immersive, decentralised play at scale.
3D Open-World Games
Decentraland & The Sandbox pioneer decentralised, open-world gaming centred on user-generated content & digital land ownership. However, limited gameplay depth, narrative cohesion, & scalable avatar progression mean engagement remains concentrated among early adopters.
Token-Centric Battle Games
Axie Infinity & Illuvium centre gameplay around token economies and play-to-earn mechanics. Although strong on economic design, these titles typically offer limited character diversity, minimal social depth, & performance constraints that restrict scalability for mobile-first, mass-market play at scale.
Creator-Driven Games
Roblox & Fortnite empower large-scale creativity through accessible tools & thriving creator ecosystems. Despite high engagement, they operate within centralised models where players lack true ownership of assets, currencies, or content, limiting long-term player agency beyond platform control.
Infrastructure-Led Solutions
Immutable & Enjin provide the technical backbone for Web3 gaming through asset tooling, smart contracts, & wallet infrastructure. While robust at the protocol layer, these solutions rarely deliver complete game experiences or address player-facing challenges such as UX, identity, & avatar systems.
02
CONCEPTING: IDEATE + PROTOTYPE + TEST
Crafting The Foundation for Scalable Player-Centric Expansion
Following an in-depth discovery phase, player motivations, behavioural patterns & competitive insights laid the foundation for the concepting phase of Gala Games’ new mobile-first title. This stage focused on translating player research into actionable game design, rethinking how blockchain, ownership & community can enhance play. Through cross-functional workshops & collaborative ideation, the team mapped gameplay loops, outlined core systems & explored mechanics that would make ownership, trading & progression feel intuitive & rewarding.
Early prototypes brought key concepts to life, allowing for rapid validation of gameplay elements like avatar identity, land ownership, earning mechanics & onboarding. A/B testing & iterative playtesting enabled the team to double down on features that drove engagement, simplified blockchain complexity & aligned with player expectations.
A modular design system was built using atomic principles, allowing consistency across web & mobile while maintaining performance. Despite a fast-paced development cycle, interaction design, visual hierarchy & system feedback were carefully considered to prioritise clarity, delight & accessibility. This user-first, iterative approach helped transform Gala Games’ original IP into a playable, scalable & deeply engaging experience redefining what decentralised gaming can feel like in the hands of real players.
Core Insights, Design Tradeoffs, Product Triumphs & Conclusions
The journey from Project Cerberus to VEXI Villages represents a natural evolution of Gala Games’ vision to create immersive, player-driven blockchain worlds. At the heart of this progression are the foundational design principles and systems championed by Ainam Mania during Cerberus, principles that continue to guide and elevate the player experience.
Ainam Mania’s leadership on Project Cerberus laid the groundwork for Gala Games’ advances in seamless onboarding, intuitive gameplay, and player ownership. These core innovations removed blockchain complexity to deliver engaging, player-first experiences. Building on this momentum, VEXI Villages expanded into a vibrant metaverse, deepening social interaction, land management, and avatar customisation. Ainam Mania’s early design principles continue to shape Gala’s direction, enabling scalable, accessible, and immersive blockchain gaming. This progression reflects Gala Games’ ongoing commitment to evolving player-centric worlds, powered by the foundational work Ainam Mania pioneered.