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Outbyte PC Repair FREEClear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Outbyte Driver Updater FREEFix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Andreessen Horowitz led a $40 million funding round for Seattle-based Irreverent Labs in May 2022, roughly seven months after leading its $5 million seed round. The startup was developing MechaFightClub, an NFT fighting game, but in May 2023 it announced an indefinite development pause, citing difficulty launching the game’s economy from the United States. The funding was real; the 2022 launch and revenue dates were plans, not confirmed outcomes.
What did Andreessen Horowitz fund?
GeekWire reported on May 9, 2022, that Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) led a $40 million round for Irreverent Labs, a Seattle startup building MechaFightClub. GamesBeat also reported the round and named Solana, Infinity Ventures Crypto, Michael Ovitz, Sonam Kapoor and Capitoria among participants. Neither report establishes that the game generated commercial success.
The financing followed a $5 million seed round led by a16z, reported by GeekWire in November 2021. The second round was a substantial follow-on investment in the company, not evidence that players could already buy or play a finished game.
What was MechaFightClub?
MechaFightClub was pitched as an online fighting game featuring distinctive mechanical, rooster-like characters called mechabots. The game combined AI and blockchain elements and was designed around NFTs on Solana. Players were expected to collect, train, trade, sell and battle these digital fighters.
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Its planned in-game currency, Nuggets, was intended for spending in the game and withdrawal for use on Solana. That design made digital ownership and trading central to the concept, unlike a conventional game in which character progression and items generally remain within the game’s own account system. The reports describe the intended model; they do not establish that all of those features reached a public launch.
What did the company report in 2022?
GeekWire reported that Irreverent Labs had more than 35,000 registered users and 17 employees in May 2022. The user figure was a company-reported registration count, not an independently verified count of active players.
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At the time, the game was expected to launch later in 2022, and revenue was expected in July. Those were forecasts reported in 2022. They should not be read as confirmation that the game launched on schedule or that revenue arrived.
Why was development paused?
On May 12, 2023, Decrypt reported that Irreverent Labs had put MechaFightClub into indefinite hibernation. CEO and co-founder Rahul Sood told Decrypt, “We don’t see a clear path forward to launch the economy from the U.S.” The explanation was the company’s stated concern about the U.S. operating environment and regulatory uncertainty, not a court or regulator’s finding that the game was unlawful.
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The company also said it would repurchase mechabot NFTs. The announcement quoted by Decrypt said: “It’s time for Sol 4 Cocks: we’re repurchasing your Mechabots and putting MFC into indefinite hibernation. This was a tough decision.” Decrypt reported that Irreverent Labs was pivoting toward an AI model intended to create short-form videos from images.
Was MechaFightClub launched or revived?
The available reporting establishes the 2023 indefinite pause, but not a subsequent relaunch of the original game. As observed on October 7, 2026, the official MechaFightClub domain displayed an “MFC World Games” landing page with links labelled “Play Fight Club” and “Cluck Drop private preview.” Those labels alone do not confirm that the paused MechaFightClub game is playable, that its original economy is operating, or that a physical product is available.
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Funding timeline
| Date | Reported event |
|---|---|
| November 15, 2021 | GeekWire reported a $5 million Irreverent Labs seed round led by Andreessen Horowitz. |
| May 9, 2022 | GeekWire and GamesBeat reported a $40 million round led by Andreessen Horowitz. |
| May 2022 | GeekWire reported the company’s user and employee counts and its then-expected launch and revenue timing. |
| May 12, 2023 | Decrypt reported the game’s indefinite pause, planned NFT repurchases and the company’s AI-video pivot. |
What the round does—and does not—show
The financing documents investor backing for Irreverent Labs’ attempt to build a blockchain game and associated technology. It does not, by itself, establish that the game shipped, that its digital assets retained value, or that an in-game economy became viable. For readers assessing the headline today, the key distinction is between the funding announced in 2022 and the development status reported in 2023.
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