Gaming-dedicated EVM chain launched as an Avalanche L1/subnet by the Merit Circle DAO, with BEAM as the native gas token. Provides game-focused SDKs (Unity, TypeScript, C#), self-custodial + managed wallet flows, a built-in NFT marketplace, and LayerZero-based bridging.
- 01Avalanche-aligned web3 games
- 02Unity game integrations
- 03managed (custodial) game wallets
- 04in-game NFT marketplaces
- 05BEAM token economies and staking
- pnpm add @onbeam/sdk viem
| Variable | Scope | Description |
|---|---|---|
| NEXT_PUBLIC_BEAM_PUBLISHABLE_KEY | Client | Beam publishable API key from the Beam developer console. |
| BEAM_API_KEY | Server | Server-side Beam API key for managed-wallet ops, marketplace listings, and asset endpoints. |
Use the Beam SDK (`@onbeam/sdk` for web/Node, `beam-sdk-unity` for Unity) to authenticate players, mint and transfer game items, and list/buy on the Beam marketplace via the official Beam APIs. For raw chain access use viem with `chainId: 4337` (Beam mainnet) and the Beam RPC. Managed-wallet flows let games sign on behalf of users via Beam's API — exchange a session token for a signing endpoint instead of holding a private key client-side.
- ⚑Beam is an Avalanche L1 (formerly subnet) — bridging in/out depends on the Beam bridge (LayerZero-based) operated by the Merit Circle DAO; outages or congestion stall asset moves and there is no permissionless escape hatch like an Ethereum rollup.
- ⚑Managed wallets are custodial: Beam's infra holds signing capability, so a Beam outage or policy change can lock players out of their assets even though balances are 'on-chain'.
- ⚑Marketplace and royalty enforcement happen at the Beam marketplace contract; selling Beam NFTs through a third-party EVM marketplace (if even routable) bypasses creator royalties.
- ⚑Gas is paid in BEAM, not AVAX or ETH — onboarding flows must fund players with BEAM (often via game faucet/sponsored tx) or transactions silently fail with insufficient-funds.
- ⚑Beam SDK packages span multiple languages (TypeScript, C# Unity, server SDKs) and version independently — pin versions per platform and don't assume a TS feature exists in Unity yet.
- ⚑Subgraph / indexer support outside Beam's own GraphQL API is sparse; expect to run your own indexer or rely on Beam-hosted endpoints for analytics.