What is Serum City?
Serum City is a city-building experience set in the Mutant Cartel section of the Yugaverse, developed by Novel Labs with Faraway. It draws on the Mutant Ape Yacht Club community philosophy—a gritty, surreal universe where mutants are outsiders even among other apes—rendered in an illustrated, comic-illustrated visual approach rather than the glossy 3D typical of Web3 builders. The narrative unfolds through play rather than upfront, positioning it more as a transmedia story than a standard building game.
What you actually do
Core gameplay follows a recognizable arc: master the basics, construct your city segment, and climb through Mutant Cartel ranks until accessing the mysterious Capsule of Kaos. The Capsule opens expanded gameplay. Powerful Gear is assembled there by players "inventive enough to decode the formulas"—recipes stay hidden from view—and this Gear determines leaderboard standing. Along the way you gather Doubloons and Soul Gems, dual in-game resources, tracked on a mutable NFT pass that shifts as you progress.
Seasons, prizes and getting in
Serum City operates through seasonal cycles, each introducing fresh collections, mechanics and rewards rather than starting fresh; the team has shared that Season 2 carries an ApeCoin reward pool with a $100,000 floor. Accessible through a web browser and currently positioned as early access per its front page. Entry carries one real requirement: claiming a pass needs ownership of an eligible collection—Mutant Cartel Oaths, Mutant Hounds, MAYC or BAYC apes—positioning this as a game for that specific audience rather than the general public.
