Proposal Scrutiny Over Gaming Catalyst Program on Arbitrum

A proposal passed in June by the governance DAO of the Ethereum Layer 2 network Arbitrum to "catalyze gaming ecosystem growth" has faced scrutiny due to poor communication and missed deadlines. This prompted a DAO member to suggest recalling its funding.

Overview of the Gaming Catalyst Program (GCP)

The GCP was approved in June 2023, following its introduction in March. It aims to "immediately expand awareness and adoption of Arbitrum/Orbit/Stylus" within the gaming community. The initiative was allocated 225 million ARB tokens over three years, valued at $215 million initially but now worth about $122 million due to the decline in ARB's price.

Initial Goals and Missed Deadlines

With a 76% approval, the GCP outlined several goals for its first four months (June 10 to Oct. 10). Goals include electing interim council members, issuing Requests for Proposals (RFPs), opening grant applications, and establishing communication channels. However, member Joseph Schiarizzi (@CupOJoseph) reported that deadlines for creating a website, issuing RFPs, and considering grants were missed, and it's uncertain if permanent council members were elected. Updates have been infrequent compared to the proposed biweekly updates.

Funding Recall Proposal

Schiarizzi suggested recalling 220 million ARB tokens (approximately $118.6 million) from the GCP’s multisig wallet due to non-compliance with oversight obligations. He intends to raise awareness about the missed deadlines rather than eliminate the funding entirely, seeking better transparency from the GCP instead.

Response from Offchain Labs

Steven Goldfeder, CEO of Offchain Labs (Arbitrum's developer), responded that biweekly calls have occurred and that the GCP's setup is complex, leading to reasonable delays. He stated that a transparency report promised in the original proposal hasn’t been released yet since the program is still being established.

Ongoing Discussions and Future Intentions

Schiarizzi mentioned GCP council members indicated they would formalize the program's start date soon. He expressed hope for better public updates and reiterated that his goal is to see GCP succeed, not to undermine it.

Schiarizzi emphasized the importance of commitment to the original agreement made by the community during GCP's proposal.