Over the past few decades, the gaming industry has shifted from providing modest bar entertainment in the form of Pong, PacMan and Co. to a global company worth several billion dollars. Today, video games such as Grand Theft Auto, World of Warcraft and Fortnite are the most valuable entertainment products, far surpassing cinema, music and television.
In recent years, however, player preferences have changed along with the ongoing flow of new games – especially in terms of monetization opportunities. Games such as World of Warcraft, Counterstrike GO and the FIFA series have introduced the concept of owning and trading in-game digital assets for real money – although most publishers still try to ban the latter circumstances.
The introduction of blockchain technology to games has now changed the narrative, as Web3-based games allow trading of in-game assets by default. It is thus no surprise
Telegram Gaming, the next big thing?
If you’ve been a bit active in the crypto space lately, you’ve probably noticed the buzz surrounding Telegram lately. This is primarily due to the emergence of Telegram’s blockchain, The Open Network (TON). In fact, the TON ecosystem is expected to have
Many games debuted on the TON blockchain after NOTCOIN led the charge. These games proved that making money through blockchain games is now as easy as opening a messenger app – Telegram.
One project that TON-focused gamers will find interesting is Panda Roll, a revolutionary Telegram and TON-based “AFK-to-Earn” game that allows players to embark on an exciting journey to earn points and unlock for rare ’emblems’ – even when not actively playing.
This model, originating from Web2 gaming chatrooms such as Discord, has seen significant success in the crypto space in recent years. In fact, Panda Roll attracted over 1.5 million users within just two months of its launch. The mechanics are simple: Panda Roll players can simply click auto-roll, close the application, and then come back in 3 hours to see what rewards they’ve won.
Another gaming project on the TON blockchain is PinEye – an innovative ecosystem that combines social networking, gaming, education, philanthropy and effort on a single platform.
Recent achievements include a partnership with KuCoin to improve trading experiences, a listing on CoinGecko to track market performance, and the upcoming launch of Social Trading.
Other Ton-based games that are attracting attention from the gaming community are Tapswap, Blum, Tomarket, X-Empire, Dogiators, etc.
Blockchain games as a source of income
As already mentioned, in conventional gaming, the in-game assets acquired or purchased by players, including skins, characters and weapons, are generally regulated. Players can invest hours into acquiring them, but they don’t have true custody.
Publishers are free to remove or modify these assets, and they often also prohibit trading of assets outside of their heavily regulated in-game platforms. Furthermore, when their servers cease operations or a player is banned from accessing the service, all assets are forfeited, regardless of whether an actual monetary investment was made to obtain them.
Blockchain technology gives players direct authority over their digital property as non-fungible tokens (NFTs). NFTs mean clear, verifiable ownership of digital assets on the blockchain, enabling players to trade, sell or transfer those assets across different games or platforms.
There are tons of games in the blockchain ecosystem. In particular, 2024 saw a mix of caution and optimism in the Web3 and blockchain gaming investment industry. The second quarter of 2024 was exceptionally successful and marked one of the best results since the 3rd quarter of 2022, with investments totaling 1.1 billion. USD, up 314% from the previous quarter and up 17% from Q2 2023.
For example, SpaceCatch originated as a notable Web3 GameFi project for 2024, created by the esteemed game studio Pixelfield. This advanced augmented reality and Web3 game emulated the successful model of PokemonGo while integrating move-to-earn elements, positioning itself as a potential “PokemonGo killer”.
Remarkably, despite the challenge of being hacked a few months ago, the game has regained prominence and returned even stronger.
Further, Engines of Fury is a free-to-play, post-apocalyptic, top-down mining shooter that uniquely integrates conventional gameplay with blockchain technology by using a unique deflationary token, $FURY, and NFTs. The project is distinguished by its excellent development team, which consists of talent from leading web3 initiatives and AAA studios, while receiving support from major industry players such as Maven Capital and Double Peek Group.
The game offers an immersive experience that allows players to engage in intense extraction-based gameplay in a dynamic economic ecosystem facilitated by the $FURY token and NFT integration.
Realistically, the purpose of decentralization is to give players complete rights and control over in-game assets, making any change to an item impossible without the player’s consent.
Comparison of revenue models and incentives
Conventional game revenue models rely primarily on in-app purchases, subscriptions and advertising. Players invest funds to acquire items or speed advancement; however, the majority of the financial gains accrue predominantly to the developers. Not only that, as soon as a player acquires an item through purchase, they are prohibited from selling or trading it, resulting in a stagnant economy where spending is irreversible.
Web3 games, on the other hand, focus on enabling players to earn money by playing blockchain games, for example by allowing users to create and sell content, such as skins or levels, while receiving token rewards (ie in-game web3 currencies). ). This allows players to create and participate in player-driven economies.
Decentraland and The Sandbox are two examples of Web3 games that allow players to create, sell, and trade digital assets.
A legacy platform, Decentraland operates as a DAO and has institutional backing from prominent entities such as Samsung, the South Korean government, and Polygon. Players can buy, build and sell LAND, creating a thriving marketplace for digital real estate. Decentraland has a native cryptocurrency called MANA which is used for transactions and governance in the world. Investing in virtual real estate is one of the most profitable options for players to consider on Decentraland.
On the other hand, The Sandbox uses a rewarding model that allows players to earn SAND by participating in activities such as playing games, completing quests, or even participating in events. With SAND, users can acquire ASSETS and LAND, use premium features, engage in management decisions, stake for rewards and participate in gaming activities.
Publishers of Web3 games typically make money through fees on any asset transfer from players and also through native tokens – of which a publisher typically keeps a significant amount.
Game transparency
Most people believe that fairness and transparency are essential principles in any competitive gaming context. After all, players require some confidence that the game mechanics are unbiased and that the results are not altered – think of a digital slot where the house makes the chances of winning even slimmer than they should be.
Arguably fair mechanisms represent the solution and blockchain makes this possible. On-chain contracts or trust agreements between players and game developers ensure that all game results are fully transparent and verifiable on the blockchain.
Several blockchain-based games have already implemented the concept of provably fair mechanics. Chainlink VRF (Verifiable Random Function) serves as a solution for developers to guarantee randomness in blockchain-based games. It offers immutable randomness that participants can authenticate on the blockchain.
Satoshi Dice is another example of a certain fair game operating on the Bitcoin Cash blockchain. Each roll’s results are recorded on the blockchain and the hash of the secret key is made public, allowing users to authenticate the fairness of each result.
Make Money With Crypto Games – Step-by-Step Guide
If you are ready to start making money while playing games, make sure to follow all the steps below:
- Configure your Crypto Wallet
Before discussing playing blockchain games, it is appropriate to create a secure digital wallet. Examples include MetaMask, Trust Wallet, Phantom, Tonkeeper, and Telegram Wallet, among others. For beginners, an important lesson is to learn how to keep one’s wallet phase safe to ensure money safety. Do not share it with friends and family for any reason. Keep it safe.
While some games do not require any initial investment, some do. As a result, players should consider adding some cryptocurrency to cover initial transaction or gas fees if needed (usually TON, ETH, or the specific blockchain’s native token).
- Explore profitable games
Searching for a profitable blockchain play can be both simple and challenging. Here’s why: The excitement and urge to earn based on hype can make even seasoned players jump on a game. As much as there are good developers and founders in the ecosystem, bad ones are also present.
For example, $SQUID was marketed on social media as a play-to-earn cryptocurrency to be used in a future Squid Game-inspired video game. It got enormous traction, so much so that the price exceeded expectations. But the developers in the end
Some of the key factors you should always consider before jumping into a blockchain game or investing in its token: Earning model, initial investment requirements (if any), time commitment required, user reviews and community feedback, partnerships, roadmap, tokenomics, track record for team members.
- Learn best practices
The possibility of making money while playing blockchain games is unlimited. There are proven strategies to maximize earnings.
Most experts recommend focusing on daily quests and rewards. Popular platforms include Galxe, Zealy and the Telegram Community mini-app. Sometimes you are also required to participate in special social media events with rewards paid out in game token.
Additionally, it is wise to reinvest earnings strategically to purchase in-game assets. You will only have a lot more fun and see your earnings grow better. A mix of fun and reward is really great for players.
Perhaps most importantly, be sure to look for game-specific strategies on platforms like YouTube and Reddit. There are usually a number of experienced and skilled players sharing their best practices so you can use their experience to quickly improve a game.