Tech executives and startups are increasingly jumping on the Web3 gaming bandwagon, which has recently made headlines worldwide. The tech industry and investors have shown much interest in Web3 because it gives users more control over their digital identities.
Web3 is a term that will grow in popularity, but many are still trying to understand what it means and how they can benefit from it.
What is this Web3 Technology?
Learning what web3 technology is necessary before delving into how it is used in gaming. The third generation of the Internet, also known as Web3 or Web 3.0, is focused on user empowerment through decentralized protocols.
Web3 is the newest iteration of the Internet. It allows users to access free platforms in exchange for data and participate in the management and upkeep of the protocols themselves.
What exactly is Web3 Gaming?
For those interested in making money through their leisure time, Web3 gaming is a growing industry. Web3 games (also known as play-to-earn games, P2E games, blockchain games, crypto games, or non-fungible token games) are digital games powered by the blockchain.
Players can earn and keep virtual assets in NFTs or cryptocurrencies to use in these games. These games deviate from the standard F2P/P2P model, allowing players to exchange virtual holdings for cash.
The Growth of Web3 Gaming
Over the past several years, the gaming industry has become one of the most important in technology.
Some reports claim that by 2020, the “geek” and “outsider” subculture that mainstream America had previously ignored had become more lucrative than the movie and sports industries. As a result of the many advantages that NFTs and cryptocurrency offer, the gaming industry is rapidly growing in importance within the blockchain community.
The gaming industry has an enormous impact on the blockchain space, and it actively now accounts for 52 per cent of all blockchain activity. In 2018, blockchain-based games surpassed Defi as the most popular category, with over 1.4 million daily active wallet connections.
Types of Web3 Games
When discussing web3 gaming, it can be useful to distinguish between several distinct categories:
1. Free to play
As the name implies, “free to play” video games don’t cost anything to access. Developers and publishers rely heavily on paid add-ons to rake in cash.
Recent statistics show that the F2P market generated US$75.6 bn in 2021, up from US$73.8 bn in 2022, thanks to the popularity of games like FIFA 2022, Gran Turismo 7, and Mario Kart 8.
2. Play to Earn
Although most games require an initial investment before you can play, the blockchain makes it so that your in-game assets are yours to trade, exchange, or store.
You can use your assets in other games; if the developer of your favourite games suddenly stopped making games, you could easily export them and use them in the next big thing.
3. On-Demand Gaming in the Cloud
As of 2021, the game’s 22 million subscribers brought in only US$1.5 billion in revenue thanks to the subscription model.
It is a relatively small number compared to the three billion gamers in the world, but by 2024, revenue is expected to have quadrupled, and the number of players will have surpassed 50 million.
With a yearly revenue of $1.3 billion, Axie Infinity ranks as the fourth most valuable dApp this year.
Evolutionary Principles of Gaming 3.0
To begin, it is important to recognize that web3 games build on the foundation established by web2 games.
A central theme in web3 games is the redistribution of control to the players. Who owns them, how they can be used, and how much money can be made from them are all aspects of virtual goods and in-game currency that are evolving rapidly.
Users will experience profound shifts in the ownership of in-game accomplishments, items, and tokens due to virtual goods and in-game currency being stored on-chain, which is a huge deal for game developers.
What to Look for in a Blockchain-Based Game
1. Ability to Exercise Complete Ownership and Effortless Transfer of Assets
Self-determination is the defining characteristic of blockchain games because players can exercise ownership over their accounts.
With NFTs, players could legitimately claim ownership of every virtual good and collectable they acquired. Web3 uses competition to promote asset interoperability, guaranteeing that users retain full ownership of their original creations in-game. In-game items from one game can be taken to another and used there.
2. Accessibility and Openness
The distributed nature of the Web3 gaming system is one of its most distinguishing features. You do not need to rely on a single server in centralized games.
New features can be implemented in blockchain-based games via voting agreements. This paves the way for a wider variety of accessible Web3 games.
On top of that, the Web3 gaming environment runs autonomously with little intervention from a centralized authority, guaranteeing unprecedented accessibility.
3. Extending the Life of Outdated Games
When traditional games are updated and incorporated into the crypto-gaming metaverse, they become truly decentralized. It also allows for customization so users can only play their favourite games.
It is an improvement over the original games because it brings them into the metaverse, where users can create their avatars and buy, sell, and barter with virtual goods.
4. Scalable
Web3 gaming ecosystems are self-sustaining, requiring little in the way of regular maintenance and no oversight from any governing body.
Due to block minting and a large game data storage capacity, blockchain gaming offers almost no downtime and is highly scalable.
Top Web3 Games Today
- One such blockchain-based metaverse is called Alien Worlds, and it can be found on chains such as Ethereum (ETH), WAX, and Binance Smart Chain. This method depends on NFT and autonomous decentralized organizations (DAO). The main objective is to explore new worlds in search of Trilium (TLM), the game’s utility token, and a multi-chain token.
- Axie Infinity is a monster-fighting video game in which players form teams to take on lovable monsters known as Axies. The game utilizes both the Ethereum blockchain and a companion sidechain called Ronin, which works to reduce transaction fees and boost transaction speeds. Turn-based battles against AI-controlled Axies or other players over the Internet are the game’s main focus.
- Thirdly, there is Splinterlands, a trading card game that uses the blockchain as its backend. Cards can be owned as NFTs and traded using Bitcoin or Ethereum. The lucky winners can buy and sell the cards for real cash on secondary markets. To play, players must sign up for an account or link an existing Web3 wallet, such as MetaMask, to the game’s Ethereum blockchain.
- WAX hosts the popular crypto game Farmer’s World. Farmers World Wood (FWW), Farmers World Food (FWF), and Farmers World Gold (FWG) are the three game tokens used in play (FWG). You spend most of your time in the game using NFT equipment to acquire the three tokens, purchase NFT plots for agricultural purposes, and care for NFT livestock.
Participating in Web3 Gaming
Web3 development is much less difficult than it first appears, and no specialized knowledge is required; all you need is time and motivation.
For instance, whether you are a developer, engineer, or student, you can use any platform to create an NFT-based browser game. It is a great way to learn more about NFTs, cryptocurrencies, and dApps.
Creating a video game always takes a team effort. Connecting traditional engines like Unreal or Unity to Web3 via the available SDKs is also an option (which are currently very limited in number).
The Future of Web3 Gaming
It is also worthwhile remembering that Ethereum’s current market dominance in NFTs and games is guaranteed to last. While it is a good starting point, it has been shown to have scalability and pricing inefficiencies.
To date, the web3 gaming industry has done nothing wrong. There is a significant difference, however, when play-to-earn games incorporate blockchain features.
In theory, web3 games could be designed to be a viable source of income in and of themselves. Furthermore, players may be rewarded in NFTs or cryptocurrencies, which they may then choose to trade.
Regardless, the future of Web3 gaming will involve interoperability between blockchains and subchains that enable developers to work on specific and customized games for their target audiences. Thanks to DLT, game publishers can pay more attention to quality while still rewarding players and creators fairly.
Patricia Smith is an experienced content writer & strategist with hands-on knowledge of technical and non-technical content and expertise in crafting content that creates value for the user. Nowadays, she is focusing on sharing knowledge about Web3 game development, NFT for games, Web3 for business, and more. Stay tuned to learn more about these trending topics.
