Future Of Play to Earn NFT Gaming Economy

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Play-to-earn is a new trend that is developing in the gaming industry. It is a modernistic business approach in the gaming world that embraces the concept of the open economy and creates an ecosystem from which the gamers will be able to benefit financially. 

The story of the gaming industry since the beginning has always been following a pattern where neither the game developers nor the gamers got to earn much. It was always the game publishers or the platform where the game is launched that swept a huge share of the revenue. But the future of gaming does not look the same way. And the reason for this is the rise of the P2E NFT games

What is a P2E game?

Play-to-earn is a new concept in gaming where the gamers get to generate revenue while playing the game. This is made possible by blockchain technology, the immutability, and the ownership aspects it brings to the table. In these games, the in-game assets are most probably non-fungible tokens. The NFTs are one of the most promising digital assets to invest in the recent times. The NFTs that come along with an in-game utility are a jackpot for all the NFT enthusiasts out there. As the value of these NFTs is bound to increase over time. 

How does a gamer make money by playing a game?

So, yeah, the answer to the question ‘how does a gamer earn via playing the game’ is simple. Although it completely depends on the concept of the game, let’s look into it on a general note. The game will have non-fungible tokens as in-game assets. The users will either have to buy these NFTs to play the game, or they will win these assets by accomplishing a specific task in the game. In most games, these assets get upgraded the more tasks the user completes. This adds value to these NFTs. Now, the gamer can list these NFTs on secondary marketplaces for sale. Any other gamer who is in need of the NFT to get to the next level of the game or use it to play will buy it. Thus the user gets to earn from the game. Another popular method is where the gamers receive the native token of the game for winning a race or completing a task. Now that we are clear with the how to make money part let’s dive deep into the P2E game economy. 

Rise of the P2E Paradigm In The Gaming Economy

Professional gaming is an industry that is worth $336 billion, with almost 3 billion people spending around eight hours per week in the digital realm. In today’s world, as games and crypto meet each other to create a new paradigm in gaming, it thereby connects the economics of the game with real-world finance. This is achieved by providing the ownership of the in-game assets to the gamers and making them transferable on the blockchain. As we all know, web3.0 is here, and P2E gaming is a future that is branching out from the same. Going forward, let’s check up on the games that have already made their mark in this sector. 

P2E games that are already a blockbuster 

Not one or two, but we already have a few on the list. Keep reading to know more about them. 

Axie Infinity 

Axie Infinity may not be the first P2E NFT game to be developed, but it is the first one that comes to mind when someone utters the word NFT game. That is the level of impact it made on the Philipines. Documentaries were filmed about how this game changed the lives of the people during the lockdown period. Heavily inspired by Pokemon, this game has avatars named axies that are NFTs. The gamers will have to buy these axies and fight battles to win the native token of the game. The axies can also be sold on the secondary marketplace. This game also offers options like the scholarship program where axie owners can rent their axies to newbie gamers and get paid even without playing. Multiple sources of revenue from one game! 

Gods Unchained

Gods Unchained is a free-to-play game. Yes, unlike Axie Infinity, the gamer does not need to pay upfront to play the game. It is a strategic card game where gamers have to collect cards by buying them or winning them from other players. There are cards with different powers; the gamers have to collect a combination of these cards to battle against other gamers. The player who devises the perfect strategy will win the battle. And the winner is rewarded with experience points. Since each card is an ERC-721 token, it can be traded on the marketplace. Gods Unchained is an alternative way to make money if you are good at strategies. 

Splinterlands

Splinterlands is also a strategy card game similar to Gods Unchained. But it can’t be put off the list due to its remarkable success as a P2E NFT game. However, there is one difference Splinterlands is not free to play the game. The users will have to buy a pack of cards to enter the game. And they will have to unveil these cards once they enter the game. If they are lucky enough, they may find some rare cards on their very first pack itself. However, the gameplay is more or less similar to Gods Unchained. 

Sorare

Sorare stands out from the other games mentioned above as it is a fantasy football game. This means the chances of winning in this game is correlated with real-life football matches. The gamers get to collect fan cards of real-life footballers as the first step. Then they will have to create a team using the cards they have for a football tournament that is held in the real world. Now, the gamer scores points the more goals the players in the team they created the score. Since it is interrelated with the real-life game, player cards of legendary players like Messi, Ronaldo, Neymar, etc., will be considered rare and powerful. These cards can be traded in secondary marketplaces.

Final Thoughts

Apart from the games mentioned above, there are a few interesting P2E games in the making. One of which would be Meta Cricket League, an NFT cricket game. I specially mention this game as it is the first in the cricket arena. The NFTs of this game are to be dropped on jump.trade on the 22nd of April, 2022. With many more interesting P2E games to be launched this year, it is growing into an unbeatable economy of the future.