Have you been following up with recent crypto trends in the gaming sector and want to add some more knowledge? If so, you have just arrived in the right place. This article focuses on how digital currencies are changing things in the gaming world and what the future holds. Well, of course, it should not come as a surprise this sector has welcomed crypto, given the benefits of digital currencies.
We are always seeking better ways to take advantage of technology to improve our experiences. For example, with cryptocurrency, players can now enjoy privacy and many other benefits. It is similar to the crypto industry. Even though many other sectors are benefiting from digital currencies, tech advancements have also proved to be beneficial for this sector. For instance, you can now conveniently do BTC to PKR conversions from any place at any time – either on your phone or laptop. Let us now set off.
The popularity of crypto in gaming
Regions like Asia and North America continue to show unprecedented interest in blockchain games. Actually, recent research shows that on-chain game transactions increased by almost 3000% from 2020 to 2022 alone. It’s actually part of the reason why Techreport believes that the blockchain gaming market has already exceeded the $3 billion mark and could hit $90 billion by 2030.
That is not all. Just last year, GameFi transactions accounted for about $8.7 million, with nearly 60% processed on the Wax blockchain. More developers are now adopting models that use blockchain and DeFi protocols to award gamers assets like NFTs and native utility tokens.
You have probably heard of the PlayDoge, a utility token that offers in-game benefits that you can use outside the game. Imagine now you don’t have just to spend your time accumulating benefits that you cannot use anywhere else. The in-game rewards in crypto games can now be traded for real money. Maybe that is among the reasons for the growing appeal of these games.
How does crypto benefit the gaming industry?
Do you actually know that, according to Fortune Business Insights, nearly half of the blockchain gamers in the US own crypto? At the same time, 80% are interested in using digital currencies to transact in gaming. Assuming you were a developer, would you ignore such statistics? Remember, if you want to be successful in the business world, you can never ignore the power of being customer-centric.
For example, one of the highly sought-after features in gaming is speed. Whether it is the gameplay itself or payments, no one wants to experience delays. And such are some of the things crypto can help minimize. Crypto transactions are quite cheap and fast. This is unlike traditional systems, which take longer to process the payments. Looking at statistics, PYMNTs highlight that 79% of gamers expect instant disbursement.
This is actually a great opportunity for operators who adopt crypto-based payments because by the time PYMNTs was conducting this study, only half of the players could access instant payouts. A few years ago, Coin Market Cap released a report showing that approximately 75% of online gamers were ready to exchange their virtual assets for currency that could allow them to transact on other platforms. That is another good side of crypto – they are tradable anywhere in the world.
Crypto is also a bit more secure than traditional payment methods. Let us take the example of credit cards. You are always required to provide your personal information, which can make you more susceptible to fraud. But with digital currencies, all those details are unnecessary. That improves privacy and the chances of threat actors tampering with your details. After all, how would someone hack into an account that ‘does not exist?’
Examples of crypto games that you will find
Axie Infinity
Developed by Vietnamese studio Sky Mavis, Axie Infinity is popular for its in-game economy, which is based on Ethereum. The games allow you to gather and mint NFTs, which represent digital pets, referred to as Axies – which you can breed and battle. You’ll be expected to spend a 4.25% fee when you trade the creatures on Sky Mavis’ marketplace.
Even though Axie Infinity is still popular, it has experienced some significant challenges in the past. If you remember, the game’s second token, SLP, crashed in early 2022, losing more than 99% of its peak value. As if that was enough, the Ronin Network upon which it is built was compromised just a month after the token was crushed. Some experts actually claim that this is the reason why the number of daily players has decreased from 2.7 million to about 350,000.
Illuvium
Have you played Pokemon before? Illuvium has creatures called Illuviuals, which you can capture like Pokemons and cause to battle against each other. You will capture the Illuvials in the Overworld and play the main game in an autobattler (Arena).
The game is easily accessible. Just visit the Epic site, sign up for a free account and immerse yourself. The Illuvium’s website Chatbot offers keys to help you access the Overworld. While the game performs well on both MacOS and PC, you may want to consider PC for an optimal experience.
The game starts with the player between two massive spires on a pretty and clear foreign planet. Little is known about what you are doing on this planet. But you can jump, glide, run around, jetpack, etc. The game environment is incredible, coupled with high-quality graphics that make for eye candy for players.
You will find NFTS in two forms:
- Virtual land NFTs in the shape of plots offer fuel to explore the Illuvium Overworld
- Collectible NFTs that fight beside you in the arena
Final words
Who could have thought that digital currencies could penetrate the gaming world, especially after receiving mixed reactions at their inception? But anyway, that is what we are now seeing. More game developers are actually turning to crypto to enhance their competitiveness.
If you don’t find a crypto game, you may find crypto-based payment methods. And as we have already highlighted, crypto boasts advantages that many players seek in this contemporary age. For example, who wants to keep waiting for their payouts just because they took too long to be processed?
Digital currencies offer near-instant experiences that allow players to receive payouts almost immediately. Plus, privacy is a growing concern in this sector. Traditional payment methods often require you to fill in personal information, making your data more susceptible—something that doesn’t sit well with many players. Therefore, we may actually see more developers adopt crypto-based technology to appeal to customer-changing behaviors, thus improving competitiveness.
