Crypto experts make a strong case for blockchain-based games - Kalkine Media

In a recent interview, David Kim, WAX's head of publishing, and Michael Rubinelli, WAX’s head of game studios, expressed their strong belief that the crypto industry and games will be even more connected in the future. WAX stands for Worldwide Asset eXchange; it’s a carbon-neutral blockchain, with a namesake token.

Kim and Rubinelli, veterans in their respective sectors, discussed about the most popular topics in the sphere, including NFTs, the metaverse, and the blockchain’s video gaming capabilities. While all three concepts seem to be dropping in popularity in search engines, they are far from irrelevant. The sales on the WAX blockchain have doubled in the last quarter of 2021 and have remained higher than usual since, according to Kim.

“I’m not sure if the "hype" will go back up, but we believe that long-term interest in and engagement with metaverses and NFTs will grow ad infinitum as utility increases and security concerns are allayed,” Kim said.

When asked about the future of the play-to-earn (P2E) gaming model, Rubinelli said that in his opinion, the adoption of free-to-play was being witnessed all over again. According to Rubinelli’s 20 years in the industry, play-to-earn or play-and-earn elements could be expected within all games in the next few years. Connection to the blockchain is another anticipated addition for mainstream games. Yet, Rubinelli believes it is unlikely they will be fully operating on the blockchain.

The statistics are clear – a 2021 report published by the Blockchain Gaming Alliance (BGA) claims the blockchain gaming industry is on an upward trajectory. Many respondents in the survey agreed with the WAX team when asked for their opinion on how much blockchain technology will affect gaming in the upcoming years.

Blockchain gaming is already taking up 22% of all NFT trading volume. For example, NFT games have accumulated US$2.32 billion in revenue in Q3 2021. Axie Infinity, a Pokemon-inspired NFT, currently holds the record with its US$4 billion in all-time sales.

Axie Infinity was born in the middle of the NFT craze in 2021, and it’s the biggest proponent of the term “play-to-earn.” The game has onboarded millions onto Web3 and provided a new source of income for some countries. According to its co-founder, Aleksander Larsen, about 50% of the players opened a cryptocurrency wallet specifically for the game and had never used one before.

This game has started a discussion around the play-and-earn and play-and-own models. These models have certainly proved effective in enticing users to join Web3 and get into cryptocurrency. The Web3 native platforms increase accessibility, allowing those who would otherwise be indifferent to the new technology to jump onboard.

The same report also emphasises the metaverse as one of the key drivers of the value brought in by the virtual world’s decentralised apps (dApps) - skyrocketing it to US$4.6 billion by the end of November 2021. Dragos Dunica, the co-founder of DappRadar (a decentralised app store), believes all technology will streamline toward the metaverse, as this environment supposedly has the potential to be all-encompassing.

However, this is just the beginning. More funds are being poured into blockchain gaming companies, with Epic Games’ recent funding round making some jaws drop. The company behind Fortnite, which is one of the most popular PC and console games in recent years, announced a US$2 billion funding round. Half of those funds were provided by Sony and KIRKBI (the company behind LEGO) and are intended to help the company make its mark in the metaverse.

The metaverse will allow NFTs and blockchain-based games to grow even further, as it provides the tempting opportunity for its users to live a different life through a headset. Major brands are already testing the new market - purchasing real estate and starting fashion shows in the metaverses.

The industry hopes to grow further - but the road is not without obstacles. WAX’s Rubinelli believes that scaling these games on the blockchain without bringing the network to a halt is one of the most significant concerns this type of game has yet to overcome. On the other hand, headsets are the main obstacle to the adoption of the metaverse.

These bulky and expensive equipment pieces must find a way to be accessible to everyone if they wish to become mainstream.

Once they do, we’re bound to see a wider choice of blockchain-based games and esports. As of yet, the latter is currently too complex for the blockchain to handle.

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