The gaming business takes great pleasure in being a forward-thinking and dynamic sector of the economy. It has an eye on the future, always eager to incorporate novel technology advancements that promise to enrich the gaming experience for its players and help it produce the best game yet.
Cryptocurrency and the underlying blockchain technology are often hailed as significant technological breakthroughs. So, it shouldn’t be a surprise that the game industry is actively pursuing crypto and blockchain integration to better their systems and other facets.
It seems logical that both parties wanted to get their collaboration underway quickly in light of the current success of the gaming sector. According to the latest studies, the gaming sector is expected to grow to USD$221 billion by 2023. It gives those on the crypto side an incentive to work quickly and efficiently to benefit from the gaming industry’s growth potential.
As a result, the play-to-earn model would be the product of the partnership. That and other benefits brought about by the gaming industry’s use of the blockchain network and technology will be described in greater detail below.
What is the play-to-earn model?
Blockchain technology is ramping up the development of the play-to-earn (P2E) model, a novel approach to the gaming industry.
With the blockchain-based play-to-earn model, users make micropayments of fractions of a penny to make plays like striking opponents, as opposed to the previous options of purchasing the game outright, subscribing monthly, or funding games through in-game purchases.
The term ‘play-to-earn’ refers to the fact that players can gain financial rewards for achieving particular goals in video games, such as placing higher in a game’s leaderboard or taking first place in a tournament.
Currently, you can choose from a variety of P2E games. For instance, one of the most popular games where you may play to make money is Axie Infinity. But there are dozens more on the market and in development.
It’s a Pokémon-style game built on the Ethereum blockchain, where you gather a team of three Axies and battle other players for the chance to win tokens like Smooth Love Potion (SLP) and Axie Infinity Shards (AXS), which can be traded for real money.
In some developing countries like the Philippines, play-to-earn games like Axie Infinity are already competitive with local pay. The play-to-earn model may cause a seismic shift in the gaming industry. Players who opt for the ‘pay as you go’ model stand to profit from their gameplay.
At the same time, game creators can benefit from every player interaction, regardless of the outcome, thanks to the system of micropayments. Since micropayments on the blockchain may be executed for pennies, gamers don’t have to worry about spending a fortune on these games.
Creators stand to make millions, if not billions, from these transactions.
What are the benefits of gaming and blockchain integration?
Users are now more invested in the games they play than ever before because of the advent of blockchain technology, which has also brought other benefits, such as:
1. More possibilities to earn money
Play-to-earn gamers have numerous opportunities to monetise their efforts. Achieving a high ranking across the board or completing specific objectives within the game’s platform are viable options for generating income.
Similar to how developers can monetise their games by selling characters, weapons, skins, etc., players can do the same by trading non-fungible tokens (NFTs) for virtual items. They can increase their income by offering in-game gifts to real customers for NFTs, which can be easily converted into fiat currency.
2. Reliable security
Game assets are constantly at risk from hackers. Therefore, online data storage appears to be a problem for the gaming sector. Blockchain, a distributed ledger of cryptographic transactions, has emerged as a viable long-term solution.
Since everything recorded on a blockchain is encrypted, it’s challenging for hackers to access that data. The only way to get into this system is to trigger the appropriate nodes at the proper time. As a result, in-game resources benefit from double protection against exploits.
However, you should still conduct your research and take other precautions to ensure the safety of your possessions.
3. Improved gaming experience
As blockchain technology becomes more prevalent in the gaming industry, creators are increasingly motivated to provide players with novel ideas, richly realised digital characters, vibrant settings, unexpected twists, and other novelties. The goal is to enhance players’ earning potential while impacting their gaming experience.
The result is excellent, as evidenced by the steadily increasing interest shown by the audience. So, if you want to improve your game development services on the cutting edge, you might need professional help using blockchain technology.
4. Players’ vote
The majority of older games are governed entirely by the creators. Users are forced to update to newer versions of games despite their distaste for doing so, and the developers make the rules. Not to mention they can stop playing whenever they feel like it. In blockchain games, however, players are given autonomy by allowing them to craft their own rules.
In most games, the majority rule applies, and changes can be made if 15% of players demand it. And since player demand ensures the continued operation of games hosted on decentralised servers, designers can’t shut them down. As a result, blockchain games go out only when their player base dies out.
Takeaway
Compared to traditional gaming, blockchain gaming is a significant change. Players may rest easy knowing that their digital possessions will remain intact forever and can be used in any number of games. Moreover, they can make money by selling them to other people. The long-anticipated shock to traditional gaming may arrive sooner rather than later.