- Saturday, April 27, 2024
By: Admin Super
Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) have significantly impacted gaming over the past year. These unique digital assets exist on the blockchain and allow gamers to participate in a way that would have seemed impossible just a few short years ago. With NFTs, gamers can own part of the game.
Over the past year, titles like Axie Infinity have gone viral for their pay-to-earn model, allowing gamers to make money with their NFTs.
You may be asking yourself, what makes NFTs so unique. In this article, we explore how NFTs are changing the gaming industry.
Decentralized Gaming
Decentralization is one of the words we often hear when talking about NFTs and blockchain technology. Imagine a world where players control the game and developers take a secondary role; that’s what decentralization promises.
The NFT revolution has even made its way to online slots, with Red Tiger Gaming incorporating four of the original CryptoPunks into one of its slots.
Most gamers are still learning the ins and outs of NFTs as they’re not yet commonplace in mainstream games. However, the prospect of owning items won in a battle or in-game purchases and being able to sell those digital assets for a profit is attractive to many gamers.
Games based on the blockchain are still in their infancy, so we’ll have to wait a few more years before decentralized games become mainstream.
Trade Outside the App
If you’ve followed the explosion of NFTs, you know that many people have sold these digital assets for a hefty profit. The same concept exists within gaming when it comes to NFTs. When you play a game on a console, PC, or other device, anything you purchase remains within that game’s ecosystem. Whether you invest a few or several hundred dollars in a game, you’ll never get a return on your investment in a traditional game.
However, NFTs have changed all of that. If you purchase an item within a blockchain-based game, it’s yours to keep. You can sell your CryptoKitties NFT outside the game’s marketplace, and nobody can stop you. Since all your transactions are recorded on the blockchain, buyers can verify that what you sell them is legit.
Play-to-Earn Games
Before blockchain-based games came along, in-game achievements were something you could brag about to your friends, but they had no real value. Play-to-earn games based on the blockchain have turned these achievements into a way to make money. You can lease your in-game character to someone for money or earn cryptocurrency based on how your progress in a game.
Instead of earning badges or trophies as you defeat bosses or clear levels in a game, you earn cryptocurrency. You can use the cryptocurrency you’ve acquired to purchase skins, weapons, and other in-game assets in the form of NFTs.
Axie Infinity was one of the fastest-growing blockchain-based games last year. The Pokemon-like game lets players collect, raise, and breed digital characters called Axies.
Players can lead their Axies into battle and also trade the digital creatures. The game requires players to buy Axies before they can start playing, so the start-up costs are pretty high. However, many players rent Axies from others if they can’t afford their own. The highest performing players earned an average of $400 to $500 a month.
An Investment Tool
Investing likely doesn’t come to mind when you think of the typical gamer; however, NFTs in gaming may change all of that. Since NFTs are an investment tool, most people who purchase NFTs expect them to increase in value over time.
Many people who’ve purchased NFTs in blockchain-based games have turned a profit, and if this trend continues, gamers may start using NFTs to grow their money.
