Introduction

Since its start, gaming has gone a long way and has changed through time. Blockchain-based gaming is the newest trend sweeping the ever-changing world of gaming and esports. Will this trend fade away quickly, or will it be able to eternally change the gaming and esports scene for the better? Let’s see what happens!

Blockchain and gaming: The convergence and the disruption

The gaming business as we know it is currently being disrupted by blockchain technology. To begin, blockchain’s decentralized architecture eliminates middlemen, empowering participants as decision-making authorities while providing real-world value to their virtual assets. As a result, blockchain-based gaming is introducing a new economic model to the gaming industry, particularly to the rising pool of professional esports players. The competitive gaming or esports space around the world is now shifting toward the ‘play-to-earn’ economic model (rather than the ‘free-to-play or pay-to-play models) — where the game would incentivize the players with built-in incentives or small financial rewards incentivizing them for their time and effort.

Another prominent blockchain-powered innovation that has gained significant traction in recent times is NFT or non-fungible tokens (NFTs) – a one-of-a-kind digital asset that might enable greater degrees of participation potential in esports. NFTs may assist players in gaining ownership of in-game assets such as themes, achievements, skins, in-game currency, and much more; this means that they now have genuine command over their digital assets, as well as much better influence over their whole gaming experience.

Furthermore, NFTs allow game creators or publishers to transfer digital ownership from game developers or publishers to players, who may not only keep their in-game virtual assets but also move them to other games, other players, sell or swap across platforms, and monetize them. NFTs are making gaming not only more enjoyable but also more rewarding by offering up a myriad of new revenue streams for gamers.

One of the most pressing issues in the gaming and Esports industries today is the security and vulnerability of online transactions. However, blockchain stands to make virtual in-game purchases or marketplace transactions a secure, fair, flourishing, and transparent experience, as all the in-game transactions are being publicly recorded and monitored smoothly with the usage of blockchain. And it may therefore save billions of dollars by reducing the likelihood of fraud or cyber-attacks, in addition to ensuring a safe online environment for players at the ecosystem level. With blockchain gaming, players may also be rewarded with cryptocurrencies for their efforts, which is thought to be another significant future-ready benefit in line with the rise of the ‘Metaverse.’

When seen in a larger context, blockchain helps both gamers and developers. For players, it provides ownership rights, monetization, and a free and fair gaming environment, whilst for developers, it is cost-effective, avoids fraud, and allows them to provide users with a safe development environment. It is a win-win situation for both gamers and developers.

On many levels, 2021 was an eventful and exciting year for Open Web gaming, and the enthusiasm will carry over into 2022 and beyond. New advancements are constantly taking place, gaining acceptance among players and broadening the reach of blockchain-based gaming. Based on recent activity on the Near Blockchain, here are three specific themes worth noticing.

Play-to-earn gaming

OP Games, a Web 3 gaming arcade platform based on Near, revolutionized the way players buy, possess, and exchange in-game goods this year. Unlike traditional AAA games created by big publishers and mobile games that frequently sandbox digital assets on their platforms, OP Games is transforming them into collectible non-fungible tokens (NFTs) that players may own outside of the OP Games network.

OP Games has introduced fractionalized NFTs to their gaming arcade, allowing players and followers to co-own projects they care about. If the game is successful and long-lasting, users can have a say in how it progresses because of the game’s decentralized autonomous organization (DAO). In this sense, the OP Games ecosystem establishes a Kickstarter for games that will run indefinitely as long as the game’s DAO survives. OP Titles hopes to have 500 play-to-earn games available on OP Arcade by late 2022. An ambitious objective, but one that will help transform gaming, whether it’s AAA-style titles or smaller mobile games.

Gaming meets social media

Near’s games also serve as hybrid social networking platforms. Near Lands, a pixelated land-based open-world game, allows players to engage for a sense of community as much as the gameplay. Players may create characters and objects while exploring the game’s open environment.
Reality Chain, which was recently launched on Octopus Network, also investigates this topic with its multi-chain, social game metaverse. Reality Chain empowers users’ social and gaming life by combining non-immersive, multiplayer 2D and 3D experiences.

Bringing NFTs to gaming

In 2021, the crypto business will see $2 billion invested in the NFT gaming sector. A lot of developers on Near are building NFT games in a range of styles and genres.

The Inite platform received a $50,000 award at the end of 2021 for its innovative approach to NFT gaming. Inite, a Metaverse experience, is a motivational-based game based on the scientific method in which players earn NFTs for doing daily chores that assist boost their creativity, develop individual cognitive skills, and raise productivity.

Battlemon, a competitive third-person shooter, is on the other extreme of the spectrum. Battlemon, which is built on Unreal Engine 5 and the Near blockchain, puts players against one another in one-on-one or five-on-five combat, and each character is a unique, customizable NFT that can be rented.

It’s only the dawn of blockchain gaming

The field of blockchain gaming is still in its infancy. This is especially true given that the Near ecology is just a year old. Gamers and early crypto adopters should expect a lot of excitement, especially as the globe pushes toward broad use. Near’s one-of-a-kind sharded platform will help pave the way for super-fast speeds, cheap prices, and carbon-neutral sustainability.

Why gaming will move to blockchains

Today, most gaming takes place on closed-off data networks. This implies that users cannot claim ownership of their in-game assets (skins, avatars, abilities, etc.). They are owned by the platform. Axie Infinity is upending this business since users control their assets, like non fungible tokens (NFTs), on Axie and may sell them for profit in a free market gaming economy.

• Blockchains allow for gaming economies to organically form. Users can be compensated for their participation. Once again, Axie Infinity is at the helm. Axie users make investments to get Axie NFTs and the AXS native token to begin playing. They may then earn the Smooth Love Potion (SLP) token by playing and competing, since the tokens obtained can be swapped for other crypto assets or fiat cash, for example. Many users in the Philippines are making many times their monthly pay merely by playing Axie Infinity, all while the Philippines is experiencing economic difficulty as a result of COVID-19, which is awesome. Let me ask you a question: Which would you prefer: getting paid to play a blockchain game or not being paid to play a non-blockchain game?
• Public blockchains are open to all and permissionless. Do you have a cell phone and access to the internet? That’s OK, you’re free to join in. This isn’t how it works in today’s closed data architecture, especially if you don’t live in the United States. You may not only participate in a blockchain, but you can also earn money from it. As smartphone penetration continues to spread in emerging nations due to the advancement of 4G and 5G technologies, we may expect an increase in the number of users to access crypto and blockchain-based games in the near future.
• Existing technologies’ costs are reduced and consolidated as a result of open protocols. Public blockchains are protocols that are available to the public. Ethereum is a protocol that is free to use. On Ethereum, anybody can create games. By doing so, one outsources much of their operations and capital costs to the Ethereum foundation layer blockchain, making it much easier for entrepreneurs to create a game. Low entrance barriers encourage competition. The end consumers will profit as a result of this. This has occurred several times throughout history. Blockchain technology is just the next generation of open source technology.
• Decentralization. Anyone may build on blockchains since they are open and permissionless. This indicates that blockchain games developed on top of layer-one blockchains like Ethereum, Solana, Cosmos, and others should be expected in the future. Users will be able to easily switch games and carry their assets, such as NFTs in the form of skins, avatars, or weapons, with them. This is not conceivable in today’s world. Furthermore, users will be able to profitably sell their NFT assets, or perhaps they will wish to develop NFTs? You don’t even need to possess a gaming platform to accomplish it.

Bottom Line:

While we are still in the early phases of blockchain gaming in India, if we look at scenarios throughout the world, it has been a promising start. Blockchain has transformed gaming from a basic pastime and source of enjoyment to a lucrative activity for people all around the world. Based on these incentives and the evident win-win situation it presents to both players and developers, it is safe to predict that blockchain-based gaming will catalyze the gaming and esports industries’ future developments.
Because gaming is all about immersion, and blockchain-based gaming not only provides gamers with a novel gaming experience but is also more fulfilling and economically valuable, global acceptance of blockchain-based games is now just a matter of time! Contact RevInfotech, if you are looking for premium Blockchain development services!