Play to Earn Games (P2E)

The evolution of the gaming industry in the past decade has been astonishing. The transition has occurred from hand-held gaming devices to sophisticated VR consoles. This has also contributed tremendously to increasing the net worth of the gaming industry to $178 billion in 2021, but this is expected to surpass $268.8 billion by the year 2025. The significant contributor to this growth has been blockchain-powered Play to Earn Games.

What are Play to Earn Games?

Play to earn can be referred to as games that pay the players to play. It is a gaming model which rewards the players for participating and playing games. The rewards are usually found in the form of in-game assets and may include anything ranging from gaming tools, weapons, cars and trading cards. These rewards can be represented as NFTs and are tradeable in the secondary market.

The option of tokenization given to the players makes it easier for them to maintain a thriving in-game economy. Moreover, players can also convert these rewards into fiat currencies and also use them for everyday transactions. This has made P2E games a viable livelihood for many.

Play to Earn Games in Developing Countries

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating effect on many economies globally. Strict lockdowns and protocols made people end up being at home most of the time which resulted in many losing their full-time jobs due to companies not being able to support paying employees. The sudden lay-offs and killing boredom at home led to further development of P2E and the in-game rewards emerged like a ray of hope for many people. Some took it up as a full-time job while others also considered it as a part-time gig.

Countries that witnessed massive growth in the play to earn gaming industry were the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Venezuela. For instance, Axie Infinity which is a trendy play to earn game saw an active players record of 350,000 per day. Also, while playing this game users could also win rewards in the Smooth Love Potions game (SLP). This made it possible for every player to earn around 150 to 200 reward points in SLP every day amounting to $54. Such reward points enabled players to earn almost $1,500 per month which could easily be converted into a full-time source of income.

Gaming and the Metaverse

The online gaming community has existed for a long time now which cannot be ignored. This further leads to interaction between players which in turn leads to the creation of a unique ecosystem.  The cycle has made it possible to create the Metaverse which is a concept leading to the development of a completely fictional and digital space. In this space there is a possibility to observe the possibilities for political, cultural, social and economic interaction in the Metaverse, the interactions are similar to the ones which occur in the real world. Popular examples of metaverse can be Minecraft game and Roblox.

Security of Play to Earn Games

The Play to Earn Games is being termed as web3 games because of the value of blockchain being linked with them. There is a huge difference between blockchain-based games and traditional online games. The second one offers fiat-based auction houses as well as secondary markets for trading in-game collectables.

With the blockchain-based ones, more currencies and items can be stored on the blockchain. There is better control and management over ownership, rarity and legitimacy with using blockchain in the new breed of online games.

The blockchain networks also serve as immutable databases which promise the security of play in Play to Earn Games. All the data and rewards are under the control and maintenance of distributed networks of computers. Each network and users have a copy of data on the network. Thus, it is almost impossible to modify, delete or duplicate data in the game.

There is another advantage of Play to Earn web3 Games which is of countering fraud, corruption and duplication. Players do not have to worry about issues such as gold hacks, item duplication and other issues which are commonly faced while playing online games. Blockchain ensures to create real value for in-game items.

Feasibility of Play to Earn Games

Perhaps the most daunting question which can be asked about Play to Earn Games is about the scale of income one can expect. Moreover, this concept is still quite new for average players who might find it difficult to understand how simply playing a game can help you to earn money. So it will still take time for some users to understand that how playing games can be a steady source of income.

The Play to Earn Games which are linked to a certain skill is hit amongst players. For instance, Axie Infinity followed a farming approach and helped make people around $200 to $1000 per month by farming the Smooth Love Potion of SLP token.

These lucrative figures might seem tempting but they are pretty random in nature and does not represent the individual earning of the players. But the use of technology and constant development in this industry can yield promising returns for the players who want to achieve a steady source of income. The introduction of different scaling techniques ensures that popular models shift to a new model of in-game buying and selling. The fast-paced development of Metaverse also has a lot to offer in terms of the feasibility of Play to Earn Games.

Conclusion

The existing online gaming industry showed exceptional performance. However, Play to Earn Games have introduced a lot of fundamental changes in the gaming industry in terms of functionalities and methodologies.

With many games developing just like Axie Infinity, it is reasonable to ponder over the fate of this industry in the next few years. The involvement of blockchain to ensure safety and transparency alongside NFTs, coupled with the creation of massive communities would be the new heights of future Play to Earn Games. For now, it is all a game of wait and see!