Crypto gaming is a term that encompasses everything from games built on blockchain to existing games that incorporate cryptocurrency in some way. Crypto gaming offers greater ownership of game assets, like player characters and weapons but it does require gamers to buy the appropriate tokens.
Cryptocurrency coins and tokens are forms of digital currency. They can be traded, bought, and spent in the same way as fiat currencies, and most have some utility that helps underpin the value of the currency. Upcoming Binance listings include tokens like PlayDoge: gaming-specific tokens. There are typically only one or two new coins added to the Binance exchange each month, according to crypto expert Kane Pepi, and these proposed additions are related to gaming shows the importance it holds in the crypto market today.
Crypto In Video Gaming
One way cryptocurrencies could be integrated into video gaming is as a replacement for traditional in-game currencies.
Fortnite has V-Bucks, Roblox has Robux, and Minecraft has MineCoins, and this is just scratching the surface of these in-game currencies. They are bought using real money, but they can potentially be stolen via hacking. If the player stops playing, they lose any leftover currency. And it isn’t possible to transfer in-game currencies over to other games.
Cryptocurrency and blockchain have the potential to change these negative aspects if they are introduced into existing games. Transactions are recorded on the blockchain, which is irrefutable, preventing theft and hacking. The currency can be bought and sold on exchanges, so retiring players can get their money back for any leftover coins. And there is the potential that a blockchain gaming currency could transfer between games, as well as between players.
Crypto Gambling
Crypto casinos have become a popular form of online gaming. They offer the same games and functionality as other online casinos, but they enable users to deposit and withdraw funds using cryptocurrency. Some casinos are crypto-specific, while some offer the choice of using gambling tokens, popular cryptocurrencies, or fiat currencies.
Crypto gambling affords greater privacy and anonymity, especially in casinos that do not require user ID verification. This has even opened up casino gambling to players who live in areas where online gambling is restricted.
Several gambling tokens already exist. Some are meant for use on the specific sites they relate to, but some sites use existing tokens. According to CoinMarketCap, there are nearly 100 gambling tokens currently.
Play To Earn Gaming
Play to earn gaming is another way cryptocurrency is being introduced to the gaming world. With these platforms, players download or install games, and they are rewarded with cryptocurrency when they play the game. Some games offer rewards for the amount of time played while others tokenize elements of the game like levelling up or taking on certain bosses.
Although rewards are usually quite small, these platforms offer gaming entertainment and players are rewarded for their time, so they are popular with casual and regular gamers alike.
PlayDoge will offer a Tamagotchi-style game that players need to feed and care for and it offers play-to-earn mechanics so players will be rewarded PlayDoge as their Tamagotchi advances.
Axie Infinity is an existing play-to-earn game that has been likened to Pokemon. Players battle, breed, and fight their Axies, earning crypto according to how well they advance. Its player count has fallen from its peak of nearly 3 million active users in 2022, but its rise showed the potential of this type of game.
Blockchain Gaming
Full blockchain gaming means that the game, as well as the token used within the game, is set up on the network. This provides numerous benefits to game makers and players.
Asset Transfer
Every account, in-game item, and transaction is recorded on a blockchain but represented in a typical-looking game world environment. Players own their characters, skins, weapons, and other items, and this gives them the potential to carry items over into other games, as long as the frameworks are compatible.
It means that a player’s avatar could wear the same skin in Fortnite, Valorant, and even in games like Call of Duty. There’s even the possibility to carry weapons and other items over. We’re some way from that happening, but the potential exists.
Asset Ownership
Because players own their in-game assets, even including their players and accounts, it also gives them total control. If a player has put a lot of time into a game but has had enough, they could theoretically sell the character to another player.
Because the character exists on the blockchain, which is immutable, it prevents hackers and thieves from being able to take the gaming assets of players. This asset ownership puts control of the games into the players’ hands, effectively creating an immersive in-game and even out-of-game experience.
Currently, Immutable is one of the biggest blockchain gaming tokens. Built on the Ethereum network, it is a network of games that all use the IMX token. Games include Gods Unchained, Guild of Guardians, and Illuvium, and because it is a layer-2 network, it is quicker and attracts lower gas fees than if the games were to run directly on Ethereum.
Tokenizing Esports
As the gaming industry has grown and grown, so too has the interest in Esports: a market now worth more than $4 billion a year. Esports is the competitive arm of gaming which sees teams from around the world competing in online and physical gaming events against one another.
Teams like Team Liquid and Team Spirit are hugely popular with fans, and one way that some esports teams have launched their own crypto tokens. OG, currently the second highest-earning esports team, launched the OG fan token in 2020. The team regularly offers token holders the opportunity to vote and interact. These fans have been asked to vote on their choice of team banner for specific events, for example, and OG is obliged to go with the final vote. Other teams that are similarly using the Socios network include Team Heretics, Navi, and Alliance.
Fan Tokens For Sports Teams
It isn’t just Esports teams that are getting in on the action. Physical teams, national teams, and even individual players have launched their own tokens, promising that they will give fans a way to interact more closely with their favorite sports stars.
The likes of Paris St Germain, AC Milan, and Juventus, already have fan tokens with a sizeable market capitalization. Considering a lot of smaller teams are fan-owned, it only seems a matter of time before that fan ownership becomes linked to fan tokens.
