Investors Pour $739M into Crypto Gaming Space During Q1 2023

Crypto gaming is one harsh reality for traditional gamers, but they have managed to keep blockchain-based applications away from the sector. However, the latest report indicates that play-to-earn gaming has started attracting investors again. DappRadar, a data aggregator, released a quarterly report alongside Blockchain Gaming Alliance (BGA), highlighting an almost 13% increase in investments in Web3 games.

True Web3 Potential Has Not Yet Been Unleashed

According to the report, $739 Million were invested in blockchain games during Q1 2023. Alien Worlds dominated the space with an average of 223,945 unique active wallets (UAW), followed by Splinterlands with 127,242. The former being a community-centric metaverse game, released in-game DAOs dubbed Syndicates. The latter is among the longest-running crypto games, boasting over 12 Million transactions daily.

However, space has seen a slight decrease in UAW as a whole. A study shows that around 40% of Web3 gaming accounts were bots. A few games were found with 80% of bot activity on the network. The issue may prove cataclysmic to the sector considering myriads of online multiplayer games focused on bots have ended up in a bog.

Web3 is growing much faster, with several mainstream companies trying to push their luck in this virtual realm. Nvidia, Ubisoft, and Microsoft are already pioneering the space. Microsoft announced the acquisition of Activision Blizzard in January 2022 to drive metaverse development. However, the deal appeared threatening for the industry in regulatory eyes, establishing legal challenges for the Windows maker.

Carbon emissions remain the major issue to be resolved by crypto games considering they leverage blockchain as the underlying technology. Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency, took the matter seriously and shifted the operations to the Beacon Chain, the original proof-of-stake blockchain launched in 2020.

DappRadar mentions in one of its reports that Asia will likely dominate 80% of the Web3 market. The continent accounts for 55% of the global gaming population currently. Moreover, Web3 games like the upcoming Symbiogenesis by Square Enix and MapleStory Universe by Nexon indicate how crypto gaming is clasping attention in the East.

Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) creator, Yuga Labs, may release Otherside, a metaverse game focused on the BAYC universe, this year. Unity, a video game software developing company, tapped MetaMask, Solana, ImmutableX, and more for Web3 Developer Tools in February 2023. Moreover, Sony Interactive Entertainment, the maker of Playstation, filed a patent for non-fungible tokens to enable transfers between games and consoles.

Web3 space is gradually progressing and leaving marks in different sectors, leaving breadcrumbs behind in hopes of attracting industry titans. The dam potentially holds several marvels waiting to be unleashed when it bursts. The latest data shows that the market was estimated at $27.5 Billion, a luscious number for a sector still in its infancy.

Anurag is working as a fundamental writer for The Coin Republic since 2021. He likes to exercise his curious muscles and research deep into a topic. Though he covers various aspects of the crypto industry, he is quite passionate about the Web3, NFTs, Gaming, and Metaverse, and envisions them as the future of the (digital) economy. A reader & writer at heart, he calls himself an “average guitar player” and a fun footballer.