The signs of recovery in the blockchain gaming market are evident. Are these projects worth investing in?

Author: Arkady Childe

The Ronin game sidechain, developed by Sky Mavis, the parent company of the renowned blockchain game Axie Infinity, is injecting new vitality into its Web3 gaming ecosystem through collaborations with excellent teams. Recently, Ronin's data has shown explosive growth, with the number of active user addresses at the beginning of November increasing sixfold compared to the previous month.

Behind this growth is the migration of several highly anticipated games to Ronin. Notably, the migration of the P2E MMO game Pixels at the end of October brought a large number of new users to Ronin. On November 2, Sky Mavis finalized a partnership agreement with South Korean gaming giant ACT Games, announcing that all of its games would be introduced to the Ronin ecosystem. Additionally, Zoids Wild Arena successfully migrated from the Polygon platform to Ronin on November 8, further proving Ronin's appeal.

Moreover, Ronin has partnered with four renowned game studios, including Directive Games, Bali Games, Tribes Studio, and Bowled.io. These studios are leveraging Ronin's technological advantages to develop unique gaming experiences. In particular, Machines Arena, developed by Directive Games, has been tested on PC and plans to launch on the Epic Games Store, with cross-platform plans to soon be available on iOS and Android.

Classic blockchain game scene

Ronin has taken concrete actions to sound the charge for blockchain games. With the market warming up, blockchain games are also experiencing a wave of launches. Let's take a look at the currently active blockchain game projects and see which ones can surprise us.

Merit Circle has been active recently, with a series of projects progressing rapidly

As an important driving force behind the first generation of blockchain games, gaming guilds cannot be overlooked. In the past week, the token prices of YGG and Merit Circle have risen significantly, attracting community attention. In terms of substantial progress, Merit Circle is currently the leader.

Merit Circle launched the game-centric blockchain Beam in April this year, supported by Avalanche. Their goal is to create a gaming chain that meets the needs of both gamers and game developers.

Merit Circle profit growth trend chart

At the end of October, the Beam network completed integration with Layerzero, allowing users to transfer assets from Ethereum to the Beam network via Beam Bridge.

At the beginning of November, Merit Circle underwent a rebranding, officially changing its name to Beam. They co-hosted the Beam Hackathon with multi-chain incubator Impossible Finance, where game developers could receive funding through the hackathon prizes. This move also signifies that the game chain Beam will be the core business of Merit Circle in the future.

Shrapnel is about to begin internal testing, having previously completed $20 million in funding

Shrapnel, a blockchain FPS competitive game currently in internal testing, is preparing to launch an early access version in December. The game is developed using the advanced Unreal Engine 5, and internal testing videos show its excellent graphics and smooth gameplay experience.

The game is crafted by Neon Machine, a game studio with a professional team of over 70 members, whose core members have a deep background and experience in game development. Their expertise has garnered attention and support from the capital market, and at the end of October, Neon Machine announced the completion of a Series A funding round of up to $20 million.

So far, through seed funding, Series A funding, and private token sales, Neon Machine has raised a total of $37.5 million, showcasing its industry influence and investor confidence. Josh Rosenthal, a partner at Polychain Capital, expressed his anticipation for the Shrapnel team's innovations in gameplay and their efforts to break traditional boundaries of player experience and ownership through blockchain technology.

Stepn launches new game Gashero, still using GMT as the game token

Stepn, once a sensational phenomenon in the blockchain gaming space, is highly regarded by community players for its launch of Gashero.

This blockchain game, which combines social and strategy elements, is expected to open community testing from November 24 to December 8. Currently, players actively participating in community activities have a chance to win testing qualifications and NFT airdrop rewards.

In July of this year, to enhance the artistic image of game characters, the team initiated a large-scale creator recruitment campaign, distributing approximately 2 million GMT tokens to creators and offering a 2% royalty incentive. This marketing effort was also quite successful. The Stepn team stated that they are committed to creating a genuinely engaging game rooted in Web3, rather than merely chasing traffic. They believe that a constructive social environment will encourage many people to come together and participate in interactions.

The official announcement revealed that Gashero will be deployed on the Polygon chain and will not issue new tokens, but will use GMT tokens to support various in-game scenarios. Additionally, the game will provide registered players with a contract wallet that supports email login and account recovery, ensuring the secure storage of player assets. This series of measures reflects the Stepn team's high regard for game experience and player rights.

Bigtime sees nearly 200 new players daily, future potential sparks anticipation

Bigtime, an eye-catching 3AMMORPG game, is developed by a core team of industry elites who have previously worked on major titles such as Fortnite, Gears of War, and Grand Theft Auto. Its founder, Ari Meilich, is not only well-known in the blockchain gaming space but is also a co-founder of the renowned Decentraland metaverse platform.

The preseason of Bigtime, which launched on October 10, has attracted significant attention from players, and its rich gameplay has quickly made it one of the most popular games in the blockchain gaming market. In its active gaming community, players are actively seeking teammates to team up for dungeon runs every day.

After a month of fierce competition, Bigtime announced that it would reward the top 5,000 most active players with Bigtime token airdrops based on the leaderboard, after which the leaderboard will be reset for another round of competition, potentially initiating a new wave of player growth.

Bigtime game value change chart

Current statistics show that the number of "gold farming" players in Bigtime is approximately 6,000, with daily new "gold farming" users ranging between 100 and 200.

Conclusion: The opportunities in blockchain gaming are vast, allowing users to seize a series of chances

Currently, we are witnessing a revival in the blockchain gaming industry. With waves of new games launching, this vibrant field heralds a more exciting future. Blockchain games are no longer just a concept or a slogan; they need to prove their position in the digital entertainment realm through actual player experiences and innovative game mechanics.

For blockchain game developers, the time has come to abandon slogans and embrace challenges. They need to deliver real substance by providing high-quality game content and novel blockchain innovations to secure a place in the market. Only those who genuinely invest resources and energy into creating, optimizing, and continuously innovating will succeed in this wave of crypto gaming. This is a new era of competition where only the strongest will survive and ultimately lead the industry forward.