Five Major Themes Defining Web3 Games in 2024

Author: BeepCrypto

Yield Guild Games (YGG) concluded the YGG Web3 Gaming Summit (W3GS)------it was an exciting week filled with game demos, epic announcements, high-stakes tournaments, innovative Game Jams, and countless unforgettable moments on stage. W3GS was vibrant, with community members eagerly gathering again in the Philippines, the center of Web3 gaming adoption, to hear industry leaders share why they believe the future of gaming has already begun.

For years, YGG has been at the forefront of the web3 gaming space, with new trends and narratives continuously emerging. On the first day of the two-day W3GS conference, YGG co-founder Gabby Dizon shared his insights on five major themes he believes will have a significant impact on web3 gaming in 2024 and beyond.

Theme 1: The Future of Gaming is Now

Three years ago, there were very few web3 games for players to discover and explore. In 2023, the YGG Web3 Gaming Summit showcased over 40 playable Web3 games, attracting more than 5,300 gamers on-site, along with thousands of online participants.

In a fireside chat, Gabby referenced an article from the Philippines' leading cryptocurrency and blockchain news publication BitPinas, which listed 8 Fun Web3 Games You Can Play Now. With many web3 games combining free-to-play (F2P) models with blockchain elements, games like Ragnarok Landverse, Mighty Action Heroes, Anito Legends, Axie Infinity: Origins, Pixelmon, PROJECT XENO, Parallel, and MetaCene are lowering the barriers to player participation by prioritizing user experience and ease of onboarding.

During the peak of the 2021 bull market, significant funding flowed into web3 gaming, and now, after two years of development, these web3 games are launching and proving to be fun, user-friendly, and appealing to a broader audience beyond web3-native players.

Gabby said, "We really want games to be fun, and we want regular gamers to be able to use them easily. Then when they get deeper, we introduce web3 elements."

Theme 2: Guilds 2.0

Web3 gaming guilds have evolved to provide more tailored experiences for their members, with each guild honing its offerings around specific focuses. The core goal of most web3 guilds remains similar------to enable players to find their communities and achieve their personal goals, thereby leveling up in the open metaverse.

Within YGG, dedicated guilds showcase the diversity of the community within the ecosystem. Sando Metaverse is one example. Led by YGG GAP ambassador Kookoo, its members excel in managing Discord servers and onboarding new players into web3 games, earning a solid reputation. Another notable YGG sub-guild is The Guildhouse, which has consistently ranked high in games like Big Time, EV.io, and Castle Crush.

Other guilds collaborating with YGG, such as the Rome guild focused on space exploration and strategy game Star Atlas, and the Wardens guild (a collective of professional gamers, content creators, and web3 leaders co-led by global KOL yellowpanther), demonstrate how guilds can find their strengths and establish unique identities within the broader web3 community.

Gabby emphasized, "What are guilds? Aren't they just a group of players doing things together? I don't think that concept is going to disappear. People want to come together to play games. I think guilds will always be around."

Theme 3: Using Web3 Quests as a User Acquisition Method

Traditional user acquisition (UA) strategies follow a top-of-the-funnel approach, pushing games to a very broad audience through ads on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, including anyone who might be interested in playing games.

In web3, a "bottom-of-the-funnel" approach has emerged, placing games in front of more targeted known players who possess the necessary attributes, skills, and achievements that can be verified on-chain, proving that these players are well-suited for the game's style and requirements, making them more likely to become fans rather than just downloading and playing once. One way players build their on-chain reputation is by completing native web3 quests.

Gabby stated in the fireside chat, "Quests are now the cornerstone of web3 user acquisition." In YGG's own quest solutions------Guild Advancement Program (GAP) and Super Quests------players discover and learn about web3 games while acquiring and developing skills for participating in web3. Season 4 of GAP saw 6,184 YGG accounts registered, and the first Super Quest event had 4,322 players join the game------Axie Infinity: Origins, with YGG defining web3-native UA, focusing on bottom-of-the-funnel goals to convert highly engaged skilled players.

Web3 games are shifting from purely token incentives to systems like YGG's "Reputation and Progress" (RAP), which provide participants the opportunity to build web3 reputation based on their on-chain achievements, all without compromising users' personal data.

Gabby explained, "Having all these different reputation programs means that I, as a member of the web3 community, can be part of a DAO, part of a game, complete quests, and build my reputation. Putting these on-chain can actually triangulate 'who I am' and what I do and the achievements I choose to share. Importantly, this doesn't mean I have to give up my real name or where I'm from. So it really builds my on-chain reputation------a reputation owned by the user, which is very important."

Theme 4: Esports and Content Creators in Web3

Esports mimics many traditional sports industries, including its cost models. Unfortunately, this approach is not easy to sustain. Gabby said, "I think web2 esports is currently going through a winter. A lot of money has flowed in, but sustainability is low. Now, people are looking for new business models."

Web3 esports is not about large arenas or expensive paid partnerships, but rather about combining incentives with community and empowering the community with ownership early on, allowing true believers to grow alongside the game. Gabby emphasizes building esports communities from the grassroots level, with YGG prioritizing small content creators to share the successes of games and community development.

The shift from token rewards to more innovative participation models also prioritizes long-term commitment and meaningful contributions over grinding. Dedicated contributors can earn rewards over the long term, aligning their success with the overall trajectory of the gaming ecosystem.

Esports media company MetaSports, supported by guild and gaming infrastructure BlockchainSpace, is a typical example, collaborating with both established and emerging content creators (including Yellowpanther and Kookoo) as well as brands, communities, and DAOs (such as the esports-focused Paladins DAO). These collaborations foster a competitive yet passionate community aimed at attracting any player willing to engage in the next wave of gaming.

Gabby said, "I'm a big fan of grassroots, community tournaments. Let's see if players really like the game. Let's see if this game is suitable for esports. Then, in the long run, let's make a plan to develop the sport in collaboration with different organizations. I think we're starting to see prototypes of that, and we hope to participate in and host many such tournaments in the near future."

Theme 5: AI NFTs and ERC-6551

Gabby also pointed out that new technological standards like ERC-6551 are driving the development of Web3 games. ERC-6551, also known as "token-bound accounts," allows NFTs to own other NFTs, enabling NFTs to function as wallets with trading capabilities. Combined with artificial intelligence, ERC-6551 NFTs can collect other NFTs, tokens, and resources within games.

This experimentation can create entirely new types of games. Spacebar is a fully on-chain game exploring web3 identity applications, and the upcoming sci-fi game Parallel Colony is another example utilizing ERC-6551 and AI elements to create new experiences, such as AI characters with NFT wallets that can interact and even trade with other human and non-human players.

Gabby said, "We also want to leverage token-bound accounts in different ways. We want people to be able to register for guilds and then have their own guild badges. Guild badges can have their own wallets. We can do quests in the name of the guild rather than individuals and earn reputation and rewards. This is a goal we hope to achieve sometime next year."

The Philippines Remains the Center of Web3 Gaming

Finally, Leah asked Gabby, "Which region do you think will lead in the adoption of Web3 gaming?"

Gabby replied, "There are many great developers from around the world, but at least for the next two years, the market seems to remain in Asia. All these games are launching first in Southeast Asia, but the leading country in web3 gaming adoption is still the Philippines. So for those of you here, what you're seeing is the real-time gaming future brought to you by the world's best developers. Thank you!"

W3GS has become a gateway to the future, and Gabby's vision has set industry expectations for the coming months. YGG has been tirelessly building throughout the winter, and as the market begins to warm up, guilds are more prepared than ever to showcase the fruits of their hard work to the world.

Visit YGG's Facebook page to watch Gabby's fireside chat at W3GS and other recordings from the event.