Connecting Games and Blockchain: A New Era

As blockchain technology gradually creeps into the vibrant world of video gaming, industry veterans from WAX are raising eyebrows and sharing their predictions. According to David Kim, head of publishing at WAX, while it might seem like Google searches for blockchain-related gaming have fizzled out, don’t be fooled! Engagement is still alive and kicking. For instance, Kim pointed out that the WAX blockchain has seen sales transactions double at the beginning of Q4 2021, with numbers staying robust ever since.

NFTs and the Metaverse: Growth on the Horizon

Despite the current dip in hype, both Kim and Michael Rubinelli, head of game studios at WAX, firmly believe that as the utility of NFTs and metaverses expands, so too will the engagement and interest. “I’m not sure if the ‘hype’ will go back up, but we believe that long term, interest will grow infinitely,” Kim declared, probably while wearing a superhero cape in his imagination. This optimism is grounded in the belief that as developers work to address security concerns, the appeal of NFT projects will continue to rise.

The Evolution of Play-to-Earn Models

Rubinelli compared the implementation of play-to-earn (P2E) models in gaming to the seismic shift that occurred with the introduction of microtransactions and free-to-play gaming. With over two decades of experience, he argued with a wink that the evolution of gaming is a rolling stone that gathers no moss. “Most games will integrate some form of play-to-earn within the next few years,” he noted. Notably, many of these games are expected to utilize blockchain technology without fully operating on it. Talk about a hybrid!

Challenges on the Blockchain Road

However, not everything is sunshine and rainbows. Rubinelli admitted that scalability remains an ongoing challenge for blockchain-based games.