NFTs, Blockchain, and The Expanding Video Game Development Industry

Blockchain and NFTs are still a game-changing technological innovation that have an effect on many industries, including the video game sector. By using tokens for in-game digital goods, NFTs offer a way to increase gaming engagement. It will have a significant impact on the gaming industry as a whole. The potential for players to genuinely own game assets is generating totally new business models and monetization opportunities for game producers.

For players looking for more value and cutting-edge new experiences, the ability to own in-game digital assets opens up a world of potential. The game developers who will thrive in this new environment will recognise the chance to give players more autonomy, increase the number of ways they may acquire new assets, and promote the value NFTs can generate.

The Currently Booming Video Game Market Is Set To Expand Even Further

According to a recent study, the number of people who play video games regularly worldwide surpassed 3 billion in mid-2021. According to a different study, the worldwide video game market brought in more than $180 billion in 2016. The latter figure indicates a 20% rise since the COVID-19 epidemic. A broad perspective shows that people are more drawn to the virtual worlds of video games rather than the real world.

Notably, in-app purchases continue to dominate the mobile gaming industry, which is the key driver of this revenue growth. It’s hardly unexpected that many video game businesses believe a similar business model might be used for video games set in a metaverse after studying this mobile gaming industry. Further, the expansion of mobile app stores and associated digital distribution networks presents a potential for smaller development firms to “play the game.” Hiring a Web3 Game Development Company will relieve you of the majority of the labour and provide you access to software that is outside of your budget as well as knowledge of the finest tools and solutions for the scope of your project.

The gaming industry has tremendous global growth potential. Unsurprisingly, the Asia-Pacific region dominates the market, accounting for 55% of all video gamers. 25 percent of all gaming sales are made in China. Strong growth rates in the range of 4% to 10% are also being seen in other worldwide regions. Surprisingly, only North America exhibits sluggish growth, at a mere 0.7%.

Video Game Business Models Are Still Changing

The video game industry has used a variety of business methods to make money over the years. The Pay-to-Play (P2P) business offered a fairly simple idea. To play a video game, all you had to do was purchase a copy for your preferred gaming system. It is the climate that caused the market to eventually recover under Nintendo, Sega, and Sony as well as the boom and bust of Atari, Mattel, and Coleco.

In the late 1980s, free-to-play (F2P) gaming really took off thanks to the explosive proliferation of smartphones. As was already said, these freemium video games get almost all of their income through in-app purchases and in-game advertising. Again, game creators interested in blockchain and NFTs find the idea of unlocking new features or characters with a purchase appealing.

The Play-to-Earn (P2E) model, a relatively new business strategy for video games, completely utilises in-game blockchain, NFTs, and cryptocurrencies. Within the game, players have the chance to earn tokens or in-game money. As they advance in the game, they frequently earn more. Following that, players can use these in-game currencies to buy NFTs, such as new characters or goods.

In-game economics are a staple of the F2P business model and are nothing new. Gamers can resell these items using NFTs on secondary markets. For the first time ever, players can move goods they’ve obtained through gameplay outside of the game. Therefore, more gameplay ultimately results in greater profits in both the metaverse and the actual world. This method of fusing pleasure with money-making offers new kinds of advantages to both game developers and the players themselves.

The Impact of Blockchain on Current Gaming Business Models

NFTs enable game producers to provide players with countless new options to capitalise on their digital assets and create new value. Once more, players have the option of reselling these items on secondary marketplaces. This strategy gives players a genuine sense of ownership and makes it simpler for them to use real money—albeit cryptocurrency—in the game. Additionally, it increases the realism of these brand-new virtual worlds, which is crucial for increasing player involvement.

At the same time, contemporary games that use the P2E paradigm make use of older ideas related to playing and collecting. For instance, some games allow players to collect and sell in-game items much like baseball cards. A combat and train model used in other games is not too dissimilar from the original Pokémon. By utilising more established business models, gamers can get more familiar with newer models and abstract ideas like blockchain and NFTs.

The utilisation of NFTs as staking assets is another novel blockchain gaming application. In order to generate passive income in the form of tokens, rewards, or in-game advantages, NFT holders can monetize their digital assets. For gamers, this opens up new financial opportunities beyond the straightforward buying and selling of in-game goods.

Blockchain-Based Gaming’s Future

As with every discovery in transformational technology, there are chances for tremendous development as well as a significant risk of a crash. In a nutshell, the business climate is quite reminiscent of the video game industry in the late 1970s. Blockchain and NFTs offer game producers tremendous income possibilities, but only if they give players an experience that is truly interesting.

The idea of ownership is one distinction that blockchain offers. Any in-game items that players obtain in free-to-play games now simply vanish if the video game publisher decides to change things or goes out of business. These assets are actually owned by the player in a P2E game enabled by blockchain, increasing their value and transferability. Indeed, players have the option of selling these items on the open market. If Blockchain Consulting Firms want to be more approachable and future-proof, they must educate themselves on this cutting-edge technology. Beginners in blockchain should start here.

In the end, the gaming business is entering a new Wild West. To succeed in this new climate, game production businesses must still give players an engaging environment. The late 2000s or maybe the 1970s were better times than this one.

Connect with the Gigster team if your business has an excellent idea for a game that makes use of NFTs but lacks the technical know-how. We boast cutting-edge technical expertise and tried-and-true game development processes. Join forces with us to make sure your game concept reaches the largest audience while having a seismic influence on the industry.