Blockchain games are trending at all-time highs and seeing a massive uptick in popularity as the year of NFTs continues to heat up. More people than ever are getting their gaming fix through decentralized ledger technology, and the arrival of play-to-earn (P2E) gaming has made blockchain games a lucrative option for gamers looking to fill their crypto bags as they put their skills to the test.
The NFT craze of 2021 has erupted beyond high-priced social media avatars and digital artwork, and it’s taking over electronic gaming. Consequently, the NFT characters and items that are necessary for playing these blockchain games possess an intrinsic market value, and this means players are reaping the rewards of gameplay that blurs the lines between skilled gamesmanship and sound financial decisions.
As with every tech boom, there are usually too many projects emerging all at once to keep track of them all. So, here’s a list of 10 companies (in no particular order) to watch out for as the popularity of blockchain games continues to grow at breakneck speed.
1. Gamestation
The first project in this list is helping blockchain game developers find the support they need to produce high-quality, in-demand games for the flourishing GameFi market. Gamestation is a blockchain-based gaming community that supports independent developers and gamers through its 100% gaming-focused incubator, launchpad, and marketplace. Gamestation’s focus on empowering developers and linking them up with gamers is flipping the paradigm for the way games are created and released.Gamestation’s native token, $GAMER, will be what powers and incentivizes the ecosystem.
The blockchain space is overflowing with new ideas for play-to-earn games, but these ideas usually become the intellectual property of a large enterprise that cashes in on the talents of game developers and leaves those developers empty-handed. Gamestation provides a way for developers and gamers to create and release blockchain games without sacrificing their fair share of success with greedy publishers.
2. Faraland
Metaverse gaming is the next big thing for NFTs and blockchain gaming, and Faraland delivers an RPG where players can roam the Faraland metaverse with their NFT heroes and fight to raise their NFT’s value. If a hero wins, the price of its NFT goes up; if a hero loses, it goes down. This adds a new dimension to “playing for keeps” and will be a feature that goes live later this year, along with a forthcoming map soon after. In addition to raising the value of their NFT heroes, gamers can raise the value of their NFT collection by discovering NFT items in-game that can be put on the market and sold.
More recently, Faraland has announced the launch of FaraStarter, a gaming launchpad that will offer a secure platform for investors looking to have early access to vetted and pre-screened token sales. To participate in upcoming sales, investors can use FARA tokens to join the platform and start participating. The projects that will be launched on FaraStarter will be ones either incubated or partnered with Moon Knight Labs. More details around tiers and the first cohort of projects will be soon announced.
3. Good Games Guild
This Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) believes blockchains and NFTs are the future of gaming. On top of this claim, it asserts that, “Everyone can make a living from gaming.” So, Good Games Guild is helping to level the playing field so everyone can do just that. Recently, a batch of lucky gamers was selected to join Good Games Guild’s gaming scholarship program and will be teamed up to play one of the most successful NFT blockchain games to date, Axie Infinity
Good Games Guild has set out to push blockchain gaming towards becoming the largest virtual economy in the world, and they are aiming to eventually sponsor millions of gamers so they too can play-to-earn. The Good Games Guild DAO will not only sponsor players all over the world in order to achieve this goal, but it will also invest in the games themselves and their in-game assets in order to create the world’s leading NFT gaming hub.
4. Rokosoft
Rokosoft recognizes that gaming can be a powerful part of real life, and it wants to help develop the technology that links the real world, technology, and gaming by supporting blockchain gaming projects with its own experience and knowledge. Rokosoft supplies nearly everything a fledgling project needs to succeed: Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), open-source Software Development Kits (SDKs), applications for virtual item management, and a platform for payment services. On top of these tech services, Rokosoft facilitates game promotion through the incubation stages for gifted gaming projects.
The Turkish team behind Rokosoft spent four years developing the MMORPG Riseonline, and after proving it was one of the top development teams in their country, Rokosoft has set its eyes on becoming one of the foremost companies in the gaming industry worldwide. Rokosoft offers its NFT gaming solutions on the recently booming Avalanche blockchain, and considering Avax’s steady inflow of new user addresses over the last year, there will be plenty of gaming projects for it to assist with tapping this booming market.
5. Pocket Arena
Pocket Arena is a platform developed and offered by Emoji Games, the company that first began delivering the try-and-buy gaming model to handheld devices in 2005, and since then they’ve been the driving force behind over 1.5 billion handheld games worldwide in partnership with Samsung Mobile, Electronic Arts, Gameloft, Sega, Namco, Digital Chocolate, and more.
Pocket Arena is backed by a team that is well versed in mobile gaming and the NFT market, and it has already launched 15 games in the handheld genre so you can “play, earn, and grow your assets.” Players can go heads up with other Pocket Arena gamers and fight to the top of the leaderboard of their favorite games. One great feature of Pocket Arena is that the Pocket Arena Wallet is based on a private blockchain and enables users to play Pocket Arena games with a single login without having to pay gas for transactions, which would really add up when these games are so hard to put down.
6. HeroVerse
Here’s a puzzle and strategy game that believes there’s a difference between playing to earn and playing and earning. HeroVerse focuses on magical gameplay first and foremost, and it blends two popular game styles for mobile gamers: match-three puzzles and RPGs that allow gamers to explore and loot. Combining these popular styles of gameplay with NFTs makes it possible for gamers to have a unique gaming experience and own their heroes which they can put on the market for sale or rent to other players.
HeroVerse mixes puzzle video games with role-playing and strategy for a value proposition gamers will find hard to turn away. The gaming element makes playing HeroVerse a fun and relaxing way to spend one’s time, and a bevy of earn mechanisms make HeroVerse a lucrative way to pass the hours as well. Besides selling or renting out heroes for a profit, players can take their luck at lucky spins that could net them rare and valuable heroes, or they can participate in token earning gameplay such as quests, tower conquests, and clan events.
7. Bemil
Already available for download, Bemil is a game in which players can engage in battle modes, join forces to build parties and clans, and explore mini-games which also include Play-to-Earn features. The ultimate goal for users will be to strategically mine Becoins and accumulate other rewards via gameplay activities. These activities include participating in wars and different game modes.
Users will be able to leverage their mining system which includes the damage a system has received, the level of the core, and the number of gears a player has. Each gear has their own skill. For example, the Fire Gear has the ability to double mining speed, but to use this feature a player needs 5 gears of different colors. Hence, where the gameplay strategy comes in. Bemil is preparing for an upcoming launch this month with more details to soon follow.
8. Planet Sandbox
Planet Sandbox is a game that combines building and real-time PvP game modes. Players can build their own worlds or join intense fighting mode using NFT weapons and accessories. Within the game are two tokens, $PSB and $PULV. $PSB is the native governance token, which can be used to trade NFTs on the game’s marketplace. Players can also stake $PSB to earn annual interest, creating an innovative play-to-earn function. $PULV is an in-game inflationary token, which is used to purchase consumables like ammunition and gasoline.
Planet Sandbox has a vision that plays into where Web3 is going: player controlled experiences with an interactive metaverse filled with earning opportunities, competition, and an overall fun experience. This November, Planet Sandbox will release a beta version and prior to that an IDO which will represent the first issuance of $PSB tokens. Planet Sandbox was incubated by Icetea Labs and ExNetwork and includes a solid list of investors including NGC Ventures, Illuvium, Momentum6 and more.
9. The Killbox
For Call of Duty fans, The Killbox is exactly the type of game to look for in the new blockchain gaming wave. The action-packed first-person shooter (FPS) allows gamers to assemble elite squads and trade in-game NFT weapons like AK-47s, grenades, and swords. In fact, The Killbox is the first FPS game on the market, helping bridge the exciting gameplay of traditional FPS games with the potential of blockchain technology.
The Killbox will include weekly challenges, ranking matches, and a lottery system for the distribution of crypto prizes. The experience itself will be immersive, with VR capabilities and a 360 degree arena combat experience. As with many other projects on this list, The Killbox will also offer different rewards and play-to-earn features. For fans of more action-filled games, The Killbox is a no-brainer.
10. Demole
In this list are many first proof of concepts and Demole is no exception. As the first playable 3D RPG game in the NFT ecosystem, Demole offers an exciting PvP and PvE play-to-earn system allowing both players and investors to reap benefits from the game’s robust gameplay. This includes multiple earning and gameplay mechanics and an incentive design that creates a fair revenue redistribution mechanism for each player.
Demole was founded by a team of experienced professionals coming from the mobile gaming, blockchain development, marketing, and crypto spaces. Combined with an impressive list of leading blockchain investors, Demole has quickly become one of the most talked about games in the industry. Demole recently completed its sold-out public sale on DAO Maker and will be soon listing on Gate and PancakeSwap.
