Today, the gaming industry is witnessing a revolution under the slogan ‘play-to-earn.’ This innovative approach to gameplay reverses the usual idea of entertainment and online games, offering players not only the opportunity to plunge into gameplay but also to earn money at the same time. At the heart of this revolution are cryptocurrencies and blockchain, through which both developers and players are winning.
In 2021, Mark Zuckerberg announced his company’s reorganisation under a new name, Meta. He also revealed ambitious plans to create the Metaverse, a unique virtual space. This news caused a huge amount of interest because of the new possibilities for the gaming industry, thanks to which players will be able to not only play but also earn cryptocurrency.
Let’s dive into the world of play-to-earn game development, where entertainment becomes a source of income for both companies and developers, as well as for players.
What play2earn is
Play2earn is a new trend in the gaming industry that allows you to earn valuable rewards—in-game items, cryptocurrency, or money—just by playing. Play2earn is a new online gaming format that brings progressive changes to the world of gaming. Unlike traditional games where players waste time, play2earn allows people to earn money by playing their favourite games.
This approach is based on the use of blockchain technology, which provides transparency and security of transactions as well as allows for the creation of unique in-game assets. A key element in play2earn games are non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and utility tokens (cryptocurrency), which represent digital assets in the game and can be exchanged for real money or other valuables.
Players can earn NFTs and cryptocurrency by completing various tasks in the game, achieving certain achievements, or participating in game events. This opens up new opportunities for those who want to earn money while playing, whether they are professional players or enthusiasts.
What blockchain has to do with it
Blockchain is a distributed database that records all transactions and events as a chain of blocks. This technology provides a high level of transparency, reliability, and data security, making it a great solution for use in play2earn games.
Firstly, the blockchain allows you to securely store the player’s digital assets. This prevents fraud and account theft, which is common in traditional games.
Secondly, blockchain allows you to create an economic model in which players can monetize their efforts and time invested in the game. They can earn real money or digital assets for completing certain tasks, achieving goals, or just actively participating. This makes games more engaging.
Finally, blockchain ensures transparency and fairness in the gaming process. All transactions and actions of the players are recorded in it, which allows them to easily check the history of their actions and transactions. This creates trust and confidence that the game is fair for all participants.
Thus, blockchain plays a major role in the development and operation of play2earn projects, ensuring security, earnings, and full transparency of the entire gameplay.
How play2earn works
Play-to-earn is an attractive concept that makes cryptocurrencies more interesting to the public. Today, when online games are available to everyone thanks to mobile devices, the opportunity to receive money for spending time in them attracts many. This market has quite a huge potential, so many big companies are trying to capitalize on it.
Traditional games with microtransactions and the purchase of digital items rarely allow players to withdraw their earnings. But with play-to-earn, everything is different and more attractive — there is an opportunity to earn and withdraw money invested in the game and spent on its development. For example, games that require a lot of time to grind also open up new earning opportunities, and selling items to other players becomes an additional source of income for those who are willing to invest their time and effort in the gameplay.
Let’s have a closer look at how P2E games work. The concept itself is based on a simple idea: play and get rewarded. In this model, players are rewarded in the form of NFTs or cryptocurrencies for some achievements in the game. These assets can be exchanged or sold on various exchanges.
The play-to-earn model is beneficial to both players and game developers. For the former, it gives the opportunity to receive rewards for their time and effort, which makes the gameplay even more exciting and motivating. For the latter, it opens up new prospects, allowing them to attract more users and create additional sources of income.
The benefits of play2earn
There are several main reasons why the play2earn model is becoming more popular in the gaming industry.
Firstly, this model has several advantages for gamers, the main of which is the ability to monetize skills and time. They don’t need to buy anything; they can achieve everything for free. In traditional models, gamers have to buy items, progress through levels, and gain some advantages in the game.
Secondly, the play2earn model can bring developers more stable income because it creates a more predictable flow of finance later compared to traditional online games.
In addition, playing with the opportunity to earn money can make gamers more interested and committed, as they feel that their efforts are bearing fruit. This not only stimulates players’ progress and further achievements but also allows them to benefit from their playing time. Also, don’t forget about a longer involvement in the gameplay itself.
If we make a list of advantages over the classic game model, it will be quite long, so let’s highlight the main ones:
- Global accessibility. Players from different parts of the world can participate and earn money. There are no limits, boundaries, sanctions, or restrictions.
- Economic inclusiveness. P2E has the potential to empower people from low-income regions by offering them the opportunity to earn through gaming.
- Transparency and security. All transactions and events are recorded on the blockchain, making them impossible to falsify or change. This gives players trust and confidence in the integrity and continuity of the gameplay.
- Earnings. Players earn money by completing various tasks and achievements or simply participating in the gameplay. This opens up new opportunities to monetize the time spent in games and allows players to benefit from their efforts.
- Community. Interesting P2E games contribute to the formation of active and engaged gaming communities. Players cooperate with each other, compete, and share their gaming experiences. This often leads to the fact that within the general community, the players themselves create several additional communities, attracting a new audience.
In general, P2E games represent an innovative approach to the gaming industry that combines entertainment, earnings, and technological innovations, making them attractive to a wide audience of players.
What you need to know about P2E game development
Let’s look at what the creators of play2earn games face and what factors prevail in this matter.
The idea and concept of the game
As in any other industry, whether it is the development of crypto exchanges, mobile banking, or something else, the development of play2earn games begins with a clear definition of the idea and concept. It’s necessary to create an exciting game world that will interest players and promote their long-term engagement. The idea must be innovative and unique to make the game stand out from the competition.
Technology stack
The development of play2earn games requires the use of advanced technologies, including blockchain, smart contracts, artificial intelligence, and many others. Thanks to blockchain, players get the opportunity to own digital assets, and smart contracts ensure the security and transparency of transactions in the game. It’s important to choose the appropriate technology stack that meets the needs of the project and provides a high level of performance and scalability.
The economic model
The economic model determines ways for players to make money and for developers to monetize games. Developers should think carefully about the economic system, considering the balance between income for them and rewards for players. The economic model must be fair, stable, and motivating for all participants.
Design and gameplay
The design should be attractive and the gameplay should be engaging so that players can’t tear themselves away and earn more rewards. Game designers should create a high-quality game world with interesting mechanics and quests that will encourage players to stay active for a long time.
Social interaction and community
An active gaming community will support the game and contribute to its development. Developers should provide opportunities for players to interact with each other, share experiences, and solve game challenges together. Community support is great for the success and popularity of a game.
Creating play2earn games is a complex and multifaceted process that requires not only technical knowledge, but also a creative approach to understanding the needs of players. Given the growing interest in this model of gaming, developers are well-positioned to create promising play2earn projects that will delight their audiences and generate recurring income.
How play-to-earn games can improve business
Now let’s have a look at how play-to-earn projects can be a valuable asset for companies, including yours.
Attracting attention and engaging the audience
The major advantage of P2E games for business is their ability to attract and hold the attention of the audience. In a world where consumer attention is considered a valuable resource, play-to-earn games offer their own ‘unique experience’ that encourages players to engage and spend more time there. For businesses, it allows them to expand their audience and engage with them effectively through game content.
Community building and marketing opportunities
The best P2E games foster a strong gaming community, which can be a valuable asset to a business. Companies can use gaming communities for marketing purposes, promoting their products or services to players. Actively engaging with the community through gaming content creates strong connections with consumers and builds brand awareness.
Monetization and additional source of income
P2E gaming offers businesses the opportunity to create additional income streams. Companies can integrate their products or services into game content by offering players special rewards or benefits for using them. In addition, they can use P2E games to sell in-game items or digital assets, creating additional income streams.
Research and development of new markets
For companies across a wide range of industries, P2E games provide an opportunity to explore and develop new markets. By creating their own game worlds, companies can tap into new markets and capture the attention of new audiences. This allows them to diversify their business and seek new opportunities for growth and development.
P2E is a unique tool that benefits businesses. Not only do they offer new opportunities to attract and engage audiences, but they also help build strong communities, monetize, and explore new markets. By investing in new P2E games, companies seeking to remain competitive in the changing world of digital entertainment can achieve success faster.
How much it costs to develop your play2earn game
The most frequent question amongst developers and entrepreneurs looking to invest in this field is, ‘How much does it cost to develop my own play2earn game?’ Let’s discuss this issue in more detail.
The cost of developing a play2earn game can vary significantly as it depends on factors such as:
- The amount and complexity of game content
- Technological requirements and platforms
- Level of graphics and visual effects
- The size of the development team and their qualifications
- Implementation of blockchain technology
- Marketing and advertising expenses.
In general, the cost of developing a play2earn game can range from 10 thousand to 10 million dollars — it all depends on the scale of the project and its ambitions. Costs include programming, design, artwork, animation, testing. In addition, it is necessary to take into account the costs of marketing, updates, support, and monetization of the game after its release.
For many developers and entrepreneurs, the cost of development can be a high financial barrier. However, there are several strategies that will help you cope with this challenge:
- Searching for investors and partners interested in the project
- Crowdfunding or token sale to raise investment
- The gradual development and release of the game in stages
- Using open and free resources to minimise costs.
Despite the high cost of development, play2earn games are a promising field with high profitability yield. With the right strategy and monetization, a popular play2earn game can generate a steady income from the sale of in-game assets, commissions, and advertising. Moreover, games with an active community can attract the attention of investors and partners who will help in further development of the project.
If you want to develop your own game, then we are ready to help. The company has great competence and experience in this field. Write to us now, because while you are thinking, someone else might start implementing the same idea.
Johnny Walker
Chief Editor
8 October 2024 Updated on Обновлено
16 October 2024