GameFi, which has become one of the most popular parts of the cryptocurrency ecosystem in a brief time, brings together the financial and gaming markets. The gaming sector, where the number of players has increased especially during the pandemic period, has brought a new ecosystem by taking advantage of the distributed ledger structure, transparency, and security of Blockchain Technology.
Covid-19's Impact on the Gaming Industry
Our habits have changed during the Covid-19 pandemic. We have had to continue our lives in unprecedented conditions in recent history. Many of us have adopted new habits to make the most of our time. According to recent studies, there is a huge increase in the number of people who have started playing video games during the pandemic. The chart below shows regional increases in time spent with video games since July 2020. The highest increase was in Latin America with 52%, while the region with the lowest increase was North America with 15%. The increase in Europe and the Middle East, including our country Türkiye, is 34%. Globally, the increase in time spent playing video games is 39%.
Chart 1. Increase in time spent with video games - Regional
Source: Statista
How GameFi Projects Work
GameFi projects run on blockchain and have an in-game economy. Most projects have a native token. These tokens act as a means of payment for transactions. The GameFi ecosystem also includes NFTs. All in-game elements such as weapons, maps, and special items are saved on the blockchain, as they are included in the ecosystem as NFTs. Players can trade among themselves. All these transactions can be done with the native token of a project. Players can then convert these tokens into fiat currencies and use them outside of the game.
Play-To-Earn Replaces Pay-To-Win
In traditional video games, the gaming company benefits from a game’s ecosystem. Video game companies create an ecosystem and players face various challenges to compete against other players. In traditional video games, companies can offer some advantages to players, and players can pay for special items or a faster gaming experience. We call this model Pay-To-Win.
With the introduction and widespread use of the GameFi ecosystem, major changes have taken place in the gaming industry. The most important change is that the Play-To-Earn model has largely replaced the Pay-To-Win model. In the Play-To-Earn model, GameFi projects allow players to earn tokens. Supply and demand are constant for these tokens, which are used as a trading tool in games, and the longevity of these tokens are important for the longevity of the projects.
GameFi Projects listed on Bitexen
- Decentraland (MANA)
- Axie Infinity (AXS)
- Enjin Coin (ENJ)
- MyNeighborAlice (ALICE)
- MOBOX (MBOX)
- The Sandbox (SAND)
- Gala (GALA)
