Will traditional gaming studios evolve or face extinction?
The gaming industry is going through an evolutionary shift. For many, it’s about time. The console market has largely monopolized what was once a vibrantly creative and boldly adventurous sector. But now, with Web3 really starting to draw into clear focus, a growing demand for seamless blockchain gaming experiences that can also deliver the all-important ‘fun factor’ gamers crave is starting to emerge.
Beyond play
One of the most essential gameplay elements (the act of collecting items, or ‘loot’) as you progress through a game is a top priority for every Web3 gamer. Unique weapons, special armor, magical amulets, helmets, backpacks, trails, and more; these are the artifacts that, on the blockchain, have genuine value and that provide players with a reason to play that goes beyond gaming.
But what happens when a player decides to quit a game and move on? What happens to the effort they put in and the items they collected?
Enter the Web3 gaming economy
Most traditional gamers are already used to buying and selling in-game assets, mostly through playing successful multiplayer titles like Diablo III, Fortnite, or Counter Strike Global Offensive. With all of these games, marketplaces are an essential feature of the experience, even without the presence of blockchain.
In the long run, however, when compared to similar (or even better) games that appear in the Web3 space, these Web2 forebears will become inefficient and unsustainable. Why? Because bringing games to blockchain promises to solve several existing pain points while further streamlining in-game economies. Blockchain will also introduce a new level of democracy and fairness to gameplay, through increased decentralization, while delivering a high level of security.
Security matters
This latter point is particularly evident in gaming projects building on Ethereum, via Layer 2 (L2) solutions. In blockchain, taking this route is the surest way to protect wallets, assets, and privacy while also achieving impressive scalability, fast transaction speeds, and zero gas fees. Importantly, NFT minting in the burgeoning Web3 gaming space is one of the main reasons?Ethereum will always need Layer 2 scaling solutions.
Most online games can be hacked and their in-game economies modified. This gives dishonest gamers an undue edge over regular players. But a decentralized in-game marketplace can provide all gamers with an economy that is immutable, transparent, and fair.
Eliminating the possibility of fraud allows all players the opportunity to start earning, not only from dedicated play-to-earn (P2E) indie titles but also from playing truly mainstream AAA games. Implementing a decentralized marketplace into multiplayer games makes true ownership possible, creating permanent value for players in the form of in-game currencies and valuable NFTs that can be traded both in-game and on crypto exchanges.
The cross-chain compatibility conundrum
Apart from making these things possible, blockchain also presents some other benefits to the gaming industry. For example, decentralization could make a growing number of digital items transferable between different games within the Metaverse. This sort of cross-chain compatibility might eventually go some way towards blurring the lines between the virtual and physical worlds.
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Though a topic still in its infancy, interoperability is one of the hottest topics in the Web3 space right now, with many talented coders working around the clock to make the efficient cross-chain transfer of tokens and NFTs possible. Moreover, the seamless transfer of digital assets between currently siloed ecosystems is one of the key potential use cases for blockchain interoperability. This means blockchain-based gaming could well be one of the first areas to benefit from this type of innovation.
Another way blockchain tech will provide a competitive edge to early adopters across the whole gaming industry is by encouraging user content creation. Here, gamers will be free to leverage their creative impulses. This would help shift developer focus away from a revenue-centric to a user-centric approach. By building truly enjoyable games and attracting larger communities, with the bonus of being able to earn crypto with real-world value, game developers and publishers are more likely to thrive.
Staying ahead of the game
Renowned gaming studios like Epic and Square Enix are already sensing the sands shifting beneath them, the gradual transition from Web2 to Web3, and have started to accept that blockchain gaming and in-game NFTs are more than just a passing fad.
In time it’s likely that other AAA studios will follow suit and start launching titles that incorporate blockchain technology and reward mainstream gamers with assets that have genuine value.
Conclusion
From a futuristic perspective, as we drift towards a more digitized world that could well become an all-encompassing Metaverse, how we form communities, play, trade, socialize and create is likely to change. This is already in evidence in working patterns where meetings and interactions are carried out digitally and across time zones. As a growing number of digital assets get stored immutably on the blockchain, there is a strong possibility that more and more areas of our lives will become digitized and, indeed, gamified.
Forward-thinking gaming studios will see what’s around the corner and start building new solutions now, anticipating innovations like interoperability and avatars that can move around in virtual spaces. We might not be Ready Player One just yet but the chances are, it’s simply a matter of time.
Have you got an NFT or gaming project that could benefit from lightning-fast transaction speeds, impressive scaling capabilities, and airtight security with zero gas fees?
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