Takuya Tsuji is the founder of Eureka Entertainment and Coin Musme.
Blockchain games are taking the industry by storm, and if we consider the kinds of revolutionary opportunities they’re unlocking for developers, players, investors, and creatives everywhere, it’s easy to see why.
Since its inception, web3 gaming has successfully paved the way for new models of growth and added previously unexplored value to the gaming sector as a whole. And the rise of blockchain games has been uniquely exciting to witness.
The Blockchain Game Alliance’s 2022 report tells us that gaming remains “a driving force for the dapp sector industry, accounting for almost 50% of all on-chain activity.” Web3 gaming and metaverse projects raised $7.6 billion in 2022, which accounts for almost 60% more than they did in 2021.
At the same time, it’d be unfair to gloss over the obvious elephant in the room: web3 games have not won over everybody.
From prohibitively expensive joining fees and assets, to games that are simply not that fun to play, to the widespread feeling that the blockchain gaming community is one of investors, not players, user adoption continues to prove challenging.
The Blockchain Game Alliance report also spotlights the industry’s main pain points, particularly player onboarding and accessibility — an issue cited by more than half of respondents — and poor gameplay, which “was the second most commonly cited challenge, up from being the fifth most common in 2021.”
Takuya Tsuji – Founder of Techross and
Coin Musme
“Games still hold the potential to attract millions of users to new experiences where they enjoy true digital ownership,” says Sebastien Borget, president of the BGA, and “it is these builders who will unlock the full potential of blockchain gaming in the years to come.”
Despite the many challenges of blockchain gaming, I can’t help but agree. So, how are developers to proceed? What’s the secret to blockchain games leveling up their game (pardon the pun) and building a concrete foundation upon which to build successful titles upon successful titles?
Let’s start with fun. A “fun” blockchain game needs to fully explore the uniquely “fun” element that can only be provided by blockchain games, a secret sauce which I’d describe as a mix of “earning experience” and “community experience.”
The earning experience is a very strong element and definitely the biggest appeal of blockchain games. However, leveraging it to the fullest can be tricky: it can be hard to find a balance between how the earning experience should never overshadow the gaming experience, but it also can’t just be a bonus developers throw in as an afterthought.
By leveraging the power of what is new, fresh, and innovative, and as a result, exciting to the greatest number of users, web3 developers can focus on providing the kind of value that only blockchain games can bring to the table.
Takuya Tsuji
A common pitfall of blockchain games is developers focusing on “existing games with some extra earnings attached,” but this rarely translates to the user experience. From the provider’s perspective, a game that makes little money is better than a game that doesn’t make any money, right? But from a user’s perspective, existing games don’t aim to make money, so the two motivations and perspectives are entirely different.
In order to create truly successful titles, developers need to inhabit the ideal player’s mind, not simply make what they think will make the most money and call it a day. Developers need to take their cues from what the community is interested in, what it will find fun, engaging, and creatively fulfilling — as well as where the most earning potential is.
In the same vein, they need to remember that users greatly value the community experience, and this element shouldn’t be forgotten, either. In comparison to traditional games, the barrier between operation and users in web3 games is disappearing at a quick pace, and developers should take full advantage of what that means.
Both making operational user involvement a part of the gaming experience, but also the possibility of earning rewards through it, are completely new experiences that previously existing games could never have afforded their players. Why not push this element, leverage it to the industry’s advantage, and use its unique positioning to help shift collective sentiment around web3 gaming as a whole?
A “fun” blockchain game needs to fully explore the uniquely “fun” element that can only be provided by blockchain games
Takuya Tsuji
In my opinion, the key to successful blockchain games is to incorporate these new experiences into existing game experiences and continue to do so as technology evolves with them. By leveraging the power of what is new, fresh, and innovative, and as a result, exciting to the greatest number of users, web3 developers can focus on providing the kind of value that only blockchain games can bring to the table.
The web3 gaming space is a broad and diverse one, and it will continue to iron out its kinks and issues and it evolves through the years. The landscape has already drastically changed since the early days of the P2E models, and every challenge is an opportunity for investors, creators, developers and creatives to adapt to the learning curve this new technology brings with it.
By bridging the disconnect between web3 and traditional gamers, as well as the one between the developer mindset and the player one, and all the while focusing on mixing elements of fun, community, earning potential, and accessibility, we have a golden chance to truly make the blockchain games space great.