The "Play to Earn" model is declining as blockchain games shift toward ecosystem integration
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The "Play to Earn" model is declining as blockchain games shift toward ecosystem integration
The latest survey shows that as traditional game development expertise gradually integrates into the blockchain sector, user experience (UX) friction is decreasing, but mainstream credibility remains a challenge.
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insightsText: Vince Dioquino
Translation: Centreless
According to an organization focused on advancing blockchain technology in gaming, blockchain games are entering a new phase of maturity, becoming more seamlessly accessible to a growing number of players. However, the industry is undergoing potentially transformative changes as traditional game developers enter the space.
This shift aligns with major studios such as Sony and Square Enix entering the field via blockchain Layer 2 solutions. Public perception remains one of the key hurdles, according to an industry survey released this week by the Blockchain Game Alliance (BGA).
The report shows that 66% of projects are still working to establish credibility and overcome public misconceptions linking blockchain games to scams. Nevertheless, the difficulty for players to access blockchain games has decreased significantly, with entry barriers dropping from 79.5% last year to 53.9% in 2024. This improvement is largely due to enhanced user experiences that make accessing blockchain games easier.
"At the heart of this growth lies the principle of player empowerment," wrote Sebastian Borget, President of the BGA, in the report. He noted that player interest in blockchain gaming primarily stems from the concept of ownership. The report found that over 71% of respondents identified ownership as the "greatest benefit" offered by blockchain games.
The report also highlights that since the last market cycle, the industry has placed greater emphasis on user experience (UX) and user interface (UI), prioritizing smooth gameplay comparable to traditional Web2 games. The BGA predicts this trend will continue expanding into 2025, with a shift in focus from financial mechanisms toward enhancing player experience. Blockchain games are increasingly concealing their crypto elements. Gaming platforms are moving away from overt crypto features—such as token economies and NFT markets—toward seamless integration, allowing Web3 functionalities to operate in the background.
The "Play-to-Earn" Model Enters a New Phase
As 2025 approaches, blockchain gaming is entering a new chapter. In interviews with media, the BGA shared its predictions. Traditional centralized game servers are transitioning toward blockchain infrastructure, demonstrating how the gaming industry is embracing the concept of digital ownership.
Compared to conventional games that rely on regional server networks for stability and data management, blockchain integration enables true digital ownership through on-chain asset tracking and transactions.
Moreover, the "play-to-earn" model that emerged in 2020 has undergone significant transformation, placing greater emphasis on practical applications of on-chain features. Andrew Campbell (aka Zyori), a well-known figure in the Web3 community, noted in the report that this shift has given rise to new models driven by player skill and activity.
"The original 'play-to-earn' model had two fatal flaws: uncontrolled reward inflation that scaled with user growth, and insufficient token sink mechanisms to create deflationary pressure," wrote Campbell.
Fully On-Chain Games and Autonomous Worlds
The report introduces two emerging concepts: "Autonomous Worlds" (AW) and "Fully On-Chain Games" (FOCG). These terms describe gaming experiences entirely built on and natively existing on blockchains—including game rules, player assets, and game economies—rather than merely placing select components on-chain while running the main client on traditional centralized servers.
Gillian Pua, Chief Staff Officer at Sovrun (formerly BreederDAO), said that Autonomous Worlds allow games to "continuously evolve based on community input" by placing game states and logic partially on-chain. She added that as artificial intelligence integrates with blockchain infrastructure, this characteristic will also shape how future Fully On-Chain Games operate.
"Leveraging on-chain transparency, Autonomous Worlds provide an ideal foundation for AI agents to thrive, enabling intelligent and adaptive gaming experiences generated from real-time player behavior," said Pua.
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