Play your way to profit with NFT games.
Imagine being paid generously for playing video games. Sounds like a dream—or an overly ambitious American movie—doesn’t it? Well, it’s reality for those following the rise of NFTs or non-fungible tokens. According to the Chief Executive of video game company Electronic Arts (EA), Andrew Wilson, collectible NFTs are “an important part of the future of [the gaming] industry”.
So, what are NFT games?
NFT games are “play-to-earn” video games that are built on the blockchain and NFT technology. Unlike traditional video games, the rewards or characters you earn in the game are NFTs that you can trade for money. These rewards or collectibles can be digital cards, pets and the like.
NFT games place the power in gamers’ hands. These collectibles will remain yours even when the game disappears, you quit or you finish all levels. Some popular NFT games include Axie Infinity, a game where you collect fantasy monsters, and the first-ever NFT game CryptoKitties, in which you breed and sell digital cats. The rewards are traded for Smooth Love Potion (SLP) or AXS (Axie Infinity)—Ethereum-based cryptocurrencies.
How do NFT games work?
An NFT game works like any other video game. There are levels and rewards. To implement the NFT part, there are “smart contracts”. A smart contract is a digital agreement that gets enforced by a specific set of rules. The players have to abide by the contract that is predefined by a computer code.
While playing the game, players can access in-game assets, such as cosmetics, digital cards, pets and more. They can then trade these as NFTs, helping players earn money. For instance, if a player accesses a new weapon—a sword perhaps—they can go beyond just using it to defeat other players. They can tokenize the sword and sell it to another player in exchange for money.
NFTs are unique and scarce, adding to their monetary value. However, in the case of NFT art, the piece of artwork can be replicated—through false copies, screenshots and the like—thus reducing its rarity. Rest assured, that’s not the case with NFT games. The rewards you earn within the game are truly one-of-a-kind and cannot be replicated without putting in the work. This feature makes them a covetable and highly profitable asset.
How do NFT games make money?
While NFT games are lucrative, they do require some initial investment. Players can access certain features of the game for free. However, to truly profit from the game, they will have to pay a fee or make in-app purchases. That’s how NFT game-makers earn money.
Traditionally, video games would require players to pay for their services. However, now, with NFT games, there is more value for players, as within the games lies an opportunity to earn cryptocurrency, boosting their return on investment.
This mutual profitability model—where both the game-maker and player are at an advantage—could be the future of gaming. After all, as per Wilson, gamers want “more modalities at play inside the game”. They want to go beyond “just straight 11-on-11 football” and explore newer ways of playing. He revealed, “They want more digital experiences outside the game—esports, NFTs, broader sports consumption, and they want us to move really, really quickly.”
Header Image by Flickr
