About the Author
Mo Shaikh is the co-founder and CEO of Aptos Labs, based in Palo Alto, California. He is a three-time founder with over a decade of experience in multinational financial services and blockchain/crypto.
There is no cheat code to make games people really want to play and market them globally.
Whether you’re a billion-dollar publisher or an individual developer, success takes time, investment, technical expertise, testing, and a strong go-to-market strategy.
The global gaming industry should be worth $321 billion by 2026and many players are pressing into the market. But the most important factor in game development is the sense of community and shared experiences that gaming provides to the approximately 3.2 billion players (40% of the world’s population). This community spirit has always been a fundamental aspect of the game, regardless of the financial numbers.
Web3 games offer the best of both worlds: decentralized game creation for developers and businesses, as well as social and economic value for gamers looking to compete and connect with people around the world.
Better games = better cash flow
The first users of the Web3 game are very committed in pre-launch and post-launch game development, user experience upgrades, and funding, which translates directly into the success of game creators. In-game transactions, including the ability to create NFTs of game attributes and avatars, provide new revenue streams for businesses and more personalized experiences for players.
Games accounts for more than half of all transactions on the blockchain. And the community is just getting started.
Switch to an individual ownership model
The disadvantages of centralization, such as lived by Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin while playing World of Warcraft, are eliminated with Web3 games. By integrating smart contacts and turning virtual in-game elements into NFTs, power is returned to players who can now own their in-game attributes. Even if a game is stopped, the appearance of the player’s in-game attributes can persist, as long as there is a community to support the game.
Web3 games offer everyone the benefits of decentralization, which means there is no threat or risk of a leader or company emerging to limit experiences. Players around the world can access Web3 games and own essential parts of their experiences. Game makers can then move from a sole arbiter to an access broker, allowing players to monetize their gaming experiences.
Moving from developer playground to global gaming standard
The Web3 game has the potential to be a natural bridge between Web2 and Web3. It is fundamentally designed to allow gamers to move seamlessly between gaming, socializing, and trading, in the physical and virtual worlds. And the possibilities from a financial, social and gameplay standpoint are endless, with 164 million players ages 13 to 64 in the United States only primed for new experiences.
For Web3 gaming standards to emerge and become the norm, the gaming world must have access to a high-performance blockchain and developer resources, like Apt And Unity SDKthat further accelerate progress across the ecosystem.
Bringing the player experience back to the players
Web3 games allow players to invest in owning NFTs related to their individual game. They can create CADwhich are like fan clubs with direct input on the production and direction of the game. Members of the community of a specific game can vote on important issues that concern anything related to the player experience and be trusted that the results will result in better and more accessible gameplay.
Turning to Web3 to Solve a Critical Problem: Fraud
At the platform level, creating games on the blockchain provides fundamental benefits: verification, security, connectivity, and creativity for everyone involved. It also helps prevent fraud, which is one of the most common challenges on modern gaming platforms.
Blockchain technology ensures that all transactions (like NFT sales) and interactions between different parties are verified and legitimate. Businesses can also use blockchain technology to ensure that no individual or party has been paid twice for the same service or rendered, since every transaction is recorded.
But we need to solidify asset portability as the glue that connects and enhances the gaming experience as a whole, and what separates Web2 and Web3 gaming.
The ability to own and transfer elements of a game experience helps players engage, and built communities and savings. It also gives individual developers and Web2 game publishers like EA or Nintendo creative ways to create games on channels, attract funding and market to those 3.2 billion (and counting) players in the world. world.