What are NFTs?

Non-fungible Tokens, or NFTs, are digital assets minted on the blockchain. These digital assets include images, music, videos, gifs, domain names, virtual lands, etc. Non-fungible Tokens can be traded online on well-known exchanges such as OpenSea, Rarible, LooksRare, and Binance, among others. These unique digital arts are minted on these Marketplaces, with Meta-data describing their uniqueness. NFTs have emerged enormously these past years and are now implemented in gaming. P2E (Play-to-Earn) games have become so viral in the gaming industry.

What are P2E (Play-to-Earn) NFT Games?

Play-to-Earn (P2E) games are video games in which players are rewarded with crypto tokens and NFTs. Some games require an investment in tokens or NFTs, while others allow players to earn crypto tokens and NFTs by playing. In P2E games, a player can trade and sell assets to other players. This is because most of the gaming assets in P2E games are NFTs or can be converted into them. Gaming assets like characters, skins, weapons, virtual lands, etc. P2E gaming assets are so unique are rare, as this is the main feature of NFTs, which makes some blockchain game assets more valuable than others. In P2E games, players earn tokens when they accomplish missions or reach some gaming milestones, these tokens can be traded with other players in the game for fiat or NFTs or traded in cryptocurrency exchanges for other crypto tokens or fiat. P2E games are built of blockchains, they can also be called DeFi games because they are decentralized. Before the introduction of P2E games, most games followed the Free-to-Play (F2P) model, in which players do not pay to play these games; instead, they operate entirely on the freemium model. Players work extremely hard to advance in rank and earn a lot of gaming assets. However, game developers and gaming companies have power and control over players for their hard-earned gaming assets and levels, which have no monetary value. P2E games are now here to address all of these flaws and give power to the players by decentralizing the Free-to-Play gaming model and placing value on the hard-earned assets by converting these assets to rare tradable NFTs and tokenizing the achievements of the players by rewarding them with tradable gaming tokens with monetary value. This is why they are known as P2E games.

The following is a brief description of some well-known P2E games.

1. Axie Infinity

Axie Infinity P2E blockchain-based game that got inspiration from the Pokemon game, but has rare characters, a unique theme, and unique gaming assets, making it more exciting. Axie Infinity is built on the Ethereum blockchain. In Axie Infinity, players procreate and nurture and get rewarded with NFT-based digital pets known as Axies, the players compete with other players for Axies. Every Axie in Axie Infinity has its unique genetic imprint, which makes Axies' traits passed down to the offspring they nurture. These Axies can be traded on Ethereum NFT marketplaces, with the price varying according to their rarity and unique features.

2. The Sandbox

The Sandbox is a P2E blockchain-based digital game in which players can purchase digital parcels of land in a virtual world and build gaming interactions on top of them to share and communicate with other players. This virtual world is known as a Metaverse. The Sandbox gaming items like land and assets in the Sandbox virtual world are bought with the Sandbox token. The Sandbox tokens are also used as stakes to participate in DAO governance. Sandbox tokens can be traded outside this virtual world on exchanges for other tokens and Fiat. In Sandbox virtual world, gaming assets are represented as Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in Sandbox and these NFTs are used to populate LAND. The Sandbox marketplace is an exchange for these gaming assets (NFTs).

The Sandbox: a P2E blockchain-based digital game

3. Alien Worlds

The Alien Worlds is a P2E blockchain-based game in which players can earn NFTs and cryptocurrency by simply playing. One of the player's main objectives is to mine Alien Worlds token Trilium (TLM), combat other Aliens, and make commissions on their virtual real estate. The TLM tokens can be traded on major exchanges for other tokens and Fiat. In the Alien World, the gaming assets are tokenized to have a fair economy. The Alien Worlds exists on several blockchains, including Ethereum, WAX, and the BNB Chain. In Alien Worlds, each planet in this metaverse is self-contained, with its own NFTs, interactions, and environments. Players can transform locations between the blockchains. The Alien Worlds consists of seven planets.

Alien Worlds a P2E blockchain-based game

Advantages of NFT Play-to-Earn Games

In P2E games, players earn tradable tokens which can be traded for Fiat and other tokens

P2E games give players control over their gaming assets rather than game developers.

P2E games are decentralized, which gives the games more transparency as gaming upgrade decisions are made with consensus via DAO staking.

P2E games are built on blockchains. Games built on a blockchain can interact with one another, and players can conduct NFTs and token trades across games, making the games interoperable.

Gaming assets can’t be lost due to the immutable nature of the blockchain on which P2E games are built.

Disadvantages of NFT Play-to-Earn Games

The main reason most people play games is to have fun, games are mostly played during leisure as a means of relaxation. P2E games change this and games now look like a way of making money and this takes the fun out of playing games.

Game developers develop games and prioritize the economic model over the aspects that make the game fun.

Most of the P2E games require an initial investment to participate, gaming objects like characters, themes, player skins, weapons, etc, are tokenized and you have to spend tokens on them to earn tokens which looks like luck or a “Ponzi Scheme”.

To earn tokens in P2E games, a player sometimes plays for hours to accumulate a significant amount, which is exhausting and not fun. Tokens are like treasures in most P2E games, and finding treasures always requires hard work because these games simulate real life. Gamers spend weeks or months trying to recoup the initial investment they used to participate in these games.

Summary

P2E games have the potential to be the gaming industry's future. This gaming model is being adopted by many of the top gaming industries. Users enjoy gaming more because they can earn money while having fun, and many people have come to appreciate the value of gaming. The P2E market's future is growing massively as more gamers adopt this model. Decentralized gaming is the future of gaming because players have complete control over their gaming assets and can make gaming upgrades by consensus with other players. P2E games have become so viral and adopted. As a result, major centralized and decentralized exchanges now trade gaming tokens.