Crypto and blockchain technology are already being implemented in a broad range of sectors, starting with finance, thanks to the development of Bitcoin, to art, from the current boom of NFT’s and their usage, not only as a speculative medium to make money, but as a way to collect and show support to artists and creators, a ticket to partake onto an ecosystem of people with similar values and interests.
Gaming is no exception to this, as play-to-earn games rely, for the most part, on blockchain technology, utilizing NFT’s like a digital claim of ownership for assets inside of these virtual worlds.
Even so, blockchain gaming is still considered a niche (albeit exponentially growing in popularity and mainstream appeal at the writing of this article), it could eventually redefine the already established gaming landscape as we know it, potentially changing the perception of people regarding the role of videogames in the modern society as more than a medium for entertainment, even serving as proof of concept for a self-sovereign, open, creator economy, promoting value creation for all kind of digital environments.
Financial institutions and other socioeconomic structures could utilize the current play-to-earn environment as a sneak peek at how a universal basic income system might work in a broader scheme.
Multiplayer online games, even back in the early 2000s, have already shown how robust in-game economies spawn markets in which customers unofficially spend real money in exchange for virtual items or accounts, something that has been exploited by people looking to make a quick buck out of marketing such virtual assets, and even created job opportunities to individuals from less privileged nations.
The whole play to earn environment represents a unique opportunity for people from countries that suffer from hyperinflated economies, It can create new livelihoods for the poor and even give us a taste of how would society might function in a future where manual labor gets taken over by automatization and most start earning by partaking on micro-tasks inside of virtual worlds supported by blockchain.
As the gaming industry delves into decentralization, play-to-earn games can bring ownership and digital identity into the players’ hands, becoming an enabler of social mobility and improved quality of life for some people.
Jobs inside of the metaverse!
The whole idea behind play-to-earn gaming intrinsically challenges our preconceptions of money-making, broadening the spectrum of possible jobs as we expect from the regular 9 to 5 we are all so used to.
The economies behind blockchain games reverses some of the ideas we have been trained to think about labor. Instead of making our efforts conform to the typical management notion of a “job”, these platforms, in a way, hand the control of their finances to the “worker”.
Offering workers greater flexibility and also control over their work hours and schedules, is something we have already experienced with services such as Twitch, where the line between work and play gets blurred, giving gamers the spotlight to monetize their skills or even their personality by simply broadcasting themselves playing videogames.
Economist and professor of media from the University of Indiana Edward Castronova, has made some very remarkable and though-provoking predictions regarding the evolution of economies in relation to play to earn gaming:
“Within five years, some game companies will be paying players in some way to play their games. This will be in the form of small points-based incentives that can be liquidated in the form of purchasing power”.
“Within ten years, paying for players will become a standard revenue model in the game industry. Payments will either be in the form of liquid virtual money or real cash.”
The future seems bright for the marriage between gaming and crypto. Might these new experiences define the way we look at work? or would it be just a flavor of the month in the waits for the next boom in the crypto sphere?
One thing we can be sure about: Token creation is here to stay, and it has made its way into gaming.
Let us know what you think about play-to-earn taking the front seat of gaming in the foreseen future (@isaac_mint in Twitter or through our other official channels).
Isaac Vitales