The crypto gaming industry recorded notable growth last year as new projects launched, while existing ones gathered many more users. DappRadar data shows that the web3 gaming market received $145 million in investments between May and November last year, contributing to the overall bullishness in the sector. Unfortunately, this is much lower than the figures recorded in 2022. According to DappRadar, the sector netted $2.3 billion in investments between January and October, with $600 million in the third quarter alone. In the second quarter of 2022, blockchain gaming investments hit $973 million.
Even though 2022 was generally better than last year, there are a few optimistic predictions to anticipate in 2024. Although it might be difficult to predict the direction of crypto gaming investments, there is enough reason to be confident about web3 and blockchain gaming in 2024. The following are a few crypto gaming forecasts for the year:
Blockchain Gaming Will Account for Higher Wallet Activity
The web3 gaming sector is expected to increase in 2024 to the point that it will account for a significant percentage of wallet transactions. DappRadar data states that the blockchain gaming sector increased 14% last November to 1.2 million daily unique active wallets (dUAW). The on-chain data tracking service also said that this accounted for 34% of all industry activity for the month. Although these numbers are already healthy, they are likely to increase. According to Sy Lee, the CEO and co-founder of crypto intellectual property firm, Story Protocol, blockchain gaming’s share of the UAW in decentralized applications will rise. Lee says game developers will create user-generated content and modifications focusing on community inclusion, eventually attracting more gamers.
More Artificial Intelligence and Web3 Gaming Integration
In 2024, there will be increased use cases for AI in blockchain games. At the moment, projections suggest a possible spike in growth from the $922 million recorded in 2022 to more than $7.1 billion by 2032. Via AI, crypto game design will become more accessible so that non-experts can penetrate the sector. Generally, this will foster inclusivity, allowing developers without plenty of resources to compete favorably with their experienced or buoyant counterparts.
This intersection between AI and blockchain gaming would likely birth crypto gaming coins. These crypto assets, carefully designed for the sector, will offer specific utility on AI gaming platforms. In addition to gaming cryptocurrency coins, there may be new gaming standards designed for these tokens, for easy interoperability and cross-chain gameplay.
Furthermore, new assets could also benefit the crypto gambling industry, which requires players to deposit digital assets to play casino games. Currently, players can find Bitcoin gambling sites for 2024 as well as other crypto casinos that accept several major digital assets, including Ether (ETH) and Litecoin (LTC). These sites already offer players easy access to gambling using the world’s most popular cryptocurrencies. However, AI could spur the design and launch of new gaming cryptocurrency coins that support special functions in crypto casinos. For instance, new coins could make it easy for crypto casinos to use Provably Fair technology to ensure that each game’s outcome is fairly decided.
Increased Game Launches This Year
Another expected prediction this year is an increase in the number of launches. Developers are likely to create and release new games and finalize existing titles currently in early access, restricted access, or simply unfinished. Blockchain gamers should have a good range of titles as the year progresses, especially as some of the investments secured last year start to yield.
Developers Will Prioritize User Experience
Crypto gaming platforms will design games with a strong focus on giving players the best user experience possible. They may do this in different ways, including developing games with great stories and expanding the in-game landscape enough for titles to be engaging and fun. Alec M. Wanton, the Product Head at web3 game launcher and game store aggregator, HyperPlay, recently told Decrypt that developers have realized that games must be “optimized for fun.” According to Wantoch, creators are already designing games that are “embracing the fun aspect.”
On user experience, observers suggest that developers in 2024 will start to simplify the language used in these games. Josh Jones, the co-founder and co-CEO of blockchain game Cornucopias, says that games will “de-jargonize” their terminology so that people within and outside the crypto sector can enjoy them equally. For instance, according to Jones, creators may replace the word “NFT” with “player-owned assets” or “in-game assets.”
Mobile Blockchain Gaming
Crypto gaming titles sometimes struggle with blockchain gaming, depending on their complexity. In a recent interview, Blockchain Gaming World podcast’s editor-in-chief Jon Jordan explains that one major problem is that only a minority of blockchain games are optimized for mobile from the start. Most of the time, developers first create games for the browser and then try to make them available on mobile.
Unfortunately, this can be problematic because the rules on mobile, especially with app stores, can be quite stringent. In many cases, developers then have to redesign the games and sometimes eliminate certain features, which makes the game considerably less functional than the browser version. In 2024, crypto gaming companies that have noticed this may consider mobile development in the initial process before making their titles available on other platforms to ensure that games are as enjoyable on mobile as they are on a browser.