How Gamified Crypto Platforms Are Changing the Game

Cryptocurrency platforms are increasingly incorporating game mechanics. Like any SaaS product, they compete for user attention with tons of services and products. While technologies evolve rapidly, human psychology remains largely unchanged from 100, 500, 1000 years ago. Consequently, product development teams are constantly seeking creative, unusual, and fresh ideas to achieve their goals.

Gamification as a Strategy

Gamification is one such strategy. By mastering the language of user emotions, you can achieve significant success. Games focus on emotions, creating a safe zone where users can explore worlds, gain experiences, and feel emotions that are either inaccessible or difficult to attain in the real world. Enhanced dopamine cycles provide the feedback and rewards that are often missing in reality. Understand emotions, and you’ll achieve product success!

Here are a few examples of applying game approaches in the crypto industry. It's important to understand that there are many of them now, especially RPG-like games where characters are sold as NFT tokens. This is the Play to Earn model.

Examples

💠 Blockchain Cats

#cryptocats #blockchaincats

One of the first crypto games I observed was Blockchain Cats. Initially, it was very simple, with the core mechanic being merging.

You create new cats and place them on a running track where they move automatically. Similar cats should be merged to create a new cat of the next level; the further you go, the rarer the cats become. These cats are NFTs and can be sold on the platform for cryptocurrency. Each cat changes the track's parameters, such as speed, money earned per round, and items unlocked during movement. The game is regularly updated.

Game Mechanics:

• Core mechanic: Merging
• Lucky wheel: Offers additional rewards through a randomizer
• Gambling mechanics: Luck-based, randomizers, strong dopamine cycle
• Daily login reward: Encourages regular sessions
• Chests: Unlocked at certain progress levels
• Cat shop: Buy tokens (cats) with Ethereum cryptocurrency
• Mini-games: Include mini-puzzles
• Quests
• Tournaments

💠 Axie Infinity (Similar Project: Gods Unchained)

#cryptogames #blockchain #NFT #cryptogamification #gamification

Axie Infinity is a game where you collect and battle creatures called Axies, which are NFTs. You can earn cryptocurrency by playing, making it popular, especially in developing countries.

Game Mechanics:

• Classic card RPG battler: Collect cute creatures, each with their abilities
• Upgrades through experience points: Earned after battles, apply boosters and power-ups
• Creatures as NFT tokens: Players can sell them to each other
• Creator program: Allows players to make creatures unique (similar to a forge in mid and hardcore games)
• Special events and tournaments: Maintain player interest
• Constant content updates: The game is designed to create value for NFT cards, which have value only for players of this game
• Earn cryptocurrency: By selling your cards

This is not just gamification; it's an entire game universe with all the implications. I believe the time to market is around 20-36 months, depending on the number of characters they started with.

I worked on a similar project two years ago, but we chose pixel art to create characters faster. Overall, the success of NFTs in such projects 100% depends on whether the creators managed to produce the game so that it creates a community of fans around its ecosystem. This is the limitation of such projects.

💠 Blocktrade (a gamified system, not a game) (similar project: Aavegotchi)

#web3

Blocktrade has turned its crypto exchange into a gamified platform. Users can customize avatars, earn points, and complete tasks. These features make using the platform more engaging and fun, encouraging users to stay active and involved.

Game Mechanics:

• Greek gods theme for avatars: Narrative and stylisation in a gamified system using mid-core game mechanics
• Player level system: Unlocks rewards (which can be sold as NFTs). Players can sell their level, which is tied to a specific reward system. Success depends on how desirable these rewards are made.
• Experience points: Earned by completing various quests and tasks
• Strong community focus: The foundation of the project, with constant feedback from users and the implementation of their ideas and suggestions. Creators focused on co-creation. I would suggest adding social game mechanics: competition, cooperation, time-based events.
• Estimated time to market: 12-24 months due to choosing system gamification instead of game development

💠 My Neighbor Alice (this is a game)

#cryptogames #blockchain #NFT #web3

Launched in 2021. In My Neighbor Alice, you can buy virtual islands, collect items, and interact with other players. The game's economy runs on the ALICE token, which you can earn through activities like farming and fishing. The game system is based on blockchain technologies. When entering the game, players link their cryptocurrency wallet to the game account.

Game Mechanics:

• Classic builder: Buy and develop your islands. Currently, six islands are available where you can create your own universe and make it unique.
• Core mechanics: Building and farming
• Resource gathering: Through various activities
• Player interaction: Possible with other players
• Character customization
• Trading marketplace: Where players can sell everything to each other (island lands, tools, customization items, etc.). All active game elements (with which the player can interact) can be sold and bought.
• Quests and tasks to complete
• Development time: 3 years - a long time to market. The roadmap is available on the game’s website. It has been still under regular updates.

💠 The Sandbox

#virtualworld #blockchain #NFT #metaverse #web3

The Sandbox is a virtual world where you can create, own, and sell your gaming experiences using the SAND token. You can trade NFTs, participate in events, and earn. The gaming world offers a player experience similar to Roblox. Freedom of expression, creativity, and diverse player experiences distinguish it from other platforms. Sandbox is a very complex game genre. An open world, years of development, and painstaking system balancing provide onboarding opportunities for all player types.

Game Mechanics:

• Sandbox, builder, and tycoon combined
• Quests and in-game trading
• Avatar customization
• Item collections (NFTs)
• Item system: For creating items of any rarity. Enhanced items change their stats, thus crafting new NFT tokens.

Summary

#gamedesign #gamificationdesign #gamemechanics #gamedevelopment

The most obvious way most crypto platforms use is developing a game and turning game items into NFTs, selling them for cryptocurrency. NFTs are significant within the context of active players.

My Opinion: This approach leads to inefficient budget spending:

• Very long production cycle
• Audience limitation by the chosen game genre
• NFTs have value only for players of a specific game

My Suggestions:

• Choose system gamification instead of developing a game.
• Develop gamification design with the potential to evolve into a game later (if individual mechanics succeed).
• Build a community around the project (like in the Blocktrade project).
• Add social mechanics: competition, cooperation, and time-based events for teams.