Blockchain, Play-To-Earn gaming has come a long way over the last couple of years. What was once just a glorified faucet/cookie clicker style gaming industry has since evolved into something so much more. New games are being announced all the time with AAA graphics, immersive storylines and innovative ways to implement blockchain technology into their game mechanics.
Today I'd like to cover six Play-To-Earn Blockchain Games I'm most excited for this year. All of these games have some form of a "Play-To-Earn" element in them that allows you to earn money for playing. So if your parents said you're never going to make anything of yourself sitting there playing games all day, maybe you will with some of these games. Let's get into it and let me know if you think there's any I missed!
1. Farsite
Farsite is a space themed Massively Multiplayer Online Real-time Strategy game (MMORTS). It has reportedly been in development for years from the team behind the popular game, MegaCryptoPolis. It has DeFi and NFT elements to it and uses the cNFT model, which is essentially an NFT with ERC-20 tokens used as collateral. No official news has been announced but Farsite will likely take place on the MATIC/Polygon network, a popular sidechain of Ethereum that allows for extremely low fees and high throughput.
Because Farsite is a community-owned world, players can engage in a variety of jobs to earn income - jobs range from delivery to mining to governing. Players can also own entire planets and gain a portion of all materials mined. The game has seen a rise in attention recently due to their lucrative referral program but gameplay is still 6-9 months away, with early alpha only slated for release in Q4 of 2021. Either way this game has a lot of potential, what it reminds me of most is Eve Online - which has been running for nearly 20 years and still has a strong player base. If it accomplishes anything close to that I'd be excited to be a part of it.
Website: https://farsite.online/
2. Lightnite
Lightnite is an online multiplayer battle royale game where every specific digital interaction between players triggers a monetary reward or penalty. Lightnite seems to be very similar to Fortnite in it's gameplay and name, which could either bode well or poorly depending on people's perception here. The game is reported to have two modes, Bitcoin Integrated Mode and Non-Bitcoin Integrated Mode. The Bitcoin Integrated Mode allows users to collect rewards for killing players or picking up in game items, the Non-Bitcoin Mode has none of these features on and is meant to bring in new players with the hope they will turn on Bitcoin Integration once they understand the value.
Lightnite is built on the Bitcoin Lightning network and is already listed on the Steam Marketplace with a launch date of 30 June 2021. Developed by Satoshis.Games this looks to be a great way to drive Crypto adoption worldwide. I have a personal affinity for First/Third Person Shooter games so I'll be checking this out on launch.
Website: https://lightnite.io/
3. Taurion
Taurion is another space-themed MMORTS built on the XAYA blockchain. Taurion has been in development for some time now but has managed to lockdown a solid partnership with Ubisoft Entrepreneurs lab - which has also sponsored other notable blockchain games like Splinterlands and Sorare. Similar to Farsite, Taurion boasts a fully player-driven economy allowing players to mine, refine, research, kill, ally, steal and much more.
Taking inspirations from Eve Online, Dune 2 and Huntercoin, Taurion already has a decently developed storyline. Early access alpha is out with Beta testing slated to release this year. My only question with this game is how it will play, they have a few gameplay photos from the early access alpha, they look like early access alpha would but show some potential. I'm excited to see where this one goes.
Website: https://taurion.io/
4. Hash Rush
Hash Rush is an online Sci-Fi/Fantasy RTS game set in a distant galaxy. Players start on their own planet and must build colonies and mine Crypto Crystals. Gameplay trailers and videos I've seen show some pretty stunning graphics for this game. The gameplay seems to be similar to Age of Empires but seemingly smaller scale and less complex. I recently just got back into Age of Empires 2/Age of Mythology so when I saw this game I put in a request for a Beta Key pretty quick.
Hash Rush is built on the Ethereum blockchain with their own coin, Rush Coin which currently doesn't have much value outside of the game. While some blockchain games require a wallet to play and have deep crypto integration, Hash Rush is taking a slightly more accessible approach. No crypto or wallet is required to play the game, just ERC-20 Tokens are given as a reward and ERC-721 for the collectible items. This could combined with the beautiful graphics and stellar gameplay could lead to Hash Rush being one of the biggest games of 2021/2022 when fully released.
Website: https://hashrush.com/
5. Mirandus
Mirandus is a massively multiplayer online role playing game (MMORPG) in which players can have ownership over towns, villages and local businesses. Developed by Gala Games, the same developer behind Town Star, Mirandus is also built on the Ethereum blockchain with the GALA token playing a major part in gameplay. I'm a sucker for games like this and picked up a couple small plots of land during their land sale. Some of their largest pieces of land are selling for $3 million+, I didn't purchase my land for anywhere near that price. But for a stack of money like that I'm sure they're going to be giving a return.
Mirandus is a pretty ambitious blockchain game and I'm looking forward to see how it goes. Luckily Gala Games has some experience already in the industry so hopefully they can tackle the numerous obstacles that will rear their head during development.
Website: https://gala.games/
6. Ember Sword
I've talked about Ember Sword before and it's because I love the artwork and design elements I've seen. Ember Sword is a sandbox MMORPG and features PvE, PvP and a living economy. Players can engage in jobs such as farming or thievery, as well as create their own buildings. They recently concluded their land sale and like I said above I'm a sucker for this type of game so I snatched up a few cheap plots of land (which according to the land perks you now have to call me Sir Absolute Unit).
Ember Sword is built on the Polygon (formerly MATIC) blockchain. Their current planned release date is in 2022 but the Alpha and Beta releases are set to come out this year. There aren't exact details out but it seems earning will come from tokenized gear and earning the in game currency. Some of the sneak peak gameplay footage I've seen and the overall design aspect of this game look pretty good and I can't wait to see the official game.
Website: https://embersword.com/
Final Thoughts
This was really tough to make! There's a ton of new, blockchain games that are coming out this year and next that look absolutely stunning. I didn't even get a chance to mention Age of Rust, Space Misfits or Illuvium but I didn't want to turn this article into an hour long read. It's not even a question how much Blockchain gaming has grown and there's only more to go. Let me know if you think I missed any and thanks for reading!
I hope you enjoyed! Don't forget to spank that like/follow button if you want to see more.
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