Blockchain gaming is still very much in its infancy, and let’s be frank - there are A LOT of scams out there. Many of these questionable projects are giving the industry a bad reputation. No doubt, it appears that blockchain gaming is one of the biggest use-cases for NFT’s - and a lot of money will be made for the games and companies that execute. However, early on, it can be hard to decipher a scam from the real deal.
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Whether you’re an investor, player, or speculator, it's important to be able to avoid being taken for a ride. During a recent episode of “NFT’s BEYOND THE FLOOR”, Matthew, from BIGTIME, the video gaming company that raised over $21 million in funding, shared three red flags to look for when investing in a Blockchain game.
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1. Promises of Easy Money đźš©
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A general framework to keep in mind is that the narrative around the game should be about the gaming experience itself. It should focus on gameplay, and building an immersive experience. So far, the fundamental problem with “Play 2 Earn” games is that people are only playing them to make money - not to enjoy the game itself.
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If a game is promising you "easy money" or seems like an "infinite money machine," it will likely be too good to be true. These games, often compared to Ponzi schemes, could cost you your investment!
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Matthew described these games as “shedding a negative light on blockchain gaming”, and keeping many traditional gamers from entering the Web3 space.  He believes that over time, the quality builders will prevail but in the short term, it’s important to find ways to be less money-driven as companies and consumers - focusing on creating gameplay that is both enjoyable and can maintain player engagement.
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When asked about what he thinks of other top competitors making a splash in the market, he laughed; “Right now, blockchain gaming has such a small piece of the pie,” he said. “Anything we can do to push this industry as a whole forward, I am in support of. Anything that other competitors can do to bring new users into this space is a net positive.”
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2. Coming to market in less than 12 months in development đźš©
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If a game has been in development for less than 12 months, it's probably not a good investment. It takes at least a year and as many as four or five to develop a quality game. If they're trying to cut corners, it's not going to end well, and likely will be short-lived.
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“If you’ve spent less than 12 months in development and you’re going to market, I don’t know if I can count on you delivering on what you’re promising”, Matthew stated. He also shared that their game is almost three years into development, and that being typically the industry standard for creating a game like the one BIGTIME is working on.
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When thinking about the future of Blockchain gaming, however, he was seriously excited. Because these games take so long to develop and work on, the NFT craze really only started recently. But he really thinks that in the next 2-3 years, some seriously great games will come out of the woodwork and deliver amazing gameplay that will bring in a huge number of users to the space.
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3. No Successful Previous Experience đźš©
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If the team behind the game doesn't have any successful games under their belt, it's probably not worth investing in. It is very important for a team to have AT LEAST one developer that has worked on a successful game, and has taken the rollercoaster ride that is developing a game and bringing it to market. If they do not have anyone on the team that has that experience, he claims that it is almost certainly not a game he would want to get involved with. More importantly, if a game is not totally transparent on the core team members involved, this is usually another sign to stay away.
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To conclude: đźš©đźš©đźš©
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2022 was believed to be the year of blockchain gaming. It had a lot of promise in the beginning months of 2022, but slowly fizzled out over time - as many people began to realize just how much work goes into creating a game that is not only fun to play, but integrates blockchain technology.
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This still remains to be completed successfully. But make no mistake, when these games begin delivering, it is going to be quite the ride for the NFT space as a whole.
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