Web3 gaming is a new paradigm in the gaming industry, where players can own, trade, and use their in-game assets as they see fit, without the need for central intermediaries. The Web3 infrastructure provides a decentralized and secure platform for players to engage in gaming activities, while also allowing developers to create new and innovative gaming experiences.

In recent years, there has been significant growth in Web3 gaming, as evidenced by the rising number of players, transactions, and in-game assets. In 2022, the web3 space was able to raise $7.1 billion in the capital, according to the year-end report from Metaverse Post. By all accounts, the gaming industry outperformed all others, bringing in $4.49 billion, or 62.5% of the total amount spent in web3.

This growth in Web3 gaming is driven by a number of factors, including the increasing popularity of decentralized finance (DeFi) and non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Many Web3 games, such as Axie Infinity and Splinterlands, allow players to earn and trade in-game assets, which can be used to participate in DeFi activities or sold as NFTs.

Another factor contributing to the growth of Web3 gaming is the increasing availability of user-friendly tools and platforms, such as MetaMask and Uniswap, that make it easier for players to access and participate in Web3 games. This has allowed more players to join the Web3 gaming community, increasing the demand for new and innovative gaming experiences. 

According to a DappRaddar analysis, web3 infrastructure accounted for 33.5% of the revenue from web3 gaming. Because it enables developers to create more trustworthy, transparent, and immutable games, web3 infrastructure is the basis of web3 gaming. Using dependable web3 infrastructure helps lower the cost of developing web3 games, increasing their accessibility.

The blockchain ecosystem was ecstatic in 2021 when it reached its largest market valuation of $3 trillion and saw the price of Bitcoin soar to an all-time high of $67,567 at the year’s end. NFTs, a type of cryptocurrency asset, was considered to be the future big thing and to revolutionize how people view art. Despite the impressive growth of Web3 gaming, there are still challenges that need to be addressed. One of the biggest challenges is scalability, as the current Web3 infrastructure can struggle to handle the increasing demand for gaming transactions. There is also a need for greater education and awareness around Web3 gaming, to help more players understand the benefits and potential of this new gaming paradigm.

In conclusion, the growth of Web3 gaming is a clear indication of the increasing demand for decentralized and player-driven gaming experiences. With rising numbers of players, transactions, and in-game assets, Web3 gaming is poised to become a major force in the gaming industry. However, there are still challenges that need to be addressed, and the industry will need to continue to evolve and innovate to meet the needs of players.

Key Takeaways

• Gaming remains a driving force for the dapp industry, accounting for almost 50% of on-chain activity tracked by DappRadar. 
• In 2022, on average, 1.13 million Unique Active Wallets connect to game dapps daily. That’s a 60% increase from the 2021 numbers. 
• On-chain game transactions reached 7.4 billion, growing 37% from the previous year and a staggering 3,260% since 2020.
• Wax remained the most popular blockchain for web3 games, attracting almost 350K daily UAW on average during 2022, followed by Hive and BNB Chain with 235K and 167K UAW, respectively.
• Polygon consolidated as a chain for games, attracting an average of 97,000 daily UAW during 2022. That’s 340% higher than the previous year, driven by the success of game dapps like Arc8, Benji Bananas, Crazy Defense Heroes, and Pegaxy. 
• Alien Worlds closes the year as the most played dapp with almost 200,000 average daily UAW and 4.8 billion on-chain transactions encompassing gameplay, trading, and DAO activity.
• Immutable X generated $87 million in NFT trading volume, 250% higher than last year.  The trading card game Gods Unchained finished among the top 25 most traded collections across all blockchains.
• The trading volume from virtual worlds (land sales) in 2022 is estimated at $1.45B, 136% higher than last year. However, if we don’t count Otherdeeds, the rest of the virtual worlds only saw $400,000 in trading volume combined. 
• Web3 Gaming and metaverse projects raised $7.6 billion in 2022, 59% more than in 2021. In addition, $2.54 billion was invested in infrastructure projects.