The State of Gaming and Crypto in 2023

With just a few months of 2023 left, a lot has changed in the world of cryptocurrencies and the blockchain. We’ve seen many big names declare that we’ve moved into a crypto winter, only for a wave of excitement to wash back over the market in recent weeks. 

As early April this year, some were beginning to suggest that this period of chilly sentiment was beginning to thaw but the prices of major digital currencies like bitcoin were still severely subdued compared to just the year before. 

Things remained somewhat static throughout the middle part of the year, however, and the talk of a thaw was being questioned by a lot of people. However, as October 2023 has progressed, the price of bitcoin and other major cryptocurrencies has ballooned. We are still below the record highs of 2021 and 2022 but we are most certainly heading in that direction. However, most of the crypto faithful believe that it will only be a matter of time before that changes. 

And, as with every other time the price of major cryptocurrencies has begun to rally, this surge has brought with it talk about the areas of our lives that the blockchain and digital currencies could revolutionize. 

These areas include personal finance, real estate, ecommerce, sport, collectables, and more but, perhaps, none more so than gaming. Over the last few years, we’ve seen cryptocurrencies, non-fungible tokens, and other blockchain implementations make their way into games, with many other possible implementations also proposed. 

That’s the talk, but what about the delivery? What is the state of gaming and crypto in 2023 as we head into the final part of the year?

Paying for Games

Gaming companies like Microsoft and Valve have had complicated relationships with cryptocurrencies. Both giants have flirted with accepting bitcoin and other currencies, only to withdraw them as a payment method during times of high volatility. 

Using your crypto wallet to buy games and pay for microtransactions has become much easier in recent years thanks to the number of exchanges and third-party services that offer crypto cards. It’s also possible to use your crypto to buy gift cards for gaming platforms. 

This does mean crypto enthusiasts must jump through extra hoops which is not always ideal. However, more and more brands are beginning to accept crypto directly, including Chess.com and other smaller platforms. 

iGaming

The iGaming industry is one of the most innovative parts of the gaming world. For almost 30 years, it’s been pushing the boundaries of what is possible with technology to bring casino classics like blackjack, roulette, and slots to new generations of players. 

They do this by making it possible to play from practically any device, be it a computer, smartphone, or tablet, so long as it can connect to the internet and access its website, app, or downloadable software.

In recent years, we’ve also seen leading brands like PokerStars Casino create exclusive titles like Priots 2 and Immortal Riches, each one with a unique theme and set of bonus features. 

Some iGaming companies have even experimented with virtual reality and augmented reality, creating versions of their games that can be enjoyed using a special headset. Despite this, many of the biggest brands have refrained from fully embracing cryptocurrencies as a form of payment. 

With regulators still taking a strict stance against the blockchain in countries like the USA and the UK, this is unlikely to change in the coming months or years. 

Blockchain Games

Blockchain games took a big hit in the last couple of years. Some of the most-hyped creations fizzled out or collapsed entirely. Sadly, it has since been discovered that some of the advertised games turned out to be grifts and players were left holding the bag. 

The area where this was most common was in the ‘play-to-earn’ category where the entire reason to play was to earn NFTs or coins to sell on exchanges. As the novelty of this wore off and the prices of all blockchain-based creations fell, the demand for play-to-earn games collapsed. 

However, crypto games that are well-designed and focused on more than just collected NFTs have fared better. CryptoKitties is, perhaps, the best example of this. It exploded in popularity during the late 2010s and continued to be a hit through 2020 and 2021. At one point, the game was slowing down the Ethereum network due to unprecedented demand. 

That problem was solved through an update to the blockchain, but CryptoKitties is also far less popular than it once was. As of mid-October, it had acquired 144 new players in the previous month, a respectable number but one that’s well below its peak. 

Things could begin to pick up again for games like CryptoKitties as interest in the blockchain resurges, particularly since there is clearly a solid and loyal userbase to build on. 

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