Looking For The Best NFT Games?
This Is How You Hunt!
Introduction
The NFT market has seen massive growth this year. The space has been going wild for generative art, PFPs, collectibles, and whatever else the NFT space has offered. The market has grown so large that it’s almost safe to say that NFTs are their own industry, and the different types of NFTs are their own sectors. The explosive influx of users has put the entire world on notice. The scary part is that we’ve barely scratched the surface of this industry’s true potential.
One NFT sector that has been hot, but not flaming hot is NFT gaming. A large reason for this sector being so underrated is the confusion that comes along with finding the great projects. For any of my OGs out there that are familiar with the way crypto works, you all know that this is great news. When the majority are confused about a certain sector, it creates the perfect opportunity for those who possess foresight to capitalize on once in a lifetime opportunities in a major way. At this present moment, NFT gaming is that opportunity.
While everyone is still obsessed with NFT art and collectibles, it is time for those of us, who pride ourselves on staying ahead of the trends, to start looking in the other direction. With that being said, I do realize that there are members of the community that have the desire to take advantage of this no-brainer of an opportunity, but have no idea where to look, or what to look for. A few weeks back, we put together a comprehensive guide for you all on how to find the gems in crypto. Today, we plan on doing the same thing for finding the gems in NFT gaming. Some of the methods are similar, but there are also a few different strategies that I use to discover NFT games.
Research
As I’m sure you all know, every crypto treasure hunt starts with the proper research. Currently there is no one stop shop to gather NFT gaming alpha. That’s right young ones, there’s no free lunch here.
To be at the forefront of the latest news, you must be willing to look into as many nooks and crannies as you can manage. As a wise man once said, “you must be like water.” That wise man was Bruce Lee, by the way. However, that’s neither here nor there.
The first step to finding gaming alpha is familiarizing yourself with the protocols that most games are currently being built on. You can find a list of most of these protocols on Dapp Radar.
*Note: As of today, Steem has decided to remove all NFT games from its platform*
Other L1 protocols that are not mentioned in Dapp Radar’s list are:
There are NFT games that are also being built on L2 and multichain solutions
Now that you know what chains games are being developed on, let’s discuss where to find the upcoming projects.
IGO Launchpads
IGO Launchpads are some of the best places to find new NFT games. The caveat to this statement is that launchpads are far from being a secret.
Therefore, it will be difficult to be early to a lot of the projects posted on these platforms.
Some notable launchpads are:
It is to be noted that these games being listed on launchpads DOES NOT automatically absolve you from researching any that you may be interested in.
These are meant to be used to get a lay of the land while gathering data.
Community
This is twofold. Seeking community alpha could come from a particular project’s community or an exclusive community (never join any paid communities).
Usually, in each community Discord, you will find a tab where others are able to shill or talk about other projects that they find interesting. Every now and then you might find something interesting. However, it is to be noted that this is pretty much the equivalent of project dumpster diving.
*Warning! This is high on the risk meter! This is a pro tip meant to be used by PROS only! Someone could easily be shilling their worthless bags or sending a fraud link.*
My recommendation is that unless you’re in a group like Wall Street Kongz, Citadel, or Metakey, – where people would rather lose their right hand before their membership access – if you see a project that looks interesting, either Google it or search for it on Twitter. Use the official links that are posted in those locations.
Social Media
When I say social media, I’m mainly referring to Twitter. This is mainly where the entire crypto community resides.
If you follow the right accounts, you can receive some valuable alpha. That means that you have to put a little effort into discovering the who’s who of the NFT gaming community.
I’ll give you a hint to help lighten your burden. Find people that are respected in the gaming community (Yat Siu, EllioTrades, Sebastien, Amy Wu), and pay attention to what they tweet and who they follow.
NFT Gaming News/Rankings Sites
Believe it or not, there is some good alpha to be found on NFT gaming news and rankings sites. Oftentimes, news of new partnerships, acquisitions, and IGO offerings will show up there first.
Two of my favorite sites to look at are:
PlayToEarn (Rankings)
PlayToEarn (News)
Now that we know where to find the games, let’s discuss what we should be looking for in a game.
Team
The team is the most important aspect of a project. A solid team is the difference between a game being good, and a game being great.
I won’t automatically pass up a team with less experience (depending on how good the game is). However, a team with extensive experience is preferred.
I look for teams that have built at least two or more games –with at least one being successful– prior to joining the NFT gaming world.
Project Community
Similar to regular crypto and NFT projects, the community is the lifeblood to any NFT gaming project.
Aside from the project’s fundamentals being solid, the community should be active, enthusiastic, and engaged.
Even if the project is extremely early and the community is smaller, you still want to see good vibes being spread.
In other words, you want to see Telegram and Discord poppin.
Whitepaper
You want to make sure to always read the white paper (you all should know this already).
Of course, you want to be sure to pay attention to the roadmap and tokenomics.
We taught you all how to review fungible tokenomics in our last gems guide.
However, when it comes to NFT gaming, you also want to pay attention to the NFT tokenomics as well.
One of the most important things to pay attention to is the utility of the NFTs, whether it be avatars, land, vehicles, weapons, etc.
You also want to pay attention to the distribution method.
A good example of solid tokenomics is Cryowar’s token breakdown.
*Note: This is only meant to be used as an example. I’m not saying that this project is good or bad. My only goal is to give a visual of what you should look for. Do not invest based on this section alone.*
Investors
You can tell a lot about a game by its investors. Below are some key funds and companies that have a pretty impressive track record. If you see them in a project’s investor list, it’s safe to say that you may be on the right track to finding a gem.
Some notable investors are:
Notable Investments: REVV Racing, Thetan Arena, Nine Chronicles, DeRace, Chain Guardians, Axie Infinity, Decentraland, and many more...
Notable Investments: Axie Infinity, Sandbox, Illuvium, Splinterlands, Star Atlas, Ember Sword, Splinterlands, etc.
Notable Investments: Illuvium, Allienworlds
Gameplay/Beta
Let’s all be honest with each other, it doesn’t matter how good the team is, how engaged the community is, or how great the tokenomics are, if a game isn’t fun, it’s only a matter of time before it goes bust.
The only way to gauge the fun factor is to actually test out the beta or see some extensive GAMEPLAY (not a bunch of cinematic trailers) footage.
Most of these new projects will start their investment rounds before showing any significant gameplay. This goes for hyped projects as well.
While I do understand this approach, my rule of thumb is that I must see gameplay before I move forward with any type of investment.
If they’re unable to show any gameplay, in my wallet is where my funds will stay!
Comparable Traits
Finally, the best games are games that are easily comparable to their mainstream counterparts.
You may think that it’s unoriginal, but in this new frontier it gives you a great reference point to evaluate other projects.
A few projects that this applies to are:
Treeverse (NFT): Minecraft (Mainstream)
Blankos Block Party (NFT): Roblox (Mainstream)
Voxies (NFT): Runescape (Mainstream)
Star Atlas (NFT): Eve Online or Star Citizen (Mainstream)
Another reason it is good for NFT games to be comparable to mainstream games is that it creates a smoother transition for the mainstream audience into the NFT gaming space. Mainstream adoption is the main objective.
Conclusion
These are the tools that you need to get started on the path of finding As the space grows, it will become more difficult to hunt for alpha. This means that your approach to crypto gaming should be dynamic.
As new methods and strategies of discovering early NFT games emerge, I will continue to update the community. Until then, take this information and be great!