Gaming has come a long way since the late 1970s when arcades reigned supreme and home consoles were little more than a novelty. Back then, competitive gaming meant vying for the high score on space invaders at the local bowling alley or mall. The very idea of Twitch, an entire online video sharing platform dedicated to streaming games, would have sounded absolutely absurd. But things have certainly changed since then.
The past forty years have brought innumerable shifts to the game industry, with the graphical and power disparity between arcade and home console machines shrinking, then disappearing altogether. During the 2000s and 2010s, the advent of the smartphone and mobile games turned video games from a niche hobby targeted at children to one that every demographic enjoyed.
Today, the esports industry is valued at over $1 billion with no signs of slowing down. The video game industry as a whole is larger than the film and US sports industries combined.
But the evolution of video games and competitive gaming isn’t over. It’s really just beginning. And the thing that will revolutionize it is Web3.
The Web3 Revolution
So, what is Web3? Web3 is what happens when the internet meets recent technological advances like extended reality, IOT, artificial intelligence, and blockchain. It’s a platform where users will be able to trade and use cryptocurrencies, purchase NFTs, and experience a version of the web that’s uniquely tailored for them. In addition, it will simplify investing in DAOs and blockchain-based projects via sites like Starter.xyz.
But the important thing to note about Web3 when it comes to competitive gaming is that its technologies are the foundation for GameFi and play-to-earn (P2E) games.
The Rise of GameFi
Until the development of GameFi, competitive gaming and esports followed a similar trajectory to traditional sporting events. The best players rose to the top via online, local, and regional matches, eventually competing in major events offering big rewards. The only way to earn real money playing video games was by going pro. But few people ever got that chance.
GameFi and the decentralization that undergirds it have upended that traditional model. Getting into the competitive gaming scene and earning cash rewards has become accessible for anyone in the world thanks to Web3 and play-to-earn gaming. And although it is still in it’s infancy, millions of people around the world have already discovered its incredible potential.
This is the future of competitive gaming.
GameFi & Competitive Gaming’s Growing Definition
While traditional esports and competitive gaming won’t disappear, the idea of competitive video games will expand to make room for P2E games. Axie Infinity’s rise has proven that. Here’s a P2E game that’s recorded over $1.6 billion in total sales and averages nearly 2 million daily users. And it’s shown no sign of slowing down.
Axie Infinity’s players stand at the vanguard of the P2E revolution, earning money while battling in-game enemies and each other. It’s an entirely new way of understanding competitive gaming, and it’s open to almost anyone. Even players without the funds to invest themselves can play many P2E games by joining a guild, a decentralized organization that makes playable NFTs and other in-game assets available for rent.
But Axie Infinity is only the first major success story in the growing GameFi market.
New projects are being developed every day, including games in every genre imaginable, from JRPGs to racing games. There are even a handful of monster breeding and battling startups that are gunning for Axie Infinity’s first place position, including Starchi, a P2E game from the team behind Starter.xyz.
A key difference between Starchi and Axie is that the price of one Starchi is much more affordable, allowing many more people to play (and earn). The goal at Starchi was to take away the barriers and limitations, and provide opportunity to a larger group of people overall.
Starter.xyz’s experience in the industry has uniquely equipped its team to develop a game that makes the most of GameFi’s features and benefits. Starchi will be just one more example of how competitive gaming has changed since Web3 began taking shape.
Only time will tell what further evolutions await the gaming industry as technology continues its quick march toward decentralization and personalization.
About Starter:
Starter is the leading launchpad, incubator, and investor network that has raised over $30 million USD for 50 projects across different blockchains. Starter connects investors with investors to recreate the future.
About Starchi:
Starchi is a Starter incubated DeFi game built on the Polygon network. The theme of the game centers on the adoption of unique creatures, known as Starchi, from infancy and nurturing them into adulthood. The game has a built-in play-to-earn economy that offers players wages and rewards based on their completion of certain tasks. The game will function on a dual token economy, $STARTER and $ELIXIR. The $START token is designed to be used to gain access to trade Starchi and play the game while the $ELIXIR will be used to gain access to different in-game and economic rewards.
Website: http://starchi.gg/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/OfficialStarchi
Telegram: http://t.me/officialStarchi
Announcements: https://t.me/StarchiAnnouncements
Discord: https://discord.gg/Dh4GU2sh
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvwfSz339JH11aPuUawwBgw
Medium: https://starchi.medium.com/
Visit https://starchi.gg/ to learn more.
