Reddit co-founder, Alexis Ohanian, continues to advocate for the play-to-earn concept, but he is facing criticism on Twitter due to what certain individuals consider to be an antiquated viewpoint.
Reddit Co-Founder Still Believes Play-to-Earn Will Be the Standard for Gaming
Following the downfall of Axie Infinity, a popular play-to-earn game, numerous executives and developers within the crypto game industry have embraced a strategy that prioritizes fun gameplay over emphasizing token rewards. Nonetheless, Alexis Ohanian, the co-founder of Reddit and a longstanding supporter of NFT games, remains steadfast in his belief that “play-to-earn” gaming still holds the key to the future.
Within the next five years, the majority of gamers won’t play games unless they are being properly valued for that time.
Ohanian
These games may face hurdles to adoption as the wider public adjusts to crypto and NFT trading, but as these technologies scale, play-to-earn becomes a no-brainer.
Ohanian
Ohanian’s conviction in the “play-to-earn” model stems from notable past examples such as the six-figure sale of the virtual nightclub, Club Neverdie, in the game Entropia Universe during the early 2000s.
He also highlighted recent six-figure sales of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) skins as further evidence for the future shift towards this model. In play-to-earn games, players are rewarded with a crypto token or an NFT based on their gameplay hours, victories, or other accomplishments.
Ohanian specifically mentioned Axie Infinity as a leading example in this space. However, these discussions may seem familiar because they are not entirely new.
Although Axie Infinity has amassed over $4 billion in NFT trading volume thus far, its pioneering play-to-earn economy experienced a collapse in early 2022. The game’s token prices plummeted significantly, with the in-game SLP reward token currently down 99.5% from its peak value, and the AXS governance token down 96% from its all-time high.
It’s worth noting that Ohanian has investments in Sky Mavis, the creator of Axie Infinity, and has also backed Horizon Blockchain Games, the developer of the NFT-based trading card game Skyweaver. He has consistently supported crypto-infused video games, collected high-value NFTs, and backed various Web3 startups.
In recent months, several crypto executives and game developers have voiced their opposition to Ohanian’s viewpoint, arguing that play-to-earn is not a sustainable model for the industry. Mark Otero, CEO of Azra Games, for example, expressed his disapproval of play-to-earn games.
Johnny Lee, General Manager of Solana Games, even suggested that play-to-earn games should be categorized as DeFi products rather than games. Although the response to Ohanian’s Twitter thread was largely negative, some individuals from the crypto industry questioned why the venture capitalist chose to share such a message when much of the industry has moved away from the “play-to-earn” term altogether.
“Did my guy leave this tweet in draft for 2 yrs,” commented Zhuoxun Yin, COO of Magic Eden.
“This is a terrible take,” responded Phineas Totten, Wildcard Marketing Manager, criticizing Ohanian’s thread. “Gamers have never measured the monetary value derived from a game, and they shouldn’t start. Monetary value derived from a game is an added benefit on top of the primary value metric of enjoyment.”
Play-to-earn
Play-to-earn (P2E) refers to a blockchain gaming mechanism wherein players receive cryptocurrency tokens as rewards for accomplishing tasks, emerging victorious in battles against other players, or progressing through game levels.
These rewards can take the form of native cryptocurrencies like MANA from Decentraland, non-fungible token (NFT) assets such as skins, cards, or characters, or even popular cryptocurrencies like ETH or USDT.
The fundamental principle underlying P2E games is straightforward: the more time and effort a player invests in the game, the greater their chances of earning valuable rewards, primarily in the form of cryptocurrencies.
For example, in Decentraland, a P2E game, players have the opportunity to generate passive income by renting out their virtual land. Additionally, numerous P2E games allow players to engage in battles and earn tokens as a result. Axie Infinity, for instance, enables players to accumulate points with real-world value through the game’s native cryptocurrencies, AXS and SLP.
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