The crypto and NFT gaming space is busier than ever lately, what with prominent games starting to release, token airdrops piling up, and a seemingly constant array of other things happening at all times. It’s a lot to take in!
Luckily, Decrypt’s GG is all over it. And if you need a quick way to get caught up on the latest moves around crypto video games, we’re debuting This Week in Crypto Games.
Our weekend roundup serves up the biggest news from the past week, along with a few other tidbits you might have missed. We also showcase a few of our original stories from the week.
Biggest news
Cheaters learn a tough lesson: Call of Duty players who downloaded certain “cheat” software instead installed malware—and some reportedly had their Bitcoin wallets drained as a result, according to cybersecurity firm VX Underground. Nearly 5 million gaming accounts may have been impacted by the malware, according to the firm, though the number who actually had crypto swiped from their wallets is unknown. Cheating doesn’t pay, at least in this case.
'Call of Duty' Players Have Their Bitcoin Swiped Thanks to Malware
Call of Duty players seeking out third-party “cheat” software to manipulate the popular first-person shooter game were among the victims of a targeted phishing attack, cybersecurity firm VX Underground said on Wednesday. The attack also targeted players seeking “pay-to-cheat” software for use on Activision Blizzard’s Battle.net, the PC platform for games like World of Warcraft, Overwatch, and Diablo. The cheat software installed crypto-drainer malware onto the user’s computer, and could be used...
Notcoin to end mining: Notcoin, the viral Telegram-based clicker game, is winding down its “mining phase” on April 1 ahead of the upcoming token airdrop on The Open Network (TON). More than 34 million Telegram users have played the game so far, and the next phase is about to begin. What that looks like isn’t entirely clear, but the game’s team is now asking players to consider donating a share of their earnings to an ecosystem fund.
'Notcoin' Game to End Mining on April 1—When Is the NOT Token Airdrop?
Following a glitch-like teaser earlier today, Notcoin confirmed that it will end the "mining phase" of the game on April 1. But the "glitch" has created more questions than it's answered: Will April 1 be the day of the airdrop that Notcoin players have been waiting for? Or is this the Notcoin team building up for an April Fools' joke on their vast, 30 million-strong player base? Notcoin is a viral clicker game that’s had millions of Telegram users tapping a graphic of a coin on their phone scree...
Nyan Heroes demo: Solana-based team shooter Nyan Heroes launched its pre-alpha demo on the Epic Games Store last week, and it’ll be available until April 9 on PC. The cats-in-mechs game is running a play-to-airdrop campaign around the demo, rewarding players with “MEOW” points for completing in-game missions. Those points will grant players an allocation of the upcoming NYAN token on Solana. It’s a double-points weekend through Monday, too, so you’ll earn more for playing.
Solana Shooter 'Nyan Heroes' Boosts Airdrop Rewards in Epic Games Demo
Solana-based shooter Nyan Heroes is offering double the “MEOW” points in its current play-to-airdrop campaign this weekend, 9 Lives Interactive said on Friday, providing added incentive for players to check out the current pre-alpha PC demo on the Epic Games Store. Gamers looking to participate in the boosted play-to-airdrop event have from March 30 until April 1 to earn double the standard rewards points for playing the game and completing missions, the company said. Nyan Heroes players can ear...
Parallel raises $35M: Parallel Studios, the team behind Ethereum NFT card game Parallel (GG’s 2023 game of the year), announced that it has raised $35 million in fresh funding from a variety of backers, including VanEck and Solana Ventures. The studio told Decrypt’s GG that the funding will help fuel expansion of the game into new storefronts and eventually onto mobile, plus it will support development on the upcoming Solana-based AI game, Colony.
What’s Next for Ethereum NFT Game ‘Parallel’ and Solana's ‘Colony’ After $35 Million Raise
Parallel Studios, the startup behind Ethereum NFT card-battler Parallel, announced late Wednesday that it has raised $35 million in fresh funding from a bevy of major firms around the crypto world and numerous well-known angel investors. The list includes investment management giant VanEck, Solana Ventures, the Base Ecosystem Fund, Collab + Currency, and The Spartan Group, while the list of angels features Solana co-founders Anatoly Yakovenko and Raj Gokal, Pudgy Penguins owner and CEO Luca Netz...
ICYMI
- Gunzilla Games, the studio behind anticipated battle royale shooter Off the Grid on Avalanche, revealed a $30 million raise last week.
- Munchables, an NFT game running on Ethereum scaling network Blast, saw $62 million worth of funds swiped last week—but they were returned.
- Anticipated Ethereum game franchise Illuvium announced a $12 million funding round last week, with a Q2 2024 release target in sight and an airdrop planned too.
- Azuki NFT project creator Chiru Labs is collaborating on an AnimeChain built on Ethereum scaling tech from Arbitrum, with games and content planned.
Azuki Chooses Arbitrum for Anime-Focused Project AnimeChain
AnimeChain, announced Wednesday by the Arbitrum Foundation in conjunction with the Weeb3 Foundation and Chiru Labs, aims to be a blockchain-powered one-stop shop for anime creators and fans. The three organizations constitute the AnimeChain consortium, which says AnimeChain will provide an online anime ecosystem governed by the community. The network will include original and third-party anime content, games, merchandise, and NFTs. “As a launch partner to AnimeChain, Azuki evaluated existing Eth...
- AI analytics firm Helika announced an accelerator program for crypto gaming studios, with venture capital partners offering up to $50 million in investment alongside.
- Amazon Web Services has revealed a deal with the WAX blockchain to integrate its tools, making it easier for AWS customers to deploy crypto gaming features.
- Ethereum game Nifty Island rolled out the next phase of its play-to-airdrop campaign last week, launching a speedrunning competition for both level builders and players alike.
- Final Fantasy maker Square Enix and the Solana Foundation are among the backers of crypto gaming launcher Elixir, which raised $14 million ahead of its token launch.
GG spotlight
Here are a few of our original stories from this past week that we think are well worth a weekend read:
‘Web3 Gaming Sucks’, Says Avalanche, Daring Gamers to Look
“Web3 gaming sucks.” It’s a common refrain amongst many gamers who have thumbed their nose at the growing space, but it’s not something you’d expect the team behind a prominent blockchain network to recite around one of the industry's biggest events. But that’s exactly what Ava Labs did last week at the Game Developers Conference, where the phrase was plastered all over the massive Avalanche Gaming booth and across banners that could be seen from all over the expo hall and as attendees went down...
You Can Earn Real Bitcoin for Playing This Crypto Mining Game—Here's How Much
We’ve covered a lot of mobile games that pay players Bitcoin rewards, but Bitcoin Miner is the most literal interpretation we’ve seen to date: You’re mining fake cryptocurrency in this iOS and Android game, but can cash out real Bitcoin. As Decrypt’s GG recently reported, Bitcoin Miner first launched several years ago without real BTC earnings baked in, and it went nowhere. But once Fumb Games tried implementing the ability to earn and cash out satoshis (the smallest unit of Bitcoin, or 1/100,00...
Next-Gen Xbox Preview: Everything You Need to Know About the Console and Crypto Plans
It’s been over four years since the release of the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S, a pair of game consoles that offer different performance and price options for players. But Microsoft is already thinking about the next big thing in Xbox land. Unsurprisingly, a next-generation Xbox is already in development, But what is surprising is that we’ve already heard official details on how Microsoft plans to position it, thanks to documents that were accidentally shared publicly in the FTC’s case again...
'Bitcoin Miner' Was a Dead Game—Until It Started Paying Real BTC Earnings
Idle tapping game Bitcoin Miner was developed in the wake of the 2017 bull run as a colorful and amusing riff on the wild world of crypto. And to hear Fumb Games co-founder Paul West tell it now, almost nobody cared when the game first launched on iOS and Android. “Nothing happened. Like, literally nothing happened at all,” West told Decrypt’s GG. West said they didn’t promote the game due to hurdles with the Bitcoin branding and that even getting the game live on the App Store and Play Store wa...
