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 happy to present 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
Off the Grid: One of the most anticipated blockchain games entered early access last Tuesday. The Avalanche-based Off the Grid is now available to play in a limited form on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, as well as on PC via the Epic Games Store.
Developed by Gunzilla Games, which has its own Avalanche L1 (aka subnet) called GUNZ, the game is a battle royale shooter that drops players into a reality show-like experience, where they’ll have to fight to survive in large-scale online matches. Players can equip robotic limbs and swap them out during matches to gain new abilities, plus the game will eventually launch its GUN token and let players mint items as tradable NFTs.
The early access launch has made a huge impact thanks in part to a promotional campaign featuring a number of popular streamers. Off the Grid appears to be making inroads with mainstream gamers in a way that blockchain games previously haven’t, with the game topping the Epic Games Store free-to-play chart.
Avalanche Shooter 'Off the Grid' Becomes Top Free Title on Epic Games Store
Following the early access release of Off the Grid earlier this week, the Avalanche-based battle royale shooter is rising the ranks of the Epic Game Store. Developed by Gunzilla Games, Off the Grid rose to the top of the storefront’s Most Popular Free-to-Play PC Games list on Friday, topping Epic’s own massively popular Fortnite and Rocket League. It’s also the first title listed on the store’s Trending list. The game pits players against each other in a similar way to other battle royale shoote...
X Empire airdrop: The makers of Telegram crypto game X Empire announced last week that the X token will launch on The Open Network (TON) on October 24, with the current “chill phase” season ending its gameplay on October 17 ahead of the token launch and airdrop.
X Empire previously ended its “mining phase,” but then delayed the airdrop and launched the chill phase to fill the time. Since then, the game has topped the 50 million player mark.
Elon Musk-Themed Telegram Game 'X Empire' Will End Season a Week Before Airdrop
Haven’t we heard this one before? After previously announcing the end to its original mining phase, then delaying the airdrop and launching a new “Chill Phase” mini-season to fill the gap, the developers of Telegram crypto game X Empire have once more announced the impending end of gameplay ahead of the planned airdrop. On Friday, X Empire said that the X token on The Open Network (TON) will launch on October 24, with the airdrop to players set to take place on the same date. Now we know that th...
TikTok tap-to-earn: After tap-to-earn gaming took over this summer with smash hits like Hamster Kombat, Notcoin, and X Empire, the genre is expanding to Gen Z-favored social media app TikTok. SonicX, created by the team behind Solana layer-2 gaming network Sonic SVM, is a tap-to-earn game that launches natively inside of TikTok. The game plans to partner with content creators and run ads on TikTok that users will be able to click to open SonicX.
The game ultimately follows a similar premise to the other games in the tap-to-earn genre. Players will furiously tap their screens to collect rings, purchase upgrades to passively progress in-game, and invite friends to jump the ranks—all in the hopes of a future token airdrop that has yet to be confirmed.
Tap-to-Earn Gaming Expands From Telegram to TikTok via Solana's Sonic SVM
Tap-to-earn took over the crypto gaming landscape this summer, as Telegram based mini apps attracted over 300 million players at a time. But a Solana-based project has launched a tap-to-earn game called SonicX that launches natively inside of TikTok, in the pursuit of becoming the Notcoin of the Gen Z-favored social media platform. Sonic SVM, a layer-2 gaming chain built on top of Solana, plans to partner with content creators and run a series of ads on TikTok that players will be able to click...
Ubisoft NFT game date: Gaming giant Ubisoft announced Thursday that it will release Champions Tactics: Grimoria Chronicles, its first original blockchain game, on October 23. The tactical PC role-playing game will be launched on the Oasys Home Verse gaming network.
Champions Tactics: Grimoria Chronicles allows players to assemble teams of "Champions"—which are digital collectibles with unique abilities—to engage in multiplayer battles in a dark fantasy setting. The game features 75,000 Champion characters and includes a crafting system called The Forge, where players can combine existing Champions to create new ones with different traits.
Ubisoft Reveals Release Date for ‘Champions Tactics’ NFT Game
Gaming giant Ubisoft announced Thursday that it will release Champions Tactics: Grimoria Chronicles, its first original blockchain game, on October 23. The tactical PC role-playing game will be launched on the Oasys Home Verse gaming network. The game allows players to assemble teams of "Champions"—digital collectibles with unique abilities—to engage in player-versus-player battles in a dark fantasy setting. The game features 75,000 Champion characters and includes a crafting system called The F...
ICYMI
- Season 2 of Hamster Kombat is set to begin around the end of October.
- The total number of TON holders passed 100 million after the Hamster Kombat token airdrop.
- Ethereum gaming network Ronin adopted Chainlink’s cross-chain interoperability protocol to increase security.
- Nintendo launched a hardware device! It’s not the Switch 2, though: It’s an alarm clock.
- Decentraland revealed a huge visual upgrade through its upcoming desktop client.
‘Decentraland’ Reveals Huge Visual Upgrade via Upcoming Desktop Client
Decentraland has revealed launch plans for its long-awaited desktop client, which brings a significant visual upgrade, improved performance, and new mechanics to the Ethereum metaverse game. This huge update marks a pivot for the game’s vision to focus on the “social’ aspect of the metaverse. Currently, Decentraland is played in-browser, which has limited the game’s graphical capabilities and performance and arguably stunted the evolution of the game in recent years. Set to go live on October 22...
- Ethereum mobile game Guild of Guardians revealed its first expansion with two new guardians, launching on October 16.
- Gaming data layer CARV launched its token on Ethereum scaler Base last week.
- Immutable trading card game Gods Unchained released its Tower of Dread expansion.
- The Pixels tap-to-earn Telegram game went live in early access without rewards.
- Trading card game The Lost Glitches is re-entering open beta next week on Steam.
- Mobile tower defense game Ragnarok: Monster World entered beta.
GG spotlight
Here are a few of our original stories from this past week that we think are well worth a weekend read:
What Is ‘Off the Grid’? The Buzzy Battle Royale Shooter Built on Avalanche
If you’ve been on the online shooter video game portion of the internet recently, then you’ve likely heard of Off the Grid, a battle royale game that is picking up serious steam with players. Off the Grid topped the Epic Games Store’s list of the most popular free-to-play games soon after release, plus it commanded huge crowds on Twitch. In short: It’s a hit. But what you might not know is that Off the Grid is a blockchain game built on Avalanche, with plans for a crypto token and the ability to...
7 Best Free Games to Play on Sony PS5
Video game consoles are expensive. To take home a PlayStation 5, you're looking at $450 for the minimum point of entry. While there was probably at least one game that led you to buy the system in the first place, the other games out there are expensive, with many of them ringing up at $70 at the register. And that game you bought with the system—even if it's a super-long game like Horizon Forbidden West, Assassin's Creed Valhalla, or Metaphor: ReFantazio—is eventually going to feel old enough t...
7 Freaky Horror Games to Scare Your Pants Off This Spooky Season
What makes a scary game? There are many different ways that games can fry your brain. Some games put you on the wrong end of a deadly chase, where one wrong move can kill you. Others depend on maintaining a sense of dread and tension that can stick with you long after you put the game down. Last year, we offered some spooky games for the Halloween season that would give you the chills without necessarily having to crank up your heart rate. This year, we want to do the opposite—highlight the gam...
Edited by Andrew Hayward
