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
Rumble Kong League drops Avalanche: Arcade-style basketball game Rumble Kong League had been building on Avalanche for some time, but no more: Last week, the developers announced that the game is shifting over to Ethereum sidechain network Ronin instead.
Recently released on iOS and Android, Rumble Kong League is extending its soft launch phase with rewards for Ronin wallet holders, ahead of the planned FAME on-chain token launch later this quarter.
Rumble Kong League, a mobile basketball game with ties to NBA superstars Steph Curry and Paul George, announced plans to migrate its game to Ethereum sidechain Ronin, leaving behind plans to launch on Avalanche.
Ronin is a prominent gaming chain that plays host to popular games such as Pixels and Axie Infinity. Rumble Kong League's developers cited Ronin’s 17.2 million wallet downloads and 18.9 million RON token holders as reasons why the migration is “massive” for RKL.
“This isn’t just a partn...
Farm Fens snapshot: The developers of wholesome Telegram game Farm Frens and soon-to-launch strategy game Everseed announced a final snapshot date ahead of the token launch and airdrop. Set for Monday, January 20 at 3am UTC, players don’t have much longer now to secure their final boost to their airdrop allocation.
Specifically, the developers confirmed, airdrop allocations will be affected by the total historical amount of NUTS, DIRT, and DUNG that players have accumulated in Farm Frens. Plus, those holding NFTs related to the upcoming tower defense game Everseed are also accounted for in the snapshot—namely, the Everseed Ranger, Sprout, or Diddit NFTs.
The token launch on Ethereum layer-2 network Base is set for sometime in January.
The developers of wholesome Telegram game Farm Frens and soon-to-launch strategy game Everseed have announced a snapshot date to determine eligibility for an upcoming airdrop. This comes ahead of its token launch on Ethereum layer-2 network Base, which is set for sometime in January.
Farm Frens has carried the Telegram torch from games before it like Notcoin and Hamster Kombat, adding a FarmVille-esque spin on the genre. Players earn and spend in-game currency to expand and upgrade their farms,...
ChatGPT loses at AI chess: International Master Levy Rozman gathered some unlikely opponents for a chess exhibition this week: artificial intelligence chatbots. The tournament included the likes of ChatGPT, Google's Gemini, and X's Grok. The results were a mixed bag of mostly decent opening moves followed by increasingly chaotic attempts to bend the game's laws.
International Master Levy Rozman gathered some unlikely opponents for a chess exhibition this week: artificial intelligence chatbots that, despite their prowess at conversation and writing complex computer code, still haven't figured out how chess pieces should move.
The tournament streamed on Rozman's GothamChess channel and pitted professional chess engine Stockfish against seven generative AI chatbots, including ChatGPT, Google's Gemini, and Elon Musk's Grok from X.
The results were exactly...
OpenAI’s ChatGPT made it to the final after beating MetaAI and Copilot to face off with Stockfish, a model specifically designed to be a whiz at chess. Unsurprisingly, ChatGPT lost after Stockfish cornered its king.
The Forgotten Runiverse game launched its “Crash the Runiverse” event Tuesday, asking players to engage with its fantasy-themed massively multiplayer online role-playing game—aka MMORPG—to push its servers to the limit as it prepares for a global launch.
“The goal is simple: stress-test our servers to their absolute limits and try to crash them,” the project wrote on X (formerly known as Twitter)..
The event will be open until January 17 at 5pm ET. After logging into Forgotten Runiverse’s brow...
OpTic Gaming's Call of Duty esports legend Seth "Scump" Abner has his own content pack in crypto shooter Off the Grid.
At first glance, the Nintendo Switch 2 doesn’t look all that different to the handheld console that it evolved from. A light recoloring, bigger screen, but what else? Anything… exciting?
Well, eagle-eyed and conspiratorial thinkers have some ideas on what the two-minute trailer may have revealed without explicitly telling us. From an intriguing new Nintendo gimmick to possibly new Mario Kart mechanics, we’ve gathered four rising fan theories on what the Switch 2 has on offer for gamers.
Intro...
The Telegram tap-to-earn craze finished last year ice-cold, so it was a pleasant surprise to see a new game racking millions of players on the messaging platform as 2025 got underway.
Zoo has drawn in over 16 million players in a matter of weeks, based on Telegram’s own app data, and it delivers a super-streamlined riff on Microsoft’s classic Zoo Tycoon franchise—albeit with a crypto twist in the form of an impending token airdrop.
Will this be the game that thaws out the Telegram gaming market?...
The Switch is Nintendo’s best-selling home console of all time, and widely beloved for its rich library of games—a dramatic turn from the middling Wii U before it. But it’s been eight years since the Switch launched, and fans are getting antsy for Nintendo’s next big thing.
Luckily, it's coming. Following years of leaks and rumors, and even a couple official acknowledgments that the next-gen model was coming, Nintendo formally revealed the Switch 2 console in January 2025—and now we know when we...
Zoo is the buzzy new Telegram game that promises players a share of an upcoming airdrop—simply for jumping in a few times a day and building up their own zoo with as many animals as possible. It’s a slightly different concept to the many tap-to-earn games we have seen over the last year, but just like them, it’s all about maximizing your efficiency to get the biggest airdrop allocation possible.
When you first open Zoo, you are met with an empty field and are tasked with turning it into a thrivi...
Mark Zuckerberg is rubbing his hands while watching the Solana trenches, after a token launched on Pump.fun got degens talking about the metaverse again.
Verse World, a virtual reality metaverse game, released a token on Monday—which surged to a $112.8 million market capitalization within hours, before retracing to $54 million, according to DEX Screener.
The token was launched via Solana's Pump.fun launchpad. According to Verse World's official X account, 45% of the token supply has been bought...
It's tough to keep tabs on the ever-changing crypto gaming space, thanks to the constant flow of news: everything from big game launches and fun degen experiments to token price swings and occasional project collapses. It's a lot to follow.
Luckily, we're plugged in at Decrypt's GG. We cover the biggest happenings throughout the week, and then this weekly roundup provides a quick way to catch up, as well as find a bunch of other little bits of news from throughout the week.
Top stories
Bonk Aren...
Blockchain-powered mobile soccer game FIFA Rivals will release on June 12 on both iOS and Android, Mythical Games announced Friday, revealing a multi-year licensing agreement with sportswear giant Adidas in the process.
The team-up will integrate Adidas products throughout FIFA Rivals, including digital kits, jerseys, and shoe releases that draw from the brand's soccer heritage. Players will have access to exclusive in-game items and experiences designed around Adidas branding.
"FIFA Rivals is a...
