In March 2024, Bitcoin continued to break records and successfully crossed the mid-month low. The entire cryptocurrency market performed well, benefiting from the positive macroeconomic conditions. At the same time, the Game Developers Conference (GDC) 2024 played a significant role in driving the development of the blockchain gaming industry, leading to a 24.1% increase in market capitalization of blockchain gaming tokens and a 17.5% increase in daily active users. Major players in the gaming industry and public chains are investing in and nurturing the Web3 gaming ecosystem. Let’s pay attention to how these initiatives will be implemented and what results they will bring.
This report’s data comes from Footprint Analytics’ Web3 Gaming Research page. It is an easy-to-use dashboard that provides the most important statistics and indicators for the Web3 gaming industry and is constantly updated. You can click here to learn more about the latest information on prices, projects, funding, and more.
Market Review for the Month
In March, Bitcoin experienced significant fluctuations between “breakthroughs” and “volatility.” Starting the month at $61,213, it quickly surpassed the previous high of $69,000 and reached a new all-time high of $73,068 on March 14. Although it briefly dropped 15.1% to $62,047 in the middle of the month, it recovered by the end of the month, closing at $69,656, with a monthly increase of 13.8%. In comparison, Ethereum showed a relatively stable growth, starting at $3,344 and closing at $3,648, with a 9.1% increase.
Data Source:
Bitcoin and Ethereum Price Trends – Footprint Analytics
The strong performance of the cryptocurrency market in March was mainly due to the anticipation of interest rate cuts despite the overall strong economic performance. This prospect intensified inflation concerns and made assets like Bitcoin and gold more attractive. The price movement of Bitcoin was closely related to the performance of the US Bitcoin spot ETF. The mid-month price drop was mainly due to the slowdown in inflows into the Bitcoin spot ETF and the reduction in leverage by traditional traders. However, the market’s expectation of the Bitcoin halving event in April maintained its upward momentum.
Although Ethereum’s growth rate was slightly lower than Bitcoin’s, it still maintained steady growth, partly due to the uncertain prospects of the US spot ETF. The Ethereum Denouement Upgrade on March 13 aimed to reduce Ethereum’s transaction costs and promote activities within its ecosystem.
In March, the AI industry became a market focus as Nvidia unveiled the Blackwell GPU and GB200 superchip at the AI event GTC 2024. This not only ignited enthusiasm in the US and global stock markets but also attracted widespread attention in the cryptocurrency market, driving the rise of the AI segment in the crypto market.
Overview of the Blockchain Gaming Market
In March, the market capitalization of blockchain gaming tokens grew by 24.1% to reach $24.1 billion. This growth was not only driven by the prosperity of the cryptocurrency market but also by the promotion of the Game Developers Conference (GDC) 2024. The conference further stimulated the activity of Web3 game developers and significantly increased the market’s attention to gaming tokens.
Data Source:
Percentage of Active Game Players – Footprint Analytics
Under the combined influence of market dynamics and major industry events, the number of daily active users (wallets) continued to grow in March, reaching 2.7 million, a 17.5% increase compared to February.
Data Source:
Daily Active Users of Blockchain Games – Footprint Analytics
However, despite the rebound in transaction volume since the third quarter of 2023, it has not yet reached the peak level of the second quarter of 2022.
Data Source:
Quarterly Transaction Volume of Blockchain Games – Footprint Analytics
Data from March showed that Ronin, Polygon, and BNB chain were the platforms with the highest number of active players, accounting for 35.4%, 20.9%, and 10.8% of the market share, respectively. It is worth mentioning that Ronin and Polygon further consolidated their leading positions, with their market shares increasing by 6.3% and 7.8% respectively compared to February.
Data Source:
Percentage of Active Game Players – Footprint Analytics
In terms of transaction volume rankings, Ethereum, Ronin, and BNB chain dominated. In March, Ronin’s transaction volume reached $81.7 million, a 35.1% increase compared to the previous month, while BNB chain experienced a 13% decrease. Despite having fewer than 10 games, Ronin’s market share has been expanding strongly. With the continuous addition of new games, its growth potential is expected to further increase.
Data Source:
Ronin Popular Games – Footprint Analytics
Competition among public chains is intensifying, and major public chains are increasing their investments to promote the prosperity of the Web3 gaming ecosystem. The Arbitrum Foundation announced a proposal to distribute 200 million $ARB tokens over two years to support game projects on its blockchain. Out of this, 160 million $ARB will be allocated to game publishers and developers, while the remaining funds are planned to be used for infrastructure improvements. This proposal requires approval from the Arbitrum DAO.
Meanwhile, the Starknet Foundation has also taken proactive action by establishing a dedicated game committee to promote the development of the Starknet gaming ecosystem. The committee plans to distribute 50 million $STRK tokens to support committee-approved game projects, especially those that incentivize game development and player participation.
In addition, Immutable, King River Capital, and Polygon Labs have jointly launched a $100 million “Inevitable Games Fund.” This fund combines the expertise of the three parties in the gaming and blockchain fields to seek and invest in promising game studios and Web3 infrastructure.
Overview of Blockchain Games
In March, the number of active blockchain games remained stable at 2,879, with no significant fluctuations in the market. However, the industry is eagerly awaiting major breakthroughs to significantly increase user engagement.
Data Source:
Number of Active Blockchain Games per Month – Footprint Analytics
In this context, a question arises: will the popular game Notcoin this month become the anticipated game changer in the market? This simple clicker game, based on the Telegram messaging app, has attracted over 35 million players in just a few months. Players can earn in-game currency by interacting with the Notcoin bot on Telegram, inviting friends, and starting the game. However, what prompted 35 million users to engage in this seemingly simple “click to earn” game? The answer lies in the upcoming airdrop activity. Notcoin announced that it will migrate its massive in-game currency to the blockchain using The Open Network (TON) in April, which has generated great attention in the market. But this raises another question: if only the in-game currency is on the blockchain and other game mechanics, equipment, and data are not, can a game be called a “blockchain game”?
At the same time, several games and platforms have emerged in March that have shown impressive performance. Among them, Gala Games’ token $GALA saw a price increase of up to 69.6%. Gala is dedicated to building a large-scale AAA game platform that empowers players with unprecedented freedom, control, and generous rewards.
Furthermore, the Ethereum-based open-world fantasy battle game Illuvium has also made significant progress, successfully completing a $12 million Series A funding round. Positioned as the first AAA game on Ethereum, Illuvium stands out with its fully 3D environment, setting it apart from other blockchain games. In March, its token $ILV saw a value increase of 18.2%.
Data Source:
Illuvium
Investment in the gaming industry has surged, raising a total of $151 million in funding, an 80.6% increase compared to the previous month, involving 26 funding rounds. This significant growth highlights the continued favor and high attention from capital to the industry.
Blockchain Gaming Sector Investment and Funding Events in March 2024 (Data Source: crypto-fundraising.info)
As the infrastructure of the industry, public chains are actively consolidating their positions and promoting ecosystem expansion through investments in game projects. Solana, in particular, has performed exceptionally well, with its subsidiary Solana Ventures investing in Parallel, and the Solana Foundation funding Elixir Games. Parallel, with a funding amount of up to $35 million, became the largest project in terms of funding size in the month.
Meanwhile, Avalanche has also made significant progress. The Avalanche Foundation strongly supported two projects: BloodLoop and Crystals of Naramunz. Additionally, the Avalanche ecosystem fund Blizzard Fund provided funding support to Gunzilla Games, making it the second-largest funding round in March with $30 million.
Gaming giant Square Enix is not only developing its own blockchain products but also investing in promising Web3 projects. In March, Square Enix injected funds into game platform Elixir Games and HyperPlay, and plans to introduce its game Symbiogenesis to the HyperPlay platform.
Traditional crypto funds have also been active. a16z Crypto supported MyPrize and MadWorld, while Animoca Brands supported Illuvium, MetaCene, and game infrastructure Param Labs.
Key Developments this Month
Ubisoft will become an XPLA ecosystem node validator.
South Korean gaming giant NHN’s Web3 gaming platform Pebble and Footprint Analytics have reached a strategic partnership.
Game blockchain Saga announced the establishment of Saga Origins, a Web3 game publishing department.
Sony is seeking a patent for “super fungible” game tokens.
South Korean game company Nexon revealed that its game MapleStory Universe on the Adventure Island chain will switch to Avalanche instead of Polygon.
This article is for industry research and communication purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. The market carries risks, and investments should be made with caution.
About Footprint Analytics
Footprint Analytics is a blockchain data solutions provider. With cutting-edge artificial intelligence technology, it offers the first no-code data analytics platform and unified data API that allows users to quickly retrieve NFT, Game, and wallet address fund flow tracking data across more than 30 public chain ecosystems.
Product Highlights:
Data API for developers
Footprint Growth Analytics (FGA) for GameFi projects
Batch download for big data
All data sets provided by Footprint
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Tags:
DeFi, GameFi, Social, Metaverse
WEB3
Cryptocurrency
Funding
Market Review
Original article link: https://www.bitpush.news/articles/6585316
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