This Week in Blockchain Gaming: Gaming Tokens Continue to Plunge, Eve Frontier Tests Expansion
A roundup of the highlights from the Web3 gaming world this past week, along with in-depth insights and stories you shouldn’t miss.
Another eventful week has passed, with the gaming token market continuing to decline, while blockchain gaming projects are quietly developing products and expanding their communities. Here’s a look back at the week’s biggest stories, along with some more in-depth coverage from our editorial team.
Gaming Tokens: The Crash Isn’t Over
The broader crypto market has yet to fully recover, but the blockchain gaming sector appears to be under even more pressure. Data from CoinGecko shows that no gaming tokens are currently in the top 100 by market capitalization. Immutable (IMX), one of the last remaining names, also fell off the chart early last week, only briefly flashing before disappearing from the top 100 completely.
Less than a year ago, tokens like The Sandbox (SAND), Gala Games (GALA) or Axie Infinity (AXS) were symbols of the “play-to-earn” movement. Now, these names have lost most of their value and the gaming community is gradually withdrawing.
According to experts, part of the reason comes from the slowdown in the game development process, when many projects focus too much on financial factors and forget about the player experience. In addition, legal pressure and the shift of investment funds to AI or DePIN projects have also caused the blockchain gaming industry to lose the necessary momentum.
Eve Frontier Goes Free, Attracting Web3 Gamers
A rare bright spot this week comes from Eve Frontier, a space survival MMO developed on Ethereum. The game officially opened a 10-day free trial period from April 11 to 21, allowing players to experience the game's universe without owning a Founders Access card (priced at $30–90).
This is considered a strategic move by developer CCP Games — the company successfully raised $40 million in 2023 to expand the Eve Online ecosystem via blockchain. During its closed alpha phase late last year, Eve Frontier attracted the attention of the community thanks to its deep gameplay and player-controlled economic system.
The company has also hired a former economist from the Central Bank of Iceland to help build its in-game economy — a move that underscores its ambition to create a sustainable virtual world where assets and markets are shaped by real-world user behavior.
Summary
The gaming token market is going through a tough time, but that doesn’t mean the blockchain gaming sector is losing its vitality. Projects like Eve Frontier prove that Web3 games can thrive when they put the player experience at the center and build a well-thought-out virtual economy.