22.01.2025
News
Somnia Partners with Adventure Gold DAO to Advance Fully Onchain Gaming
How To Bring Web3 Gaming To The Masses
Web3 gaming is an industry full of promise, but despite years of hype, it has yet to deliver the kind of mainstream success that could define the future of entertainment. The potential is clear: decentralized economies, player-owned assets, and unprecedented interactivity. Yet, significant challenges remain for developers and players alike. Here, we’ll explore the core problems with web3 gaming and why the ecosystem hasn’t broken through to the masses.
Lack of High-Quality Games
While many web3 platforms tout AA+ or even AAA-style games, the reality often falls short. Most web3 games today cater to crypto natives rather than the broader gaming audience. These games tend to focus heavily on speculative asset trading and less on creating polished, engaging gameplay. The result is a lack of games that can rival the visual and immersive experiences offered by traditional titles. We have moved a bit beyond the gamified yield farms that were popular a few years ago, but we are still yet to see many Web3 games that people would play without the financial incentive
High Costs and Financial Barriers
The financial structure of Web3 gaming is a major obstacle for most people. Developers often bear the burden of gas fees, which can amount to tens of thousands of dollars per month for even moderately popular games. This creates a situation where only the most well-funded projects can thrive, and smaller studios are priced out of the ecosystem. Players also face volatile transaction costs that can turn a simple in-game action into a major expense.
Scalability Issues
Scalability is another problem preventing web3 gaming from reaching its full potential. Many blockchains struggle to handle the high-frequency, real-time interactions required by modern games. Network congestion for in-game marketplaces or NFT drops leads to delays, failed transactions, and gas wars that alienate players. Developers are often forced to build isolated environments to avoid these issues, but this comes with its own drawbacks, like building siloed ecosystems and higher costs.
Limited Accessibility
Current Web3 gaming platforms tend to cater to a narrow demographic: crypto-native users who already understand wallets, tokens, and decentralized economies. This creates a steep learning curve for casual gamers who make up the majority of the traditional gaming market. Wallet-based flows and token dependencies add friction to the gaming experience, making it harder to attract new users.
Fragmentation and Lack of Interoperability
One of the most significant missed opportunities in web3 gaming is the lack of interoperability. Games often operate as standalone silos, with limited ability to share assets, data, or players across ecosystems. This undermines one of the core promises of blockchain technology, which is creating interconnected, decentralized worlds. Without a global shared context for games, the full potential of player-owned assets and composable economies remains unrealized.
Overemphasis on Financialization
Many web3 games prioritize the “play-to-earn” model, which often diminishes the gaming experience to little more than a financial transaction. While this appeals to early adopters who see gaming as an investment, it fails to resonate with the broader audience that plays games for entertainment, storytelling, and fun. The result is a gaming ecosystem that feels overly transactional and unsustainable in the long term.
How We Solve These Problems
Web3 gaming’s challenges aren’t insurmountable. Addressing these issues requires a blockchain that is purpose-built for the demands of gaming, one that can provide scalable, low-cost infrastructure while delivering the seamless, immersive experiences that gamers expect.
- Performance That Scales: To handle millions of players, blockchain gaming needs to achieve high throughput (400k+ TPS) and sub-second finality to ensure smooth, real-time interactions.
- Affordability for Developers and Players: Sub-cent fees eliminate the financial burden on developers and make gaming accessible to players worldwide.
- Global Shared Context: By enabling cross-game asset interoperability and composability, developers can create interconnected ecosystems that realize the true potential of Web3 gaming.
- A Focus on Fun: Moving beyond financialization, the industry needs to prioritize creating engaging, polished games that can compete with traditional titles.
- Accessibility for All Players: Simplifying onboarding and eliminating wallet-based friction can bring in the mainstream audiences web3 gaming desperately needs.
By addressing these pain points and unlocking the full potential of blockchain, web3 gaming can finally deliver on its promise: games that are more immersive, equitable, and rewarding for both developers and players. Learn more about our gaming ecosystem and check out our litepaper to dig into the tech!
