Four essential ingredients for building a loyal blockchain gaming community

The blockchain industry is often said to be one that moves at breakneck speed, with new people, projects and platforms coming and going constantly. In this fast-moving culture, building something that will stand the test of time can be extremely challenging.

The crypto industry has seen hundreds of projects come out of nowhere, only to fade into obscurity as quickly as they appeared. Numerous ICOs, DeFi apps and meme coins have come and gone. Names like Alchemy, Gems and PayCoin, just to name a few.

Blockchain games are a good example of this. We’ve seen dozens of so-called play-to-earn games emerge, bringing in millions of dollars in investment money to fuel a frenzy of new games and tokens. DappRadar shows over 2,000 blockchain games – the vast majority appear to be inactive. So that begs the question, how can blockchain game creators create something with longevity based on a passionate and highly engaged community that fosters sustained growth?

Create an addictive game

It may seem obvious, but gameplay must be given top priority. The traditional gaming community has been at odds with the blockchain gaming industry and for good reason. The vast majority of blockchain games are too focused on playing to earn, when what players really want is to play for fun. The earning potential should be secondary, like a bonus, rather than the main incentive. After all, many gamers have real jobs, and they don’t want to feel like they’re working instead of playing.

Nor do they need to, because there is absolutely no reason why blockchain games can’t be on the same level as triple AAA games. Also, developers don’t have to worry about creating super-realistic graphics or hugely complicated virtual worlds. However, they need to make a game that is consistently fun.

Fortunately, some Web3 game studios are starting to realize this, and we’re starting to see more original titles appear. Take Fashion League, a game that sees players take on the role of a fashion designer and create their own clothing label. It is a metaverse style game that allows players to create their own virtual fashion store, design all kinds of clothes and accessories, make them as NFTs and then enter them into exhibitions where they can compete against other designers and eventually sell them to other players . Truly a game to showcase your creative talent, Fashion League primarily targets a female audience, but is also open to established, real-life fashion brands, giving them a way to recreate physical objects in the metaverse.

It is an original, engaging game where the only limitation is the player’s own creativity. It’s no surprise then that it has quickly built up a loyal community, with over 10,000 followers on Twitter and more than 5,000 on its official Discord.

Make it competitive

Not only does a game need to be fun to play, but it also needs an element of competition. Players need something to aim for, whether it’s the top spot on a community leaderboard, access to new levels or items, or regular competitions where they can win bragging rights over their friends and rivals.

The great thing about blockchain is that it is an ideal mechanism to make games extra competitive thanks to the play-to-earn element, which gives players the chance to compete and not only earn prestige for winning, but also real rewards. Just remember that the rewards should not be the main focus, but rather the gameplay itself.

A good example of a competitive game is Pooky, which sees itself as a healthier alternative to gambling. Pooky is a football prediction game where players must acquire NFTs called Pookyballs that enable them to predict the outcome of a selected number of games. Users who successfully predict results can earn cryptocurrency tokens that can either be cashed out or used to upgrade Pookyballs, making them more powerful and increasing their earning potential. It is a completely unique alternative to gambling where no one loses money. Ultimately, players compete not only for earnings, but to climb to the top of several community leaderboards, which enable them to earn even bigger prizes.

Invest in your community

While many blockchain game developers are focused on building the largest possible community, it’s important to remember that quality is what counts. A smaller, loyal and active user base is likely to last much longer than a legion of players who quietly bounce between one hot title and the next.

As such, game developers must invest in their communities. It starts with support, where projects are advised to hire a professional customer service team to handle inquiries with a real, human connection available 24/7. A player who always has a human on hand when they need support is much more likely to remain loyal to a game than someone who only offers an email address and is slow to respond.

The horse racing game Pegaxy stands out because its support staff provides quick answers to users’ questions around the clock, setting it apart from the vast majority of other blockchain games. It also boasts a very competitive and fun game model with a strong economy, where any player can participate in any race for free. There are 12 horses per race, with the top three in each event earning crypto rewards that can be used by players to improve their NFT racehorses.

Engage the community

Last but not least, the most successful blockchain games tend to be the ones that involve their communities the most. And why not? After all, the blockchain space is so nascent that game developers often struggle with limited resources. Still, the industry is about decentralization, where anyone and everyone can chip in, and blockchain can be an open canvas for creativity when developers are willing to accept input from the community.

Illuvium is an upcoming Ethereum-based open-world exploration game where players must collect NFT-based creatures, explore and fight to dominate seven dazzling alien landscapes. It bills itself as the first AAA game on the blockchain, but where it really stands out is with its community focus. Within Illuvium, players battle each other for ILV tokens, but the game is designed so that 100% of in-game profits will ultimately be returned to the game. Also, the game has created a DAO-based governance structure where the community is fully involved in all product-related and strategic decisions about the future direction of the game. By giving players more input, they feel more involved in the game, increasing loyalty as a result.

Building a gaming community is about building a wider base of contributors, so that everyone can join in and take the game in the direction they want it to go. So developers would do well to make it happen.