Author: Dappradar
Compiled by: Felix, PANews (This article has been edited.)
In April, the development of blockchain games showed mixed results. User activity declined, funding slowed, and market attention shifted toward AI and real-world assets. However, beneath the surface, real progress is occurring: new infrastructure is launching, major publishers are increasing investments, and high-quality games are nearing release.
This report will explore the current trends shaping the development of blockchain games, the quietly achieved results, the evolving narratives, and what all this means for the future.
Key points:
In April, user activity declined by 10%, with daily unique active wallets (dUAW) dropping to 4.8 million, the lowest point so far in 2025.
The dominance of gaming in the DApp industry has also declined, now on par with DeFi, both at 21%, while AI shows an upward trend with a market share of 16%.
Key games still hold a high dominance at the blockchain level: Pixudi accounts for 99% of Calypso, Off The Grid has a 100% share on GUNZ, and World of Dypians occupies 76% of Nebula.
Despite a poor market environment, the blockchain gaming sector still raised $21 million, down 69% from March.
Arbitrum Gaming Ventures allocated its first $10 million from its $200 million fund to support projects such as Wildcard, XAI, and Proof of Play.
1. Overview
It can be said with certainty that blockchain gaming will continue to develop. It remains one of the most promising areas for bringing Web3 into the mainstream. However, it is evident that users' attention is shifting from gaming to real-world assets and AI-driven projects.
Data also confirms this. In April, the number of daily active unique wallets (dUAW) for blockchain games was 4.8 million, a 10% decline from the previous month. The dominance of gaming in the DApp industry is also declining. While it used to be the leading category, DeFi has regained focus due to the memecoin wave. Today, AI is rapidly catching up, occupying 16% of the share, while gaming and DeFi each hold 21%.
However, development has not slowed down; the team is still building, and funds continue to flow into this area. It is no longer so reliant on speculative 'play-to-earn' mechanisms, but is more driven by users interested in gameplay, asset ownership, and community.
Familiar names dominate the top gaming chain rankings, with opBNB once again at the top. To dig deeper, the activity of gaming DApps on each chain was analyzed, revealing some patterns.
(World of Dypians) holds 52% activity on opBNB and as high as 76% on Nebula (SKALE).
On Ronin, although (Axie Infinity) is the top-ranked game, its activity share is only 33%, indicating that Ronin is actively shedding its identity as the 'Axie Chain.'
(Off The Grid) holds 100% activity on its custom-built GUNZ testnet, and similarly, (Age of Dino) also holds 100% activity on Xterio.
These data reveal a deeper issue: some chains are clearly built around flagship games, while chains like Ronin are evolving into ecosystems with multiple games. As competition intensifies, it will be worth watching which chains can successfully develop into broader integrated gaming hubs and which chains remain limited to a single IP.
2. April gaming leaders.
Every month, we focus on the top ten games ranked by activity, and April did not bring much surprise, just that some of the most active projects continued to make progress.
(Off the Grid) - GUNZ mainnet is now online.
(Off the Grid) (OTG) is a cyberpunk-style battle royale game launched by Gunzilla Games, which made significant progress in April. Around April 17, the team activated its custom GUNZ blockchain on Avalanche and launched mainnet nodes, building the core infrastructure for the in-game economy.
OTG is still in the early testing phase, but its mainnet launch indicates that a full release is getting closer. Notably, this is the first Web3 game playable on PS5 and Xbox One Series. Gunzilla's ecosystem model includes node rewards and revenue buybacks through the GUN token, with increasing speculation about its potential full release in the coming months.
(Axie Infinity) - Season continues.
(Axie Infinity) attracted player participation in April through multiple competitions conducted on the Ronin network:
(Axie Classic) Season 9 (lasting until the end of May) - Total prize pool of 35,000 AXS.
(Origins) Season 13 preliminaries began on April 22.
The playoffs for Season 12 have also concluded.
Sky Mavis is reallocating resources to the upcoming MMORPG (Atia's Legacy). As part of this shift, the experimental center 'Project T' has been closed. Players seem to have a strong interest in this Axie MMO game, with pre-registration users reaching 2.5 million as of mid-March.
(Seraph) - Season 3 is officially online.
The dark fantasy action role-playing game (Seraph) opened its third season on April 27, introducing new dungeons, equipment, and a free season pass. This update also introduces:
Stall licenses (player-operated shops).
On-chain asset yield systems that convert in-game achievements into token rewards.
The focus remains on sustainable P2E mechanisms that reward players' efforts and time, rather than just token trading.
Comprehensive game updates.
(Star Atlas) launched two new PvP modes:
Shooting game - a deathmatch mode based on killing to upgrade weapons.
Territory control - a team-based map control gameplay.
The Sandbox continued the features of Alpha Season 5, launching new UGC games (such as SABOTAJ) and brand experiences like 'Jurassic World.' This season will last until May 12 and offers a $1 million prize pool, including SAND, NFT, and LAND rewards.
Cambria postponed the launch of Season 2 (The Paymasters), originally scheduled for April 7. This MMORPG, inspired by (RuneScape), runs on Blast and Ronin, with its 'risk-reward' model requiring players to stake assets for high-return dungeon challenges. Developers promised to notify 24 hours before the new season begins.
(Gods Unchained) announced a major backend migration: moving from Immutable X to zkEVM to support smart contracts and achieve broader interoperability. The token bridge is expected to open at the end of May, at which point players will automatically complete the migration.
3. Ecosystem development and collaboration.
April witnessed a series of developments and collaborations within the ecosystem, reflecting that Web3 gaming has entered a more mature phase. From major publishers testing new models to the opening of chain infrastructure, the field continues to evolve strategically.
Traditional publishers in Web3.
Mainstream gaming companies continue to experiment with blockchain technology—some of which have achieved greater success.
Sega officially launched (KAI: Battle of Three Kingdoms), incorporating NFTs and 'play-to-earn' mechanisms into its well-known IP.
Meanwhile, Square Enix announced that it would shut down the Symbiogenesis project in July 2025 due to poor performance (NFT trading volume was only about 125 ETH, and the floor price in April was nearly zero).
Square Enix will remain in the Web3 space, but this outcome indicates that merely transplanting NFTs into games is not enough. Sega's collaborative-driven strategy contrasts sharply with Square Enix's solitary approach, highlighting a key insight: native Web3 experiences are crucial.
In April of this year, Ubisoft announced a partnership with Immutable. The two will jointly launch a collectible card game (Might & Magic franchise), bringing the (Might and Magic) series into the blockchain space. The game is planned for release later this year.
Netmarble x Immutable
Netmarble, through its Web3 division Marblex, made a significant ecosystem announcement. The Korean giant plans to launch seven blockchain games on the Immutable platform in 2025, including a game that combines esports with NFT mechanics (Tokyo Beast).
Immutable's zkEVM will support these games, and both parties seem confident that this collaboration will bring blockchain gaming to a wider audience. Marblex has also introduced a new mascot, 'Goby,' and a slogan, 'Fun First,' marking its deeper entry into Web3.
Ronin has opened up to third-party developers.
Ronin, once the single-player game chain for Axie Infinity, is now officially open to third-party developers. April saw fruitful results:
Originally on Arbitrum, Avarik Saga has expanded to Ronin to benefit from lower fees and a game-prioritized ecosystem.
Realms of Alurya has abandoned the Treasure ecosystem and migrated to Ronin.
Community Gaming launched a prediction market dapp (FORKAST) on Ronin.
With more games joining, Ronin is transitioning from a chain limited to Axie to a broader ecosystem. However, this also brings some troubles as the developers of (Ragnarok: Monster World) moved their game to another chain and are suspected of breach of contract.
Arbitrum and dedicated chains.
Through its Orbit program, Arbitrum is enabling custom gaming subnets. One example that gained attention in April is Studio Chain, built in collaboration with Karrat and the Arbitrum Foundation.
The flagship work of this chain is (My Pet Hooligan), a battle royale game, with in-game asset trading volume exceeding $78 million. Currently, the game is fully migrating its token (KARRAT) and gameplay to Studio Chain. This signals a broader trend: developers are turning to application-specific chains to customize game performance and in-game economies.
4. Investment down 69%, but 'smart' capital floods into infrastructure.
In April, investment activity in the blockchain gaming and metaverse sectors nearly stalled, but there are still some cautiously optimistic reasons. The total amount of funds raised this month was only $21 million, down 69% from March. The macroeconomic situation is also unfavorable, with ongoing uncertainty affecting investor sentiment.
However, despite the overall low figures, the previously announced ecosystem fund has started to yield results. The most notable is Arbitrum's $200 million ARB game fund, which has been officially renamed Arbitrum Gaming Ventures, with the first investments announced in early May after backend work was completed in April.
The first $10 million was allocated to five projects:
Wildcard: a Web2 card game from Steam that has now moved to Arbitrum;
Proof of Play: a blockchain service provided by the developers of Pirate Nation;
XAI Network: one of the leading gaming Layer-3 chains, built on Arbitrum;
Hyve Labs: a multi-platform game publishing platform;
T-Rex: a game application chain;
Arbitrum did not invest in entirely new independent teams but instead bet on mature studios and experienced founders to ensure ecosystem growth.
Notably, as of now, 66% of all funds in 2025 are allocated for infrastructure development. This shows that with the continued entry of traditional gaming companies and significant investments in the ecosystem, confidence in the long-term prospects of Web3 games has not diminished but has become more mature.
Investors are now focusing more on sustainable models, player engagement, and actual retention rates rather than just token speculation. This indicates that the market is clearly in a reset mode. Funding is harder to obtain, but this is not necessarily a bad thing. Some weaker projects are being weeded out, and funding is flowing toward developers laying the groundwork for the next generation of blockchain games.
5. Outlook for May
May will see significant updates, the release of Alpha versions, and content updates that could shake the Web3 gaming field.
(MapleStory N)
Nexon's (MapleStory N) officially launched on May 15, based on Avalanche's 'Henesys' subnet. This is a blockchain game from a well-known traditional IP, with strong early performance data:
The number of registered wallets during the testing period reached 1 million.
More than 31.5 million transactions have been processed.
(Treeverse)
(Treeverse) Season 1 reward activities are currently ongoing, featuring daily tasks and leaderboards, as well as in-game/NFT rewards.
(Gigaverse)
(Gigaverse) launched two features aimed at enhancing player retention and growth:
(Illuvium)
In May, Illuvium: Zero may officially launch. The ILV token has performed strongly, and the team is pushing hard for an official release, with more news likely to be announced soon.
6. Summary
April was not a record-breaking month for blockchain games, but that's okay; the industry is readjusting. The speculative frenzy is cooling down, but developers have not stopped. Games are continuously being launched. The ecosystem is expanding, and infrastructure is maturing.
The decline in user activity (dUAW down 10%) and lower investment amounts (only $21 million raised) reflect the current risk appetite in the market. But at the same time, we also witnessed the first deployments of the $200 million Arbitrum fund, new studios joining Immutable, and Ronin opening up to external developers. This is not explosive growth, but foundational work.
Major publishers continue to emerge, but real progress is being made by those collaborating with Web3-native teams. Additionally, there has been a notable shift in priorities, moving from unsustainable token models to gameplay, interoperability, and actual user retention.
Related reading: A look at ten Web3 games to watch in May.
