Once hailed as the 'next generation game revolution,' blockchain games are undergoing a collective collapse. Since 2025, several blockchain game projects that previously raised tens of millions of dollars and were at the forefront of the industry have successively ceased operations, from Nyan Heroes to Blast Royale, from The Walking Dead: Empires to The Mystery Society, none are spared.

The current wave of 'blockchain game retreat' is fundamentally a misalignment between capital logic and the essence of games.

  • Players are investors; games are just packaging.

The biggest paradox of blockchain games is that they have never been centered around 'gameplay' from the very beginning.

In traditional games, players are consumers of content, immersed in worlds constructed by gameplay, storyline, and art. In blockchain games, players simultaneously assume the role of investors, with the rise and fall of token prices and the resale returns of NFTs being what they truly care about.

Thus, games gradually evolve into a 'speculative vehicle'—project teams need to design economic models to attract funding rather than refine gameplay.

The result is that the P2E model has spawned a large number of shortsighted 'money-grabbers,' treating the gaming world as a cash machine rather than a worthwhile immersive virtual world.

  • Financing is paramount; games take a back seat.

Blockchain game projects generally present a 'financing first, development later' model:

• Nyan Heroes raised as much as $13 million;

• Blast Royale also received investments from top VCs like Dragonfly and Mechanism;

• The Mystery Society is crafted by a former Disney team and secured a $3 million seed round.

They look glamorous on the surface, but once launched, most are hollow in gameplay, rough in art style, and plagued with bugs.

Ironically, when projects come to a halt, developers commonly cite 'funding shortages' as the reason. Yet many projects' funding amounts are actually far higher than the average development cost of independent games.

In comparison, the development cost of (The Legend of Sword and Fairy 7) is 67 million RMB, while (Stardew Valley) only cost $50,000 yet achieved global sales of 30 million copies. Blockchain game projects are not short on money; they just haven't used it in the right places.

  • The misalignment between Web3 and the gaming industry

The reason the blockchain gaming industry has come to this point is closely related to its 'genetic' makeup:

• It has never been about creating content, but rather about creating financial models;

• It serves not the players, but the investors in the secondary market;

• It focuses not on playability, but on TVL, trading volume, and asset prices.

This is entirely contrary to the traditional gaming logic of 'content is king.'

Truly excellent games are always those that first refine convincing gameplay and then rely on player reputation to drive growth. Whether it is domestic second-tier games like (Genshin Impact) and (Ningchao), or domestic AAA projects like (Black Myth: Wukong), they all win player and capital favor through the quality of their works.

Blockchain game projects often prioritize 'telling a story to raise funds' first, while the timeline for product development and its quality become matters to be addressed 'later.'

  • Conclusion: Sudden death is both a liquidation and a starting point for reconstruction.

The collective collapse of blockchain games appears to be a financing crisis on the surface, but in essence, it is an inevitable result of misaligned concepts. Web3 games are not doomed to failure, but if they cannot break free from the model of 'telling a story first, then raising funds,' they will forever be short-lived Ponzi games.

When the bubble bursts and the noise fades away, it may be the true beginning of the industry’s quest for authenticity. Truly viable blockchain games will not rely on financial incentives to keep players, but rather on content and experience to make players want to stay.