Do you remember that game where you grind monsters, change outfits, and team up to fight bosses (MapleStory)?
For many people born in the 1980s and 1990s, it is not just a game but a youthful memory from the internet cafe era.
Now, this classic IP returns to the spotlight as a new player in blockchain gaming—MapleStory Universe.
On May 15th, the governance token NXPC for MapleStory Universe was launched on multiple exchanges including Binance, Upbit, Bybit, and Gate, skyrocketing past $3 at the opening, with the FDV reaching $3 billion at one point. Meanwhile, the Alpha system airdrop has sparked heated discussions, with many participants earning over 600 U, making it arguably the most enticing 'airdrop feast' since the beginning of 2025.
This wave of operations has not only ignited players' nostalgia but also attracted attention back to the long-silent blockchain gaming sector. NXPC's strong performance has led people to rethink: Is the blockchain game, once considered a 'false proposition', about to make a comeback?
Is NXPC good or not? To put it simply, it is not bad, but don't get your hopes too high.
The recent surge of NXPC can mainly be viewed from two dimensions: whether the project itself is solid and whether it can be considered a strong player in the blockchain gaming sector.
On one hand, NXPC is backed by the Korean gaming giant Nexon, representing an attempt to bring its classic IP (MapleStory) into the blockchain gaming realm. The game has over 180 million global users and cumulative revenues of $4 billion, making it an undisputed veteran MMORPG IP.
As for NXPC, it is the governance token launched by Nexon's subsidiary NEXPACE, with a total supply of 1 billion tokens, approximately 16% of which is released through airdrops, while the rest is used for ecological incentives, supplemented by an in-game currency called NESO, forming a typical 'dual-token + NFT' economic model—essentially no different from early blockchain games like Axie, SAND, MBOX, etc.
In other words, its economic design is not new, but it fully leverages the IP itself and nostalgia.
From a valuation perspective, the current price of NXPC exceeds $3, with a corresponding market capitalization approaching or exceeding well-known blockchain games like Mobox and Axie, even nearing the historical high range of Decentraland. Benchmarking against the peak market capitalization of Gala and Sandbox (approximately $7 billion), NXPC theoretically has the potential to hit $15-40, provided it can truly replicate the enthusiasm and user stickiness of its heyday.
But the reality is: the blockchain gaming sector has not seen any significant technological innovation, and both players and funds are far less than in 2021. Relying solely on an IP, it may be difficult to sustain overly high valuation expectations.
In summary: NXPC has a stronger fundamental than the average blockchain gaming project; it has an IP, funding, and popularity, but don't fantasize about skyrocketing; reasonable expectations are the foundation of success.
NXPC: The 'instant explosion' behind the wealth effect.
Currently, NXPC's surge appears more like a short-term fluctuation driven by capital rather than a long-term value realization based on fundamentals.
On the day of the launch, the funding rate for Binance perpetual contracts dropped to -2%, and is currently around -0.7%, indicating that shorts are being forced to pay longs. This negative rate is usually a precursor to a short squeeze. Additionally, the project has launched on multiple exchanges, ensuring liquidity and trading depth in a short period, leading to a flood of speculative capital that has driven up the market. MEXC shows that the 24-hour trading volume has reached $6.85 million, and the sentiment is extremely exuberant.
However, from a long-term perspective, NXPC still faces numerous concerns:
The game is still in the public testing phase, and retention rates, gameplay experience, and economic model stability have not been tested in real combat. The experience of Axie shows that speculation alone cannot sustain the future of a blockchain game.
The project core emphasizes 'creator economy' rather than the traditional P2E 'gold farming model'. While it allows users to create content and mint NFTs for trading, for the content ecosystem to thrive, it requires long-term participation from a large number of quality creators, which is already quite challenging in blockchain gaming.
The market's focus is still concentrated on 'short-term gains', and there are not many players truly interested in the gaming ecosystem; the speculative nature is significantly higher than practical expectations.
More importantly, the push from the Korean market cannot be overlooked. Young people in Korea prefer crypto speculation, and NXPC's high local recognition with Nexon makes movements on Korean exchanges like Upbit have a significant impact on its trends.
In summary:
NXPC is a short-term explosive product resonating with IP and market sentiment; whether it is worth holding long-term depends on whether the creator ecosystem can truly be established and whether the gaming experience can retain users.
MapleStory has restarted a new round of adventures, but this time, it faces a more complex on-chain economy and more rational market participants. Whether blockchain games can truly turn around, NXPC is not the answer; it's just the opening.
From the airdrop situation of MapleStory Universe, there are echoes of the initial MOVE:
Only a very small number of people have truly received the airdrop; most people either can't receive it despite being able to check or can't even find the information.
The total airdrop amount is 14.22 million $NXPC, of which only 337,000 have been claimed, resulting in a claim rate of less than 2.5%, with over 97% unclaimed.
This round of airdrops feels more like precision marketing, creating a sense of scarcity and FOMO, guiding users to pay attention and shift to the secondary market to buy, rather than a universal 'welfare distribution'.
That's all for this article! If you are feeling lost in the crypto space, consider strategizing and harvesting profits with me!