Santa Brings Bitcoin, Ethereum Token Launch Frenzy

Luckily, Decrypt’s GG is all over it. And if you need a quick way to get caught up on the latest moves around crypto video games, we’re happy to present This Week in Crypto Games.

Our weekend roundup serves up the biggest news from the past week, along with a few other tidbits you might have missed. We also showcase a few of our original stories from the week.

Biggest news

Token launch frenzy: It was the week for Ethereum gaming token launches. The token generation event for Ethereum gaming platform Nifty Island took place on Wednesday, with ISLAND’s market cap landing around $15 million as of this writing.

Kaidro, a franchise with a webcomic, crypto game, and upcoming animated series, also launched its KDR token on Ethereum on Wednesday. Since its launch it has settled at a market cap of just above $10 million. Also on Wednesday, arena battler Moonray launched its MNRY token, again on Ethereum. What a week!

Also, the Tomarket (TOMA) token finally launched on Aptos, with players of the Telegram game finally able to withdraw and trade their airdropped tokens. It apparently hasn’t gone well, however, with the price falling 50% since launch and the developers attempting to calm the community.

“We understand the frustration around token prices and airdrops, and we’re taking steps to address these challenges,” the Tomarket team wrote in a Telegram post.

Santa brings Bitcoin: Mobile crypto game Bitcoin Miner, which lets you earn real Bitcoin by mining fake coins on iOS and Android, launched a holiday event over the weekend that lets you earn hundreds of bonus satoshis (aka 1/100,000,000 BTC).

Running into the early hours of Monday, Santa’s Moonshot puts a Christmas-themed spin on the game’s normal weekend event, letting you build a rocket while unlocking bonus BTC and in-game boosts. You’ll mine fake coins like Snowlana and Elfereum, racking up more and more real Bitcoin along the way.

CyberKongz SEC: The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has issued a Wells notice to NFT gaming project CyberKongz, the developers said last week, marking the latest regulatory probe into an entity of its type. A Wells notice informs recipients that the regulator is planning on undertaking enforcement actions based on what it discovers from preliminary investigations.

“The SEC’s Division of Enforcement have approached us with very concerning rhetoric that you can not have a token (ERC-20) in tandem with a blockchain game without registering it as a security,” CyberKongz said in a statement Monday. The team added that it would “defend against this stance for the wider space.”

Philadelphia 76ers game: NBA team Philadelphia 76ers have launched “Spectrum Sprint,” a free-to-play mobile game with Web3 elements, in collaboration with Crypto.com—a team sponsor since 2021.

The game uses a pixel art style, with side-scrolling gameplay that asks players to traverse iconic Philadelphia landmarks and dash down Broad Street towards the team’s former Spectrum arena. Gamers can unlock digital collectibles and compete for exclusive prizes across four tiers: Rookie, Pro, All-Star, and Legend.

ICYMI

• Crypto gaming franchise Pixelverse announced a new tactical deck builder game called MemeBattle.
• Telegram game Farm Frens and its sister game Evergreen announced it will launch its token on Base in January
• Ethereum farming game Pixels opened closed beta for its new spinoff game called Pixel Dungeons.
• Ragnarok: Landverse will go live on Ethereum layer-2 network Ronin in Q1 2025.

• Telegram game W-Coin’s “tapping phase” ended on Friday, and its token listing date will soon be revealed as a “Christmas gift.”
• Lamborghini launched its Fast ForWorld platform or fans to earn rewards as well as interact with cars via games and activities.
• Deadrop gave holders of its Founders Pass NFT two free guest passes for friends to check out the game.
• Animoca Brands Japan invested in the gaming-centric blockchain network Oasys.
• The Mocaverse racing game Cosmic Royale went live on Steam and Epic Games.
• MMORPG The Forgotten Runiverse pushed back its Crash the Runiverse in-game event until January.

• Big Time Studios announced a $150 million fund for Web3 gaming on its Open Loot platform.
• The Blockchain Game Alliance (BGA) highlighted industry shifts in its latest annual report.
• Gaming network Ronin launched Ronin Bounties, or quests within its wallet the pay out rewards.
• Idle RPG Onchain Heroes announced that its token will launch once the Abstract mainnet launches in January.
  
• Kieran Warwick, the co-founder of Illuvium, said that the crypto game franchise must move away from Immutable X.

Edited by Andrew Hayward