Transfer-to-Earn, a protocol that tracks customers’ motion by way of geo-tracking and rewards them for bodily exercise, gained widespread recognition final Might, surpassing GameFi in search curiosity. Nonetheless, the style is basically simply two initiatives on Solana: Walken and STEPN. The 2 video games have an analogous premise however method tokenomics, gameplay, and design otherwise.

GameFi had loads of copycat initiatives within the bull market. When one undertaking did properly, dozens of carbon copies popped up, hoping to copy its success. Due to this fact, regardless that it has simply two consultant initiatives, the M2E area is characterised by relative originality. The style additionally presents an modern and genuinely enjoyable utility of blockchain know-how.

By investigating on-chain exercise inside Walken and STEPN, we are able to start to investigate what works within the style and what sorts of options we are able to count on to emerge and succeed sooner or later.

Timing Issues for GameFi Initiatives

STEPN launched earlier than the bull market’s peak and, in hindsight, grew to become a sufferer of its in a single day success. It had an infinite leap in market cap when ETH had its April bounce.
All crypto initiatives are finally tied to the macroeconomic circumstances, and as alt-coins collapsed within the spring of 2022, so did STEPN. The circumstances have been exacerbated by the denial of its GPS providers for customers in China.

Whereas there have solely been enhancements to the sport’s options and UI since these preliminary months, there has but to be a restoration in market cap, exercise, and token costs.

The sport builders are nonetheless lively and have publicly appeared to debate rollouts, however the value chart is unavoidable: it appears to be like like a rug.

Within the blockchain trade, belief is all the pieces and is invariably linked to momentum, which is tough to regain after a dying spiral.

Walken launched seven months after STEPN. Whereas it has a considerably totally different design and gameplay, additionally it is an M2E sport on Solana. Because the market has begun to recuperate, Walken has seen a person surge and development.

Walken’s development in comparison with STEPN’s isn’t simply an optical phantasm brought on by STEPN’s large numbers a yr in the past—Walken has generated extra search curiosity by using a wave of optimism in GameFi and the Solana ecosystem, versus being caught within the narrative of regaining former worth.

This has translated into a way more constructive pattern in its NFT buying and selling quantity and token value.

Whereas each initiatives are glossy, mobile-first apps that gamify train, narratives matter in GameFi, and communities are fickle. Even when a dying spiral was largely unavoidable, a unfavourable narrative has been proven to blunt restoration.

The information signifies that the token value and person exercise of a GameFi undertaking isn’t a easy 1-to-1 correlation with the market. Timing issues, and it helps to not have most customers catch a falling knife.

M2E Initiatives Should Get Customers Energetic (Pardon the Pun)

Each STEPN and Walken are intimidating to new customers when first downloaded.
Within the creator’s opinion, STEPN has a comparatively extra intuitive onboarding, because the connection between trainers and working is extra direct than between cartoon cats and strolling.

That’s to not say STEPN is straightforward for a crypto beginner. NFT high quality, rarity, and mints are international ideas. And atop of all this, a person should buy an NFT to start out enjoying—an enormous friction level for somebody who desires to gamify their day by day jog fairly than turn out to be an NFT dealer.

Walken’s gameplay has many parts—Myberries, competitions, clothes, varied sorts of loot bins, and two-tiered tokenomics (like STEPN and most blockchain video games). It’s loads to leap into for somebody not versed in blockchain gaming. Nonetheless, Walken has a lot larger retention than STEPN.

There’s one vital distinction that might function an evidence.

New WALKEN customers robotically get a CAThlete once they first open the app. The sport then begins monitoring steps by customers’ telephones, resulting in day by day automated rewards. After that, customers merely have to go about their day and click on one button to obtain GEM and onboard additional into the gameplay at their tempo. Whereas the Walken house display may appear intimidating, this method has much less friction than requiring the person to buy an NFT after which keep in mind to include the app into their day by day run manually.

Each approaches have professionals and cons, however in the mean time, it’s clear which one generates extra DAU.

The Problem with GameFi Evaluation

Many crypto writers and analysts appear like goldfish when bandwagoning from one undertaking to a different each 8 seconds due to short-term token value will increase.
It’s additionally too simple to fall into reductionist considering. On this case—it could be decreasing the value and exercise of the above video games to at least one or two causes. Everybody attempting to know GameFi proper now could be feeling their means by a home at midnight. No person is aware of what is going to come subsequent or which undertaking will explode or collapse. Evaluation performed in hindsight is at all times accessible and risk-free.

This text simply goals to point out why timing and new person onboarding matter for M2E titles. Moreover, a blockchain analytics instrument like Footprint Analytics can uncover the connection between them and a sport’s key metrics.

Walken and STEPN take totally different approaches to M2E and face radically totally different challenges in making their visions come to life. Nonetheless, each undertaking groups are among the strongest in crypto, continually speaking with their communities in good occasions and dangerous. With continuous updates and enhancements, they’re well-poised to set the course of M2E for the foreseeable future.

The Footprint Analytics group contributes to this piece.

The Footprint Neighborhood is the place information and crypto fanatics worldwide assist one another perceive and acquire insights about Web3, the metaverse, DeFi, GameFi, or some other space of the fledgling blockchain world. Right here you’ll discover lively, various voices supporting one another and driving the group ahead.

Footprint Web site: https://www.footprint.community

Discord: https://discord.gg/3HYaR6USM7

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Footprint_Data

Writer: [email protected]

Reference: Use Retention; Walken; STEPN-Solana & BSC