Meet commercial NFTs: The next step in Web3 evolution

cointelegraph.com:

The concept of the metaverse was conceived with the aim of providing humanity with a better life in the digital world. Today, video games are leading the way as the most active bridge for physical and digital world interactions. The same goes for blockchain-based games, as gamers who have tasted true ownership of digital assets flocked to Web3 games. Data shows that over half of active blockchain wallets were used in the GameFi space in 2022.

As the blockchain gaming market gets crowded, players start to expect more from  play-to-earn (P2E) games. Users put game improvements as the top expectation for blockchain gaming in 2023. However, having a good game is not enough for gamers, either — another study showed that over 51% of users participate in GameFi to make profits. As a result, poorly designed game economies became the leading factor affecting GameFi profits.

On top of an enjoyable gaming experience, blockchain games also need to deliver robust economies to meet the expectations of the ever-growing GameFi space. One potential solution came forward in the form of commercial NFTs. Deemed as the next step in the evolution of nonfungible tokens (NFTs) after digital art and collectibles, commercial NFTs combine gaming, utility and decentralized ownership to enable players to set up shop within a game’s economy. In the GameFi context, commercial NFTs let players create real value for the game’s economy, making them business owners within a virtual world.

To reach their full potential, commercial NFTs need a game economy that rivals real life, and an upcoming survival online RPG project aims to achieve that by building a real economy in a blockchain game. Developed by indie studio DeFi Mechanics Lab, the free-to-play