Play-to-earn crypto games have rapidly gained popularity as a new model where players can make real money profits. By completing in-game tasks, players earn crypto tokens which have real world value. Gaming guilds have emerged to fund assets for players in return for a share of profits. This new concept has attracted millions globally with its promise of fun and profits.
However, ethical issues and unintended consequences have also emerged. Concerns range from potential player exploitation to creation of meaningless jobs. As examples like Axie Infinity show, risks facing the crypto gaming revolution need to be addressed.
Exploitation Risks for Players
Inferior Position for Players
Investors and game studios have become the most prominent stakeholders in crypto gaming guilds:
“Yield Guild Games’ whitepaper emphasizes benefits for investors and games (game studios).”
Players are often seen more as a workforce rather than community members:
“In crypto gaming guilds they have become inferior compared to other stakeholders.”
This imbalance of power creates risks, especially given many players come from developing countries with low wages.
Unstable, Unpredictable Earnings
Income volatility is a major issue facing scholars. Token prices and earnings potential fluctuates wildly in the crypto market:
“Especially in low-income countries, players don’t “inhabit” a virtual economy but simply want to earn an income.”
Much of this risk still falls upon individual players rather than being shared across stakeholders. Uncertainty makes it hard to rely on play-to-earn profits.
Potential for Extreme Exploitation
The combination of inferior status and low wages creates conditions ripe for exploitation. There are already real-world examples, like Chinese prisons previously forcing inmates to play games for profit. More subtle forms of overwork and underpayment may easily emerge.
Pointless Work
Play-to-Earn Incentivizes Grinding
The play-to-earn model has sidelined fun in favor of profit. Engagement falls quickly when earning potential decreases:
“When the price of one of the game tokens, AXS, started to fall…the number of players quickly decreased.”
Without sustained profits, players lose interest in repetitive grinding. The social and entertainment value of games becomes secondary.
Bullshit Jobs Emerging
Much of the game work created lacks real value and exists only to serve the business model:
“Floors don’t have to be swept in the metaverse unless they’re designed to need sweeping.”
Players spend significant time producing assets like digital monsters that could be instantly created by developers. These pointless and unnecessary roles resemble “bullshit jobs” in the real world.
Wider Economic Impacts
Extraction Not Empowerment?
While often promoted as empowering players in developing countries, the reality may be value extraction:
“Revenues for guilds are generated mainly through players leveraging their time using the guild’s assets.”
With investors still capturing profits, there are concerns around neocolonialist systems continuing via new means.
Undermining Real Economies
Dependency on the crypto market volatility creates economic instability. Crashes lower incomes and undermine broader development:
“Without a healthy relationship between digital economies and local “real” economies, all the “philanthropic” initiatives of P2E games will inevitably be misanthropic in effect.”
Conclusion
In summary, while play-to-earn gaming offers new opportunities, it also enables player exploitation, meaningless work, and damaging economic impacts. As models evolve, developer accountability and updated regulations will be vital to protect individuals and communities most at risk.
FAQs
Why does play-to-earn change gaming?
Play-to-earn introduces a profit motive into gaming, incentivizing repetitive grinding over fun and social engagement. It risks making gaming feel more like work by introducing things like unstable scholar incomes and unbalanced stakeholder dynamics.
What are some examples of exploitation seen?
There are already real cases of player exploitation, like Chinese prisons forcing inmates to play games for profit. More subtle examples could include things like drastically underpaying workers relative to the profits extracted from their labor.
How does play-to-earn undermine real economies?
Basing local incomes on volatile crypto markets introduces significant economic instability which hinders real-world growth and development. Crashes lower player wages, shrinking an important income source without building sustainable economic foundations.
Can play-to-earn be ethical?
Play-to-earn could be ethical if developer profits were distributed fairly, work conditions were properly regulated, and decisions were made transparently and accountably. However, in current models, investors and studios capture the lion’s share of profits.
What changes could improve the model?
Changes like player protections, diversified stakeholder input, investment in real-world infrastructure, and embracing innovation that promotes healthy engagement over profit could make play-to-earn more ethical and sustainable.
