NFTs are good for a lot of things, from representing DeFi liquidity positions to concert tickets – even if, like conventional crypto tokens, one of their primary use cases remains speculation. But while use cases and usage of NFTs wax and wane like all crypto narratives, one place where they’ve found a permanent home is in the field of web3 gaming. 

Non-fungible tokens are ideal for representing in-game assets, from football players to armor and from avatars to loot boxes. Map an NFT to an item and it becomes tradable, supporting a vibrant economy that rewards players who hold rare artifacts and presenting a pathway for others to level up and accelerate progress. The following games, either just launched or on the verge of dropping, embody the power of NFTs to enhance the playing experience and in some cases to reward holders of blue chip collections.

Pudgy Party

You’ve heard of Pudgy Penguins, the top NFT collection by some distance, with thousands of ETH in weekly volume, a native token, a fluffy toy collection, and one of the most hardcore communities in crypto. In fact if you include spin-off collection Lil Pudgys, those lovable penguins occupy two of the top three spots based on NFT volume, only Bored Apes separating them.

If you know all that then you likely also know that the official Pudgy game is under development, with Mythical Games currently applying the finishing touches. Penguins might waddle, but Pudgy Party looks like sprinting out of the traps, with the game this year’s biggest web3 release by some distance – not least for Pudgy holders, who will be able to interact in the game in unique ways. If early game footage is anything to go on, Pudgy Party should be a kaleidoscope of color that delights PFP holders and casual web3 gamers alike.

WAGMI Defense

While not nearly as high profile as Pudgy Party, WAGMI Defense is a fun little number that showcases the simple way in which NFTs can be used to unlock enhanced player experiences and to inject some fun into web3 gaming. As the “world’s first high-fidelity mobile strategy game where every card you collect is a digital collectible,” WAGMI wears its NFT component proudly on its sleeve. The real-time strategy game tasks players with collecting human and alien characters before putting them to work in the fantasy world.

Naturally, all collectibles can be traded on the built-in marketplace, providing a welcome break from the intensity of all those alien vs human battles. In WAGMI Defense, players must defend their base and climb the ranks in epic global tournaments. But be careful with the deck you select: the cards you lay down will dictate whether you successfully fight off the invaders or see your tower topple.

Source WAGMI

Forgotten Runiverse

Forgotten Runiverse is another of this year’s big hitters – or at least it will be. Currently existing in the netherworld somewhere between Closed Beta and Live, Runiverse can be played right now but this is not its final form. Whatever shape its final form does take, it promises to be epic. The free-to-play MMORPG is built on Ronin Network, which partially accounts for the hype behind it.

There’s much more to Forgotten Runiverse than a trendy gaming chain though – like the fact that it boasts a fully-fledged native economy in which you can grow your wealth by trading your creations, minted as NFTs, on secondary markets. Speaking of NFTs, if you own a Forgotten Runes character, you can use the character within the game to bring your story to life. With an extensive developer team behind it and passionate community in place, Forgotten Runiverse is a web3 game you won’t forget in a hurry.

Fableborne

Web3 gaming doesn’t have to be flashy to work. In fact, when the mechanics and tokenomics are on point, less is often more – whether that’s specifying 8-bit graphics or a single-screen shoot-em-up. Fableborne doesn’t look anything fancy on first inspection, but it’s huge in every respect. Major investment, a large community, and real momentum have made this a case study in how to create a viral web3 game. Described as “Diablo meets Clash Royale,” Fableborne tasks players with defending their kingdom in between launching raids on enemy foes.

Fableborne Kingdoms NFTs serve as the access passes to this mobile game which operates as an ARPG with a dash of strategy thrown in. The fact that it’s on Ronin Network has done Fableborne’s prospects no harm. Nor has the fact that it’s developed by Pixion Games, the London-based studio who innately grasp what makes web3 gaming tick. It might not be for everyone, but those who “get” Fableborne can’t get enough of it.

Source Fableborne

Bitmates

“Days, hours are somehow gone, vanishing each time I play this game,” writes one Bitmates player. “More addictive than nicotine.” If this doesn’t make you want to take up Bitmates – but not smoking – what will? As for the game itself, Bitmates is a retro nostalgia-fest filled with simian pixel art, its 10,000 primates rendered as PFPs on Ethereum. It’s a crypto head’s web3 game, delivering no-nonsense fun with a learning curve so shallow you can glide into it.

Currently in beta, Bitmates packages its upgrades as retro gaming cartridges – a neat touch that has players harking back to their youth, assuming they’re old enough to remember the 90s. After minting their own treasure cartridge, players are free to dive in and immerse themselves in monkeying around the MMO that keeps finding new ways to delight its growing army of players.

You Can’t Have Web3 Without NFTs

While the best web3 games all have NFTs deeply embedded into their mechanics, most of them don’t shout about it because non-fungible tokens aren’t the message – they’re the medium that facilitates the free exchange of in-game items or provides early access to new mini-games.

The five titles profiled here show that there’s more than one way to leverage NFTs to enhance web3 gaming. When it’s done well, the transition between playing and trading is seamless, allowing players to spend less time thinking about the tech and more time blasting baddies, collecting rare swag, and beating end of level bosses. Which is exactly how it should be.