Not all onboarded users are crypto-familiar or even crypto-curious. For a game to be successful in web3 or even web2, it must be incredibly convenient for users to be onboarded. I focused on testing games that require no initial wallet connection. Getting people to play the game is the first step, once they are hooked on the game they can become more integrated into the crypto/blockchain aspect of it.
Chain: Polygon
Genre: Tournament, Esports, Racing
Status: Live
Social Score:133
51.3k followers on Twitter
“I haven’t played a game this fun in a while,” is what my associate said after I introduced them to Fancy Birds and we played together for a couple of hours. Fancy Birds is incredibly easy to start playing via the in-browser tester version; the full version is available to play after a wallet is connected. I played the in-browser version on my iPad and it was exceptionally crisp, smooth, and responsive. The same version on an iPhone was laggy and less responsive. This game is a clear spinoff of Flappy Bird, however, the game mechanics and physics are lacking the precision of Flappy Bird.
Fancy Birds has clearly defined expectations providing the user with a smooth onboarding experience as well as making it easy to start and continue playing. It is difficult, but not daunting, to master the technique, which increases competitiveness and the player’s drive to compete. I had an associate play with me and we were immediately focused on beating each other's high scores. Because this game is so similar to the viral game Flappy Bird with the addition of the tournament and customization aspects, I believe that it has strong potential to go viral.
Chain: Ethereum / Immutable-X
Genre: Tournament, Esports, First-Person Shooter
Status: Beta
Social Score: 1230
50.3k on Twitter
This game was recommended by someone established in the web3 space, this is not the style of game that I naturally gravitate towards. The process to play this game was a bit clunky. When I clicked to install the game on PC it went through the installation wizard but then the game disappeared to the depths of my C drive. The user is prompted to add a shortcut but gamers do not want icons overcrowding their desktop. The graphics are pretty comparable to other first-person shooter games in the zombie and fantasy genres. The industry has learned through the virality of Fortnite’s cross-compatibility that users care more about latency than mediocre graphics. Undead Blocks has latency that is manually resolved, whereas Fortnite automatically configures graphics settings based on system configuration.
The starting difficulty level in Undead Blocks is moderately high, due in part to the latency. The responsiveness is lackluster compared to the size and speed of the enemy hoards. However, the game's difficulty emboldens the user to keep trying. Latency cannot be used as an obstacle though, the game should be updated to be smooth and challenge the user based on the actual gameplay.
Chain: Ethereum
Genre: Tournament, Esports, Racing
Status: Alpha
Social Score: 472
5,457 followers on Twitter
MetaBirds was the first blockchain game that I played. It is similar to Fancy Birds, as both games are in the realm of Flappy Bird spinoffs. MetaBirds is more reflective of a combination between Flappy Bird and Mario Bros. This game is relatively easy to start playing. I first tried it out in-browser then downloaded the beta version on my iPad via Apple’s TestFlight. MetaBirds’ beta version has a more intricate course, as well as, obstacles and additional features.
It seems like a race for the best crypto spinoff version of Flappy Bird between MetaBirds and Fancy Birds. I think they are both very fun games to play. I believe that the addition of Mario Bros-like features in MetaBirds will appeal to many traditional gamers. However, I think using the word “meta” in names isolates web2/traditional users.
Additional Thoughts
A common theme while testing is the disincentive to play a majority of blockchain games based on the requirement to attach a wallet, provide personal info, create an account, or agree to Terms of Service that are often questionable. Users do not want to provide their personal information to multiple standalone developers or jeopardize their security for the sake of a small game. Steam and Epic solved this problem by providing a platform where users can play and download games from all different sources without having to individually disclose their personal information or compromise their security. An alternative to individually downloadable games is a client like Steam where games can be downloaded and added easily to one location.