Blockchain gaming, crypto gaming, play-to-earn crypto games, and everything around it are still somewhat new. The intersection between crypto and thus blockchain technology and gaming was more or less an inevitability, and now that it’s here, it’s rapidly rising in popularity. There are plenty of existing and aspiring blockchain gaming companies, and hundreds if not thousands of upcoming projects – it can be easy to lose track of who’s who and what’s what.
That’s why for the second year in a row, we assembled a list of some of our favourite blockchain gaming companies – promising upcoming as well as established gaming companies that either have or will make a huge impact on the blockchain gaming scene.
© Esports.net / Game Developers
There are many blockchain gaming companies out there, looking to make the best experience possible for gamers. But who are the best ones? In an industry with little regulation and a lot of false headlines from mainstream media, it is hard to tell. We have picked out the ones that are legit, offer utility, and overall have great games and other Web3 projects released.
This dev studio is closely related to the launch of the overall blockchain gaming trend – back in 2017, they released CryptoKitties, famously the first successful Play2Earn title featuring NFTs and crypto-related gameplay. While the game itself has died down in popularity, Dapper Labs has continued to create more content, including Cheeze Wizards.
Without Dapper Labs there likely wouldn’t be a blockchain gaming economy the way we have it now – or at least, it would look quite different. This will forever cement Dapper Labs as a cornerstone of crypto-gaming history – and of course it’s more than enough to deserve a spot on this list, and your dedicated attention in case of any future releases.
@ Dapper Labs
Ethereum-based platform Enjin has been around since 2009, and they have received glowing recommendations from sources like Nasdaq recently. Enjin offers a unique platform for would-be developers where they can create NFTs and certain gaming elements without having to know the coding knowledge that often stops emerging NFT game ideas dead in their tracks.
Billions of assets have been created, and millions of their wallets have been installed – so while Enjin isn’t exactly new, their platform offers an unusual and easy entry point to a fast-paced and demanding industry.
@ Enjin
Gala Games are also responsible for several popular blockchain games. Echoes of Empire, Spider Tanks, Legends Reborn, Fortified and The Walking Dead: Empires are all games that they created.
Partnered with names like Polygon, Brave, and Flare. No surprise there – the team behind Gala Games includes one of the co-founders of Zynga, Eric Schiermeyer.
Their system is based on a Node-system, and has seen some success – for example, Echoes of Empire has seen NFTs sell for about $3 million. Their concept for crypto games is that the crypto elements should be ‘invisible’ and operate in the background without negatively affecting gameplay and slowing down or ruining the experience.
@ Gala Games
The company behind the famous Voxies and Voxie Tactics is still going strong. Your Voxies can be bought, sold or used as unique RPG characters – there are classes, stats, pets and more. What makes AGG unique is their community-focused approach. Where games like Axie require a significant investment in order to get started, you can play Voxie Tactics for free – owning Voxies simply makes the game more enjoyable and more customizable of an experience.
Their games and NFTs have been in development for years, and despite nothing fully being out yet, the associated Voxie NFTs have been steadily increasing in price, while also fostering an active and surprisingly non-toxic community.
@ Alwaysgeeky Games
Another blockchain gaming company worth your time is Yuga Labs. They founded BoredApeYachtClub and have created one of the most recognizable NFT collections to bless the blockchain.
They have got a few crypto based games under their belt, Dookey Dash being the most prominent thanks to its crypto meme tone. Other games include ‘Otherside’ which is a Massive Multiplayer Online Action/Adventure crypto game.
The second instalment of the game has been tried and tested by gamers and has so far gotten positive feedback. We can expect more from Yuga Labs this year in relation to crypto gaming!
Finalizing this list wasn’t easy, however after some careful consideration we feel we have hit the nail on the head.
Blockchain gaming has a bright year ahead of it and we can imagine these blockchain gaming development companies are going to pull out all the stocks to enhance their previous metaverses.
@ Yuga Labs
Decentraland is behind the synonymous online gaming platform – announced in 2017, it hosts a plethora of unique projects. Users can buy, sell, trade and use virtual land in the form of crypto tokens, and then decorate and present that land however they want. People have used it for online stores, art galleries, and virtual hangout spots.
Beyond that, Decentraland offers an avatar system, its own collectibles, and further tools to let users make their space their own. In fact, Decentraland is aiming to one day become a proper Metaverse – a collective shared virtual space where physical reality and virtual space connect and overlap. Similar projects include CryptoVoxels and Somnium Space, all of which are land-based crypto-gaming platforms.
Decentraland is more than just a blockchain list gaming company at this point. The developers have implemented the official Metaverse Fashion Week event on Decentraland, showcasing digital fashion from the world’s leading brands.
You then also have the Metaverse Art Week that at the time of writing is in its 3rd installment. Art and fashion are becoming pivotal industries of the Metaverse and the inclusion of them via a game like Decentraland is only strengthening them for the long term!
@ Decentraland
Sky Mavis, the company behind Axie Infinity is perhaps the most important blockchain gaming company in the space right now. Not only was it one of the first successful ones, it has so far withstood the test of time, and has seen huge numbers of players consistently for quite some time. Like other NFT-based games, the NFTs called Axies that are used to play, can be sold or traded on OpenSea – and users can also breed new ones, and then sell them to others.
Axie Infinity is practically synonymous with the Play2Earn concept – in crypto-gaming, earning money by playing a game is a real possibility. For many, especially in 3rd world countries, it’s actually a surprisingly lucrative method of earning money, whereas in the West, users usually just make some pocket change on the side, to bolster their investment.
Axie Infinity over the years has become a leading figure in the crypto gaming space. They brought engaging gameplay and managed to create a thriving community of both casual and competitive gamers. Events for Axie are held regularly with real cash and crypto prize pools up for grabs. They also teamed up with Cloud 9 at the beginning of 2023 to further develop their competitive scene. Here gamers can get regular updates on Axie Infinity events and goodies through their paid subscription. Could they be a catalyst for more esports in crypto gaming?
@ Axie Infinity
Mythical Games is another huge blockchain gaming company, specifically, the one responsible for the Blankos Block Party game that was released in 2020. Unlike quite a lot of different projects, they didn’t launch pre-sale tokens, or otherwise release proof of concepts or alpha versions of the game. That sort of community-based development approach is very common with small indie projects in the crypto-gaming space – and yet Mythical Games went a different way.
They released their game when it was complete, and they also took a different approach to marketing their game – rather than focusing on the blockchain aspect of it, they instead tried to emphasise the player-led economies that feature in the game. That alone makes them worthy of a spot on this list!
Mythical Games really helped to bring blockchain based gaming into the mainstream. Their incredibly popular game Blankos Block Party has been released on the Epic Games Store for people to enjoy. They have created an accessible Web3 game that requires little to no knowledge of the technology that governs this new gaming world.
Furthermore, Mythical is a well renowned gaming company in Web2. They created Skylanders, the popular Spyro spinoff that featured toy dragons from the Spyro world. You can see why they turned their attention over to crypto and NFT gaming, considering their previous success in a similar endeavor!
@ Blankos Block Party
While OpenSea isn’t a gaming company in the sense that it has made a game, it is one of the central elements of the current blockchain gaming world. OpenSea is an NFT trading platform – users buy, sell, and auction off their tokens on OpenSea. These tokens are then used in actual blockchain games such as Axie Infinity or Decentraland, for example. Despite not having a game of their own, OpenSea is essential as a trading platform for blockchain gaming fans.
In addition to allowing users to buy and sell gaming NFTs, OpenSea also allows users to also trade other types of NFTs – such as collectibles, art content and more. Sales on the platform have exceeded billions of dollars, with NFTs selling for incredible amounts every day.
Over the years, many NFT marketplaces have attempted to overtake OpenSea, such as Blur Marketplace. However, thanks to OpenSea’s position in the market and their history with NFTs, they have remained one of the top blockchain gaming companies, allowing blockchain gaming developers to release their NFTs.
@ OpenSea
This Hong Kong-based company is easily one of the top brands in the world – they are responsible for NFT gaming hit the Sandbox, as well as other NFT-based games such as Crazy Kings and Crazy Defense Heroes. Unlike a lot of starting studios, they have several games to their name already – and those include working with big IP, such as WWE, Marvel, Power Rangers and Formula One.
They’ve also worked with other crypto games companies, such as Dapper Labs, OpenSea, and Sky Mavis. They’ve held several very successful funding rounds, and have effortlessly combined play to earn, traditional gaming, and new blockchain tech all under one brand name. That easily makes them the top company to keep an eye on in 2022!
In the early months of 2023, Animoca Brands and The Sandbox, their most famous blockchain game, partnered with the official Saudi Arabian government to further onboard the Middle East onto the blockchain.
This was a big moment for both the company and the country. Now more awareness can be brought to the whole of Web3 and with how popular crypto assets and gaming are in places like Dubai already it is not really a surprise that this partnership blossomed!
Furthermore, founder Yat Siu, is a prominent figure amongst the crypto gaming paradigm. He often attends summits and events giving his insight into the broader industry of the blockchain and is an amazing thought leader. His insight is always informative and you can tell he really cares about his work and company.
@ The Sandbox
“Blockchain gaming section is truly on fire: Q3’21 alone got an outstanding $1B+ deal value across 16 deals, while the cumulative Q1-Q3’21 deal value of $1.56B represents an overwhelming 34x growth YoY. The biggest rounds of Q1-Q3’21 are Sorare Series B ($680m), Dapper Labs Series B+ ($250m), and Forte Series A ($185m)” – Investgame Gaming Deals Activity Report Q1-3 2021
The company behind the popular “Heroes of Mavia” is still going strong. Your heroes can be bought, sold, or used as unique RPG characters – there are classes, stats, pets, and more. What makes Skrice Studios awesome is their community-focused approach. While some games require a significant investment to get started, you can play “Heroes of Mavia” for free – owning heroes simply makes the game more enjoyable and customizable.
Their games and NFTs have been in development for years, and despite nothing fully being out yet, the associated Mavia NFTs have been steadily increasing in price, while also fostering an active and surprisingly non-toxic community.
If this is your first time learning about the world of Web3 and crypto gaming, be sure to check out our other articles. If you choose to invest, only invest in crypto gaming projects you understand and be familiar with the implications that can possibly follow. Investing in games from the above companies will leave you in safe hands, so be sure to go with familiar names over the more niche ones!
Read Also: Crypto Trading
LOL
CS2
Dota 2
Valorant
Fortnite
Call of Duty
Mobile Games
Gaming
EN Global 
JP 日本語
“Blockchain games”