Last year, the Asian mobile gaming market hit a revenue mark of over USD$41.5 billion. Japan, for instance, emerged among the top 3 digital gaming markets globally with revenue of over USD$19.2B in 2018.
According to Cam Pham, a blockchain researcher, 2020 could just be as lucrative especially thanks to blockchain technology.
With the planned inclusion of eSports into the 2022 Asian Games, the gaming boom in Asia is set to increase especially with blockchain capacity to enable fungibility of virtual gaming items.
Yat Siu, the co-founder, and chairman of Animoca Brands believes that the mass adoption of the blockchain industry will come through games.
In his opinion, “gaming has been an industry that has pushed forward technology in general.”
South Korea
Perhaps nowhere else in the world is a blockchain gaming set to succeed more than in South Korea.
Also Read: Singapores gaming chairs startup Secretlab gets funding from Temasek’s Heliconia Capital
With only 1 per cent of the global population, the country boasts of upwards of 30 per cent of the world’s cryptocurrency trading platforms.
What’s more, in 2018, the Korean government legitimized the blockchain and cryptocurrency industry with a move to draft industry classification standards that “recognizes crypto exchanges as regulated financial institutions.”
On this backdrop, giant South Korean tech companies have established platforms such as ONEStore that offer users access to decentralized blockchain-based applications like BUSKON.
However, despite last year’s move, the stance of the South Korean government on blockchain and cryptocurrencies is still unknown.
Just recently, the South Korean regulators, banned Infinity Star (a game that uses an Ethereum ERC721 token). Although the regulatory body insisted that the decision was not a total ban on games that use blockchain technology, onlookers and industry insiders believe that the move could spell doom for the industry.
Japan
In Japan, regulation seems to be taking a blockchain-friendly turn. The Japan Cryptocurrency Business Association (JCBA), a self-regulatory organization, last month released guidance for cryptocurrency custody operators.
The guidelines stipulated the various responsibilities of cryptocurrency custodians and also suggested a virtual currency ranking that would ensure the safe handling of cryptocurrencies based on their specific characteristics.
According to Tran Ngoc Son, the CEO of Tomochain in Japan, “ownership and liquidity of virtual items are the current problems” facing blockchain gaming.
With the new guideline, developers will now be able to comply with regulations while coming up with blockchain-based games that allow players to have greater control of in-game assets.
With a revenue of $19.2B in the digital gaming market, Japan stands as one of the leading blockchain gaming markets with apps like My Crypto Heros (MCH) boasting the largest number of users in the world.
According to Kazuhisa Inoue, the CEO of Good Luck 3, “gaming and gaming economies offer a perfect fit for the circulation of tokens.” Inoue is the game maker behind CryptOink, a blockchain-based game with crypto piggies that recently attracted 20,000 gamers. It is similar to Cryptokitties, but with more racing options, ie. gamers race, bet, breed pigs and compete in challenges.
China
While the rest of Asia embraces the gaming boom, the Chinese government is putting in place so-called “game-changing” laws that target more than 170 million minors online.
The new law restricts playtime and instils spending limits for the country’s 20 per cent of its online users aged between 8 and 16 years old.
This comes at a time when Reality Gaming Group, a London-based blockchain, and AR gaming startup, plans to accelerate the development of its platform as well as other blockchain and AR games after signing a Memorandum of Understanding that gives it access to the Chinese market.
Although China is known for its harsh stance on cryptocurrencies, recent comments from Chinese President Xi Jinping show a blockchain-friendly viewpoint.
In an article published last month, Chinese President Xi Jinping said that “major countries are stepping up their efforts to plan the development of blockchain technology.”
He further added that China should put in “greater effort to strengthen basic research in the field and boost innovation.”
Hong Kong
In Hong Kong, political unrest is fuelling the popularity of an Ethereum-based game called Gods Unchained.
The popularity of the blockchain-based card trading game spiked after revealing its stance on Chinese censorship when Blizzard (the company behind Hearthstone) expelled a gamer who showed support for the Hong Kong protests in an interview.
Although Blizzard later reduced its punishment on Chung Ng Wai (Blitzchung), Gods Unchained moved quickly to speak against Blizzard’s actions even promising to refund Blitzchung all his rescinded earning from Hearthstone.
Also Read: 3 top mobile gaming trends by Outblazes Yat Siu
With Hong Kong as the centre of pro-democracy protests, the popularity of God’s unchained increased to an extent where the transfer count of its token peaked past the previous high set by Cryptokitties.
Looking forward and beyond
Not only are there more people engaging with digital games, but gaming in Asia is also educating more people about the value of virtual assets and the power of blockchain technology.
Blockchain technology is solving the problem of scarcity of in-game items making gaming even more lucrative in the long run. However, it’s not all smooth sailing in Asia. Despite the positive stance that countries like Japan show towards blockchain and cryptocurrency, the volatile nature of regulation persists in places like South Korea and China.
–
Editor’s note: e27 publishes relevant guest contributions from the community. Share your honest opinions and expert knowledge by submitting your content here.
Join our e27 Telegram group here, or our e27 contributor Facebook page here.
Image Credit: Florian Olivo
The post Blockchain gaming trends in Asia: here’s what you need to know appeared first on e27.