A research report from blockchain gaming hub ChainPlay has found that Telegram’s T2E players are increasingly optimistic about the future of Telegram gaming, despite just 15% of survey respondents saying they engage with T2E games on a daily basis.
Source | ChainPlay
At least 37.2% of players said they played weekly, though only when they had some free time. This isn’t a lot, as ChainPlay found that 53% of users played for less than 15 minutes in one sitting.
A fifth of players, or 19.3%, shared that they mainly focus on earning rewards for completing basic tasks such as daily logins, social media engagement, and inviting friends. Engaging in core gameplay is secondary.
Around a third of players, or 28.4%, noted that they only played during special events such as airdrops, giveaways or promotions.
Players are resoundingly optimistic, with 74.1% of players willing to invest in these projects to earn more rewards and unlock extra features. Furthermore, 74.6% expressed optimism in the future of T2E gaming.
Player Retention
As expected, players tend to move away from T2E games once the first airdrop has been completed.
Source | ChainPlay
The survey found that 17.8% of players quit completely after receiving airdrop rewards and 50.6% reported playing less frequently. A middling 31.7% of players continue playing as they did prior to the airdrop.
Roughly 52.6% of players said they are active as they anticipate future airdrops, token unlocks—as seen with Hamster Kombat—and other incentives. Just 28.87% are interested in future developments and new features.
Over half of the players stated that the games are monotonous, and oversized player numbers that eat into airdrop rewards are the main reasons why they quit these games altogether.
Interestingly, 35.9% of players were unhappy with the difficulties of cashing out their airdrop rewards.
TON Network Stats
The report may bear some weight, as data from TonStat shows wallet activity and smart contract interactions to be significantly down from late September-early October highs.
Source | TonStat
At the peak of Hamster Kombat/Catizen mania in late September, daily active wallets exceeded 1.8 million, with daily on-chain activations topping 690,000. That number has since plummeted over 50%, hitting a low of just over 455,000 daily active wallets on Oct. 10.
Source | TonStat
Similarly, on-chain wallet activations also dropped, following the completion of the Hamster Kombat and Catizen airdrops. This decline is perhaps the most significant, as it represents wallets interacting with smart contracts on the network.
In the tap-to-earn gaming space, these interactions are usually associated with daily “check-ins” and other airdrop-related/incentivized activities.
If anything, ChainPlay’s survey, which found that 15% of players engage with tap-to-earn games on a daily basis, is represented in the data here, which shows that since its peak, on-chain wallet activations are down by just over 84%.
Regardless, this 15% of players are heavily engaged. Thankfully for them, titans such as Hamster Kombat and Catizen are moving ahead with “Season 2” airdrops, new games, and a myriad of ecosystem developments.
Eddie is a gaming and crypto writer at CCN. Covering the often weird and wonderful world of Web3 with an adoring, but skeptical eye.
Prior to CCN, Eddie has spent the past seven years working his way through the crypto, finance, and technology industry. He began with PR and journalism with Bitcoin PR Buzz and BitcoinNews.com, eventually working his way to become a copywriter with a dozen firms, including the likes of Polkadot before returning to journalism in 2023.
Having studied Radio production and journalism at University in the UK, Eddie spent a few years making podcasts and presenting on a local London radio station as he built up his writing chops.
A lifelong skateboarder, Eddie can often be found at the skatepark or touring the streets looking for something new to try. That, or kicking back playing JRPGs on his original PSP.
