The short answer
We surveyed six notable blockchain games, Axie Infinity, The Sandbox, Decentraland, Gods Unchained, Illuvium, and Splinterlands, across genre, ownership model, and whether they are actually fun. Card battlers like Gods Unchained keep the cleanest ownership story; virtual-world titles like Decentraland ask you to own land parcels. A map of the space, not a buy list.
The basics
What makes a web3 game
A web3 game is one where you genuinely own your items, recorded as NFTs in your wallet and tradable on open markets. Crypto rewards are optional; real ownership is the defining feature. For the underlying standard most of these items use, see Ethereum's ERC-721 token standard.
Player-owned items
The defining trait: your cards, characters, or land are NFTs in your wallet, not entries on a studio's server. You can sell or move them without permission.
Open marketplaces
Items trade on public markets at prices players set. That is what separates a web3 game from a normal game with a cosmetics shop.
On-chain rules
Ownership and sometimes game logic live on a blockchain, so the studio cannot quietly delete or duplicate scarce items.
An honest take
Are web3 games actually fun?
Some are; many are not. For years the sector optimised for token yields instead of gameplay, and it showed, grinding for rewards is not the same as enjoying a game.
The projects worth your time flip that order: they build a game people would play even if the token were worthless, then add ownership on top. A few of the titles above clear that bar; others are more interesting as experiments in digital ownership than as games you will return to. The reliable test is simple, would you still play this with the economy switched off? If the honest answer is no, keep your wallet closed.
Judge a web3 game as a game first. Ownership is a feature, not a reason to endure something tedious.
For the economics behind all this, why play-to-earn boomed and then broke. Read our explainer on what GameFi is, or see how one of these titles, Axie Infinity, describes its own economy today.
Getting started
How to start with web3 games
Starting is easy and, done in this order, low-risk. The goal early on is to find out whether a game is fun before any money is involved.
- 1
Learn the basics first
Understand what an NFT is and how GameFi economies work before spending. The tech is simple; the economics are where people get hurt.
- 2
Set up a wallet
Install a self-custody wallet for the game's chain, back up the recovery phrase offline, and never share it. This holds your items and identity.
- 3
Try free-to-play first
Several web3 games let you play without buying NFTs. Start there to see if the game is actually fun before you put money in.
- 4
Spend cautiously
If you do buy items, treat it as spending on a hobby, not investing. Prices are volatile and many game tokens have collapsed. Never risk more than you can lose.
Two hard constraints on this whole category
Harder to make, and only a few will matter
“Games on web3 are strictly less fun and they are strictly more expensive to make and they have more friction for their players.”
Curio’s read
The bar any game on this page has to clear. On-chain assets add cost and friction, so the game has to be good enough to be worth them — a test most titles in the category still fail.
Source, conflicts & caveats
Caveat. GDC 2022, at the bottom of the play-to-earn collapse.
Why weigh this source carefully. Robinson runs a web3 games accelerator — he is inside the industry he is attacking, which is what makes the talk unusual. Delivered at GDC 2022, near the bottom of the play-to-earn collapse; the market context has moved since.
“Gaming has always been a hits-driven business where it’s kind of winner-takes-all, and there’ll only be a few financially viable games.”
Curio’s read
Which is the honest answer to "which web3 game should I invest time in": most will not survive, and that is normal for games rather than special to crypto.
Source, conflicts & caveats
Caveat. February 2026, from a studio co-founder.
Why weigh this source carefully. Zirlin co-founded the studio behind the game under discussion. He is the most directly interested party in this library and is quoted as the operator’s account of what happened, set against outside critics rather than in place of them.
Axie Infinity is Back. (And It’s Not About Farming Anymore) | MTS #94
UnresolvedA critic and a founder, agreeing on the constraint and disagreeing on the conclusion: Robinson reads it as a reason not to build, Zirlin as ordinary industry consolidation.
Web3 games FAQs
What are the best web3 games right now?
Notable web3 games include Axie Infinity, The Sandbox, Decentraland, Gods Unchained, Illuvium, and Splinterlands, spanning card battlers, virtual worlds, and RPGs. "Best" depends on what you enjoy; this is a survey of the space, not an endorsement or investment advice.
What makes a game a "web3 game"?
A web3 game records item ownership on a blockchain, usually as NFTs in your own wallet, and lets you trade those items on open markets. Some also add crypto rewards. The core difference from normal games is genuine player ownership.
Are web3 games actually fun?
A few are genuinely enjoyable; many are not. Games built primarily around earning tokens tended to be tedious, and several collapsed. The titles worth your time are the ones you would play even if the tokens were worthless, judge them as games first.
Can you really make money playing web3 games?
Occasionally, but rarely reliably. Play-to-earn economies are volatile and many have crashed, leaving players with near-worthless tokens. Play because you enjoy the game and treat any earnings as an uncertain bonus, not income. This is not financial advice.
Do I need cryptocurrency to play web3 games?
Not always. Several web3 games offer free-to-play modes where you can start without buying anything. You typically only need crypto and a wallet once you want to own tradable items or enter paid modes.
What do I need to start playing web3 games?
A self-custody crypto wallet for the game's blockchain, and sometimes a little crypto for items or fees. Back up your recovery phrase offline and never share it. See our guide to GameFi for the wider picture.