Play-to-Earn is Dying: How Swords of Blood Resurrects Crypto Gaming with a Play-to-Own Business Model

We have seen many crypto play-to-earn games grab the limelight and fade into obscurity in the last few years – all within a matter of months. Despite the large potential of blockchain integration in gaming, the crypto play-to-earn model has proven to be unfeasible and unsustainable. The slow death of once-hyped projects like Axie Infinity confirms that the industry is in dire need of help.

Swords of Blood is a new web3 gaming project built on a play-to-own business model that addresses the long-standing problems in the industry. Let’s take a closer look at the project and understand why more games should follow in its footsteps.

Gameplay powers Swords of Blood – not hype

One of the key factors that have contributed to the failure of the play-to-earn business model is the lack of focus on the play. In the hurry to secure funds, teams compromise on game development and gaming mechanics. Although the native tokens and in-game assets will perform remarkably well in the initial stages, tapping into the hype around the game, it’s usually short-lived. The fact remains that a game can’t survive without strong gameplay or a gaming community. And neither can the tokens.

Swords of Blood reimagines blockchain gaming by directing the focus back to the game. The blockchain-based, AAA-quality, fast-paced, free-to-play, hack-and-slash RPG is built on the framework of an award-winning title.

An active gaming community of 4M+ players

The first version of Swords of Blood was published in 2019 with limited access and features. Despite that, it was profitable and still has an active gamer community with a good retention rate. Going by the numbers, the current MVP version has been downloaded and played by over 4M players on App Store and Play Store.

The plot of Swords of Blood revolves around the brutal fall of the World of Ezura. As the last of Bladebound, it is now upon you to bring a spark of hope to the desolate lands through strategic gameplay.

The MVP version of Swords of Blood is playable and includes multiple asynchronous game modes like:

• Main campaign dungeons in three difficulty levels.
• Monster Hunt dungeons, where you play against waves of progressively harder monsters.
• Boss Fortress, where you team up with four other players to fight against powerful bosses.
• PvP, where you compete against other players to rank up in the global leaderboard to earn prizes.
• Daily dungeons, where you enter a special rift to play a daily selection of dungeons with special rewards.
• Time-limited event dungeons with a special currency that can be spent on unique event items.
• Challenge dungeons are special events where you take challenges to win prizes from the global leaderboard.
• Shattered Mazed is a week-long special event with an event shop where you go through mazes and fight monsters and bosses.

The rights to the game are now with Hit Box Games LLC, which will take it to the next level with advanced features.

Here’s a glimpse

• 4, 8, and 16-player PVP modes
• Play-to-own and improved free-to-play mechanics
• E-Sport micro tournaments
• Community-based gaming with guilds and clans
• Multichain crypto payment integration
• Fiat payment via SphereOne and Simplex
• New soundtrack that features talents from many famous acts such as Disturbed and Trivium
• G.U.T.’s – game utility NFTs that can be used in-game and sold in the open market.
• A 150-hour game expansion pack (narrative written by a team with members from Cyberpunk, The Witcher, Gord, Command and Conquer, and Ghost Recon).
• Community-based communication areas with (likely) VR capabilities.

The game is on the path to becoming a community-centric MMORPG, as the game modes become synchronous and more multiplayer features like Tournaments, Clans, DAOs, and 4,8, and 16-player PvP Arena are integrated into the platform. The new version will go live as a cross-play game on both mobile (Android and iOS) and desktop.

Breaking the barriers to blockchain gaming

The technical and financial barriers to blockchain gaming have to be lowered if it’s to go mainstream. Swords of Blood doesn’t plan on becoming just another blockchain game, inaccessible to the middle class and the technically naive. Instead, it is building a blockchain gateway for traditional digital gamers, which will open them to a decentralized and democratic gaming experience.

You will get a custodial wallet through Stardust upon signing up on the platform. It allows you to seamlessly store, buy, and sell $SWDTKN (native token) and in-game GUTs, or Game Utility Tokens, the new term coined for NFTs. You need not create a wallet outside the game. You can also purchase $SWDTKN using your Mastercard or Visa card via Simplex.

The financial barrier to the platform, on the other hand, is low and flexible. At the heart of it, Swords of Blood is a free-to-play game with blockchain features expanding the game’s economy.

⚔️GM, frens!

We're almost there in our Token Presale❗❗

How excited are you to have $SWDTKN?#SwordsOfBlood #NFT #Polygon #GameFi #MMORPG #web3

— Swords of Blood ⚔️ at the GDC (@SwordsofBlood_) March 5, 2023

Invest in $SWDTKN before it’s too late

With gripping gameplay and a massive gaming community, Swords of Blood has the potential to give leading blockchain games like Sandbox, Gods Unchained, and Alien Worlds a run for their money. The project is led by a team of game development veterans like CEO James Seaman, with more than 35 years of experience in the industry. Moreover, it is backed by leading players like Fundamental Labs, Solana Ventures, Master Ventures, Gate.io Labs, Magnus Capital, Flame, and Acknoledger.

So, it won’t be long before $SWDTKN enters the revered billion-dollar club in the crypto market. That would bag large returns for early investors who bought $SWDTKN at the presale for discounted prices. The $SWDTKN presale will be held in March 2023, split into three rounds with a gradual price hike. Grab them early for the best discounts.

Early investments come with more perks:

• Exclusive access to the game’s closed beta
• Automatic whitelisting to future NFT sales
• Phygital giveaways, and more.

Follow Swords of Blood on social media for the latest updates about the presale and the game.