So, here’s the scoop – according to Jon Jordan’s Big Blockchain Game List, a whopping 407 games out of the 1,322 that ever made it to the list were given the boot last year. Yep, you heard it right, 31% of all those blockchain games on the list waved their goodbyes in 2023.
The Yearly Breakdown: First Half vs. Second Half
Now, let’s break it down further. The majority of these digital dramas unfolded in the first half of the year – a whopping 248 games were laid to rest during those initial six months, leaving 162 for the second half to deal with.
The Late Bloomers and the Almost-Theres
Interesting twist, though. Out of the 407 games that hit pause, 31% of the second-half casualties were actually live games, while the other 69% were still in the oven, baking up potential before they got the plug pulled.
Top Dogs and Dark Horses
Now, which blockchains bore the brunt of this graveyard shift? BNB chain took the lead with 18 games kissing the digital dust, closely followed by Polygon with 17 games making their mysterious exit. Ethereum wasn’t far behind, waving goodbye to 10 of its blockchain buddies, while Sui and Solana each bid farewell to 9 games.
Oh, and here’s a quirky tidbit: for 15% of the games that bit the blockchain dust in H2 2023, the tech behind them was marked as “unknown.” It seems like some of these little guys, especially the ones still in their baby stages, didn’t bother telling anyone which blockchain they were playing with – typical mystery vibes.
Why the Sudden Breakup?
So, what made these games hit pause? Well, it turns out, most of them blamed it on the classic combo of funding troubles and wonky market conditions. No surprises there. While many of the fallen were smaller players, two big names stole the show. Mythical Games bid adieu to Blankos Block Party, a desktop favorite launched a year and a half prior, opting to dive into the mobile gaming world instead. Meanwhile, Goals, a seed-funded darling with $15 million in 2022 and a cool $40 million in 2023, decided to ditch the blockchain integration dream.
And there you have it – the lowdown on why a third of blockchain games decided to call it quits in 2023.
