At the beginning of 2021, non-fungible token (NFT) crypto-collectibles like artwork and films experienced a surge in popularity; nevertheless, some blockchain-based video games had already been developing in the field before the majority of people took notice. The potential cryptocurrency game Axie Infinity, which was developed by the independent firm Sky Mavis, took momentum when NFTs became popular with the public. And when the general NFT market calmed down a little after all of that hoopla, well, Axie Infinity just continued to grow and expand.
The Pokémon series created by Nintendo served as motivation for the development of Axie Infinity. It challenges you to amass a collection of cute monsters and pit them against one another in cartoonish battles.
However, getting started is neither easy nor inexpensive, and there is a requirement for an initial commitment that is significantly greater than that of a typical PlayStation or Xbox game. The positive, on the other hand, is that you will own your Axie NFTs and will be able to resell them. Furthermore, the “play-to-earn” strategy will reward you with crypto tokens that can be traded for real-world currency.
It’s a radical new take on the game industry, and people are starting to warm up to it. The first steps are outlined here for you.
What is Axie Infinity?
What exactly is Axie Infinity? Axie Infinity is a crypto-meets-Pokémon game in which participants nurture, battle, and trade Axies, who are cute NFT pets. It includes two native cryptocurrencies: Axie Infinity Shards (AXS), which can be purchased and sold on exchanges such as Coinbase, and Small Love Potion (SLP), which is given to players as a reward for spending time in the game. Both of these cryptocurrencies may be used within the game.
The core activities of Axie Infinity are the breeding, rearing, and combating of adorable creatures known as Axies. Axies and virtual real estate are both available for purchase through the use of NFTs on an in-game marketplace. (Get more information on NFTs.)
The majority of transactions are carried out on a specialized sidechain known as Ronin, which was developed by developer Sky Mavis to have lower transaction fees than the primary Ethereum blockchain.
How Does Axie Infinity Work?
How Does Axie Infinity Work? The gameplay environment of Axie Infinity is open-ended and customizable, and it allows players to engage in real-time combat with their Axies while also allowing players to exchange their Axies and other tokenized in-game commodities, such as plots of land.
Players can access a wide variety of features provided by the platform, which allows them to vary their gameplay and discover new methods to contribute to the Axie Infinity universe. Collecting, trading, and fighting Axies are the primary activities, and they are augmented by constructing land-based kingdoms and making contributions to the ecology included within the game.
Battling gameplay: Each Axie has a variety of features that determine both its battle mechanics and how attractive it is to other players, or more specifically, whether or not it will fetch a good price on player-to-player marketplaces. While some of the traits are shared by all of the Axies in the game, others are exclusive to the various classes of Axie. There are nine different classes that Axies can belong to: Aquatic, Beast, Bird, Bug, Plant, or Reptile.
In addition, there are three hidden classes (Dawn, Dusk, and Mech). Every class has its own set of advantages and disadvantages, which can either make it more or less effective than other classes. Players who are new to Axie Infinity will be required to purchase a minimum of three Axies before they can begin playing. This can present something of a barrier to entry, especially considering that the cheapest Axies available at the time of writing cost upwards of $300 each.
Collecting and trading Axies: Axies can be significant collectors’ items because each new Axie has its combination of statistics and skills. These Axies can be purchased and sold on the Axie marketplace. Mystics are the most valuable and difficult to acquire Axies; they were part of the first batch of 4,088 Axies, also known as Origins, and were produced and sold at that time.
Mystics have unique bodily parts that, while they may provide them with certain advantages in-game, are valued mostly because they are so rare. Some Mystics with numerous mystic body pieces have sold for between 200 and 300 ETH, while the last remaining quad mystic is presently listed for 5,000 ETH on the market.
Breeding new Axies: In addition to being used by players to earn SLP in PVP combat or by participating in quests. Players can earn SLP by using Axies in either of these ways. A sophisticated network of hereditary characteristics determines the characteristics that a newly produced Axie will possess.
Players are given access to both an online calculator and an in-game Axie mating center to assist them in calculating the likelihood of successfully breeding Axies with powerful or rare characteristics. As a method of population control, an Axie is only allowed to have seven successful offspring during its lifetime. It will cost the player a decreasing number of tokens to breed an Axie for the first time, but it will cost an ever-increasing number of tokens to produce an Axie after that.
Land in the Axie Infinity universe: The virtual universe of Axie Infinity, which goes by the name Lunacia, is made up of a predetermined number of land plots; at the time this article was written, the maximum number of plots was 90,601. These plots, much like the Axies who inhabit the environment, are themselves Non-Found Objects (NFTs) that may be sold between players.
The plots, which serve as bases for a player’s Axies, can also be developed over time through the use of in-game resources, and players have a possibility of discovering AXS coins on their land. Seven different types of land plots are organized around a core region referred to as Lunas Landing, which the developers intend to turn into a virtual world that is filled with content generated by users.
How to get started with Axie Infinity?
How do I begin playing Axie Infinity? Before you can truly call yourself a part of the Axie world, there are a few things you need to accomplish first. The following is what you need to perform.
1. Obtain an Ethereum wallet and load it up with the cryptocurrency (ETH)
Because Axie Infinity is powered by bitcoin, the first thing you’ll need to do is set up a digital wallet. Even though there is a plethora of other cryptocurrency wallets available, seasoned Axie players recommend utilizing MetaMask.
When you have finished downloading the wallet, you will need to load it with Ethereum (ETH), a cryptocurrency that is required in order to play the game. You can purchase Ethereum by using exchanges and wallets like Binance, and Coinbase.
2. Create a Ronin Wallet
Download a Ronin Wallet before continuing. You may get it as an extension for browsers like Chrome and Firefox, or you can get it as a mobile app that you can get from the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store. Both of these stores are linked in the previous sentence. Because this is the location where you will keep your digital assets, such as Axies and ETH, you are required to have the Ronin Wallet as a prerequisite.
Through the use of Ronin Bridge, ETH can be deposited into your Ronin Wallet. Take note that the Ronin platform offers direct ETH purchases in specific countries.
3. Get Your Axies
There are two different routes you can take to obtain your axes. You can either purchase them through the official marketplace for the game or look for another player who might be willing to sell, trade, or give you an Axie.
Buy from the Marketplace
You can use your Ronin Wallet to make direct purchases from the official Axie Infinity Marketplace to get your Axies. Simply going to the Axie Infinity Marketplace and selecting the Log with Ronin Wallet option is all that is required to get started.
Apply for a Scholarship
Players of Axie Infinity make use of a mechanism known as “scholarship,” in which prospective players can use the Axies of more experienced players to participate in the game.
There are occasions in which seasoned players have accumulated a greater number of Axies than they can effectively manage. As a consequence of this, they hand out or lend Axies to novice or aspiring players who do not have the financial means to purchase their own Axies.
Keep in mind that this mechanism is not a part of the actual game itself. Dealing with financial matters and determining compensation take place off of the gaming site.
4. Create an account
It is time to set up your gaming account now that you have your Axies in your possession. You can make your game account by going to the official marketplace for Axie, logging in, and then setting up your email address and password.
5. Download Axie Infinity and Play
After creating an account for the game, you can then download Axie Infinity onto the device of your choice.
Windows and macOS are also supported operating systems for playing the game on a desktop computer. You can play the game on your mobile device by downloading its APK file onto an Android device or its TestFlight file onto an iOS device.
How to play Axie Infinity?
How to play Axie Infinity? After playing a couple of matches, even inexperienced players usually get the hang of Axie Infinity. On the other hand, if you are completely new to video games, you could find the gameplay of Axie Infinity to be overly complicated to grasp. Don’t worry, you’ll have it shortly!
As a turn-based game, Axie Infinity requires both you and your opponents to take turns to progress through the game. Your primary objective is to eliminate the other players by making use of your axes and the skills they provide.
The in-game prizes are represented by a digital token that is either abbreviated as SLPs or referred to as Smooth Love Potions. Because these SLPs have a monetary value in the real world, it is possible to exchange them for real-world currency such as cash.
It is important to keep in mind that the value of SLPs is influenced by external factors such as the amount of interest there is in the game. It is subject to the same ups and downs as the prices of stocks traded on the stock market.
There are two different game types, Adventure, and Arena, that you can play with your three Axies. These are the key ways in which they are distinct from one another:
Adventure Mode
Start with the Adventure mode if you are a novice player or if you are just curious to see what the game has to offer. In this mode, you will engage in combat with many monsters over a variety of levels. You will face off against two different bosses throughout these stages.
In the beginning, players have the opportunity to gain SLP by winning matches in this mode. After the most recent change in the metaverse, this is unfortunately no longer a viable option. As a result, you might want to consider using this mode as a sort of training ground for yourself.
Arena Mode
You can consider yourself an accomplished player if you’ve beaten all of the challenges in the Adventure mode. The time has come to switch to the Arena mode and compete in a more challenging environment.
When playing in Arena mode, you will be pitted against other players and their respective Axies. When you defeat your opponents in battle, you earn SLPs and experience points. Relax, since there won’t be any bosses for you to battle in this particular game mode.
What makes Axie Infinity unique?
What sets Axie Infinity apart from other games? The fact that the makers of Axie Infinity are dedicated to creating a community of players who will contribute to the in-game environment both by taking part in the administration of that universe and by generating player-generated content is one of the game’s most distinguishing characteristics.
Through the use of the AXS token as the focal point of the play-to-earn mechanic, this participation is being added piece by piece to the overall experience of the game. A percentage of the rewards that players earn through staking will be contributed to a Community Treasury that will function as a component of this decentralized framework.
The Community Treasury will also collect money made by Axie Infinity. After the government of the game has been decentralized to an adequate degree, the players will have a say in how the money in the Community Treasury is used.
In-game mechanics that are unique to Axie Infinity set it distinct from other blockchain games that are similar in nature. One of these is the built-in population control, which dictates that a maximum of seven offspring can be produced from a single pair of Axies.
The developers are aware that controlling the population and how quickly it grows is a delicate balancing act. They can choose to have slow population growth, which causes prices to rise to levels that are unaffordable for the majority of people, or they can choose to have fast population growth, which results in unhealthy inflation.
In addition to a carefully managed population of NFTs, Axies themselves have characteristics that endow them with a limitless number of possible configurations. This causes an increase in demand among gamers, particularly for the rarest Axie varieties, which are already becoming highly sought after by collectors as desirable additions to their collections.
The fact that the AXS token will soon be able to be staked is an exciting new addition to the game that has been enthusiastically disclosed by the Sky Mavis development team. By staking their tokens, players of the game will have the opportunity to accumulate regular rewards; however, to do so, they will be required to maintain their participation in gameplay and the administration of the game.
Final thoughts
Not only does the merging of the crypto universe with online gaming indicate an interesting movement in the future of online gaming, but it also marks an important shift in the growing importance of digital ownership.
Axie Infinity is the product of this shift. This game will serve as many people’s introduction to the world of blockchain-based games and experiences.
It is noteworthy that such a project exists, and it is likely to have an impact on future trends. Even though there are still certain obstacles and uncertainties surrounding blockchain-based experiences, it is notable that such a project exists. It will be intriguing to see what the future holds for Axie Infinity, whether it is the creation of land-based games on Lunacia or the ongoing breeding of unique Axies.
The use of cryptocurrency in gaming is at the front of an ongoing economic and digital revolution. At Lunar Sky Games, we are a team of gaming product consultants with over 10 years of expertise in the industry. We work in partnership with web3 companies to help them build and grow their products. We help turn your vision into a reality. Contact us now for a consultation.
