Podcast Summary
The Future of Gaming: From Free to Play to Free to Own: Web 3 gaming pioneer Gabe Laden is leading the charge towards 'free to own' model, allowing gamers to truly own in-game assets and potentially onboard billions to Ethereum, increasing crypto gamers' LTVs.
Web 3 innovator and gaming industry veteran, Gabe Laden, is leading the charge in the next evolution of gaming with his new business, Limit Break, and its groundbreaking business model called "free to own." Free to play games, which took off due to piracy concerns, allowed gamers to play without upfront costs. However, Laden believes this era is ending and free to own represents the future. Free to own means gamers truly own their in-game assets, unlike free to play where progress is often tied to microtransactions. Laden's vision could onboard billions to Ethereum and bring significantly higher LTVs (lifetime values) for crypto gamers compared to their web 2 counterparts. Gabe Laden's insights from his year of deep diving into web 3 provide a compelling perspective on the future of gaming and the potential impact on the Ethereum network.
From free to play to free to own in Web 3 gaming: Web 3 gaming shift from free to play to free to own could lead to 1 billion daily wallets on Ethereum, $6 trillion industry revenue, and more immersive gaming experiences through player ownership and investment.
The future of gaming is shifting from traditional "free to play" models to "free to own" models in the Web 3 space. Free to play games have been a significant step forward in distribution and player sentiment, but they still require players to buy items or virtual currency within the game. This has led to criticism that the games aren't truly free. However, the next step in this evolution is "free to own," where players can obtain virtual items before they even play the game, which are web 3 items that they fully own. This shift could significantly increase the number of daily wallets on Ethereum, potentially growing from 60,000 to 1 billion, and the gaming industry could see a massive increase in revenue, from $200 billion to $6 trillion, due to the unrestricted nature of the Ethereum payment rail. This change in ownership and the potential value of these items could incentivize players to invest in and engage more deeply with the games, ultimately leading to a more immersive and valuable gaming experience.
From paper money to NFTs: The evolution of digital spending: People's spending habits on virtual items in games have influenced NFTs, offering provable ownership and potential global demand, leading to high prices.
Our thinking and spending behaviors in the physical world, anchored around paper money, have influenced the digital world, particularly in the realm of NFTs. Despite the seemingly outrageous prices for digital items, the underlying behavior is not new - people have spent significant amounts of money on virtual items in games for decades. The difference with NFTs is that they offer provable ownership and the potential for global demand, leading to skyrocketing prices. The progression of NFTs can be seen from PFPs (like Bored Apes) to "clubs" (where non-technical teams created NFTs and offered perks like merchandise to members). While there's pushback, a significant portion of the gaming community is eager to own NFTs as tangible digital property.
NFTs Transforming Gaming Industry with Interactivity: NFTs are expanding beyond digital collectibles into interactive virtual items, revolutionizing gaming and creating new business models. Ethereum's programmability opens up possibilities for new token types and revenue streams in free-to-play games.
NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens) are evolving beyond digital collectibles and into interactive virtual items that can be used across various software and virtual universes. This interactivity has the potential to revolutionize the gaming industry and create new business models. The speaker mentions the significant financial successes in NFT sales, but notes that it's not yet a mass-market phenomenon due to its current high entry point. To reach a larger audience, free-to-play games are being developed, with NFT projects serving as an additional revenue stream. Ethereum, the platform for many NFT projects, is programmable, opening up possibilities for new token types and business models. It's essential to look beyond the current state of NFTs and consider their potential for innovation.
Digi chooses Japanese anime art style for global appeal and releases first collection for free: Digi uses free assets to build a dedicated fan base and believes 'free to own' will surpass 'free to play'
The team behind Digi consciously chose the Japanese anime art style for their game series with the goal of reaching a global audience of billions, as it is one of the few art styles that has universal appeal. They also intentionally released their first collection for free to build an instant and passionate community around their brand, recognizing that the biggest challenge in video games is getting people to care about and engage with new titles. By giving away their assets for free, they were able to create a dedicated fan base that promotes their work and helps ensure the success of their future projects. The team believes that this "free to own" model will ultimately surpass the traditional "free to play" model, as people are more invested in and excited about content they have a sense of ownership over.
Exploring the Future of NFTs on Ethereum: The future of NFTs may lie in making them free to place on Ethereum, interconnected NFTs and games, and extending original collections with ERC 721 tokens.
The future of NFTs may be in making them "free to place" on Ethereum, despite the competition and potential saturation in the market. The speaker, who has a track record of making money on free apps, sees this as an opportunity to push the market in that direction and believes that Ethereum, as an NFT platform, will ultimately benefit from this trend. He also discusses the potential for interconnected NFTs and games, where entities can have permissions to interact with different apps and worlds, creating a more customized and engaging metaverse experience. Additionally, there's a discussion about the creativity behind extending original NFT collections, such as the Digi Collection, through the use of ERC 721 tokens and the concept of breeding new NFTs from Genesis NFTs. Overall, the speaker sees the future of NFTs as a vast, interconnected universe of digital assets, with Ethereum serving as the medium of exchange between them.
NFTs revolutionizing brand marketing: NFTs enable free-to-own virtual items, tradable, limited supply, monetization method for brands, transforming marketing and fan engagement, Ethereum at forefront, significant consumer spending shift from credit cards to Ethereum.
NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens) are revolutionizing brand marketing by offering free-to-own virtual items that are tradable, limited in supply, and can be used to engage and incentivize fans. This shift from direct response performance marketing to unlocking brand marketing potential is a game-changer for industries, including gaming, music, and consumer goods. The free-to-own NFT concept is becoming a primary monetization method for large brands, such as Kanye West, and will likely be adopted by everyone, making NFTs as ubiquitous as email or coupons. Ethereum, as the digital world blending with the real world, is at the forefront of this transformation, enabling consumers to unlock real-world experiences and benefits with their digital assets. This change will move significant consumer spending from traditional methods like credit cards to Ethereum and bring about a new era of marketing and fan engagement.
NFTs revolutionize marketing and build brand loyalty through interconnected digital ecosystems: NFTs foster extreme loyalty through exclusivity and community, with characters dominating the scene. Future success lies in creating engaging, software-driven experiences beyond simple transactions.
NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens) are revolutionizing marketing and brand building by creating interconnected digital ecosystems that foster extreme loyalty. Successful NFT projects, particularly those centered around characters or anthropomorphized images, have thrived due to their exclusivity and the sense of community they offer. This trend is expected to continue as NFTs evolve from simple PFPs (Profile Picture projects) to more interactive virtual experiences. While characters have dominated the NFT scene so far, items and memberships have also proven successful. The future of NFTs lies in creating engaging, software-driven experiences that go beyond simple transactions. As for the success of NFT projects on Twitter, it's a combination of intentional strategy and organic excitement. Some projects, like Limit Break, are intentionally underpromoted to build anticipation, while others generate buzz through their unique offerings and exclusive communities.
Company raises $200M, ends old business model, and promotes new strategy: Unexpected company move leads to controversy and competition, but also inspires industry shift towards new strategy, driven by high LTVs of crypto players and impossibility of such transactions in Web 2.0.
The strategic use of public announcements and funding can significantly impact the direction of an industry. In this case, a company raised $200 million in venture capital and used the attention to announce the end of a particular business model (paving in NFTs) and promote their new strategy. The unexpected move led to controversy and competition, but also inspired other companies to adopt the new strategy. The large investment was not just defensive, but also opportunistic due to the high LTVs (lifetime values) of crypto players and the impossibility of such transactions in Web 2.0. The speaker, who has been in the industry for 20 years, believes in the new direction and is prepared for competition, as it has the potential to bring millions of people to Ethereum and make their company the biggest gaming company on Earth.
Believing in an idea and investing in it despite competition: Investing in a unique idea, focusing on execution, and building a community can lead to significant success in digital markets. Look forward to token-mediated media experiences and interoperable virtual spaces for the future.
Having the courage to believe in the potential of an idea and investing in it, despite competition and doubts, can lead to significant success. The speaker shares his experience of competing with Zynga in the early days of mobile gaming and how they decided to focus on iPhone games because Zynga wasn't present there. He also emphasizes the importance of executing well and building a community around a digital product to create a powerful and interconnected virtual world. Looking forward, he believes that token-mediated media experiences and interoperable virtual spaces will define the legendary marketers of the next decade, as they offer unique experiences and constant evolution. However, it's crucial to focus on creating engaging and cool experiences rather than just the ROI calculation.
Revolutionizing Communication with AI: Turning Words into Images: AI models like Stable Diffusion are transforming communication by generating visual content from text, breaking language barriers, and making art, gaming, and marketing more accessible. NFTs align incentives and bring consumers and producers closer together, enabling easy and efficient content creation and sharing.
The future of communication and creativity is being revolutionized by AI models like Stable Diffusion. These technologies, which can turn words into images, have the potential to bridge language barriers and make visual content more accessible to everyone. The impact of this will be significant, particularly in areas like art, gaming, and marketing. The alignment of incentives through NFTs is also expected to redefine great distribution by bringing consumers and producers closer together. The ability to create and share visual content easily and efficiently will change the game, and it's up to creators and marketers to adapt and harness this power. The future is exciting, and it's all about turning words into images and making communication more effective and engaging. The rise of AI models and NFTs is a game-changer, and it's only the beginning.
Disappointment in the lack of innovation in everyday life: Despite the digital world's rapid progress, it's crucial not to neglect real-world needs and innovation in everyday life. Young innovators like Dayton inspire us with their determination and adaptability to find solutions.
While the digital world is advancing at an unprecedented rate, leaving some aspects of the physical world behind, it's essential not to overlook the importance of innovation in everyday life. The speaker expresses disappointment in the lack of significant advancements in household items and infrastructure, like the train system, despite the digital world's rapid progress. This disproportionate focus on the digital world is a cause for concern, as it may lead to neglecting real-world needs. However, the speaker admires the determination and adaptability of young innovators like Dayton, who pivot and experiment relentlessly to find what works. Ultimately, the challenge is to strike a balance between the digital and physical worlds, ensuring that innovation benefits both.
Web 3 technology transforms gaming experiences: Web 3 technology enables new interactions and experiences in gaming through smart contracts, creating opportunities for IP holders and gamers alike. Onboarding may involve obtaining NFTs first, and mobile wallets present a challenge, but avid free-to-play gamers are the target audience.
Web 3 technology is revolutionizing the way games and virtual worlds interact, allowing for more fluid and programmatic crossovers between IP holders and games through smart contracts. This creates new opportunities for virtual experiences and interactions that were not possible before. Another key point is that the onboarding process for new users to the Web 3 world might be different than expected, with users first obtaining NFTs and then potentially turning them into ETH. Mobile wallets, specifically Apple and Google Pay, are currently the biggest obstacle to widespread adoption of Web 3 technology. Despite these challenges, the target audience for conversion to Web 3 are avid free-to-play gamers, who are already heavily invested in these virtual worlds and willing to spend significant time and money on them. Overall, the future of Web 3 technology in gaming is an exciting and rapidly evolving space.
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