Gaming Evolution: Web2 → Web3

The gaming industry has undergone a remarkable evolution over the last few decades. Initially, games were simple, linear experiences but now they are spatial and even immersive considering Virtual and Augmented Reality. Some pivotal points in the timeline of gaming development inspire appreciation of its current state. Video games came to life in the 1970s with the release of games like Pong. These were flat 2D games that required a home console to play. Computer gaming became popular just a decade after as arcade games rose to dominance. These were all in the pre-internet gaming era.

The Web2 era sprung up in the late 1990s and early 2000s with the implementation of the Internet with gaming. Online gaming brought multiplayer experiences, digital marketplaces, and social interactions, transforming gaming into a vibrant, interactive community. The earliest games in this era including Ultima Online, Lineage, EverQuest and World of Warcraft, resulted in an explosive growth of the Web2 gaming era. Such meteoric growth follows the market fit of a new gaming paradigm. Virtual economies were one of the contributing components to this speedy growth. Although the infrastructures for immutable record-keeping and true ownership were absent, developers of games like The Sims & Second Life, found a way to build marketplaces where in-game assets could be improved and resold, preparing the foundation for the Web3 gaming era.

Worthy of note, as the gaming industry has advanced so has the revenue opportunities increased. See the chart below for some data. This is because the democratizing of access and creation of games leads to more supply of fresh ideas and hence more innovation in the gaming space.

Now, with the emergence of Web3, we stand on the cusp of a new era. Web3, characterized by its decentralized networks and blockchain technology, is already unlocking unprecedented gaming models for developers and publishers. The market is already estimated to be worth over $23B in 2023 and is projected to get to over $65B by 2027.

Gamereum aims to build an L1 blockchain onboarding Web2 games into Web3 and endow them with the essential features of decentralized gaming on arrival with minimal technological debt and building cost.