Chats of the video streaming service Twitch in 2021 were full of stories of how users quit their jobs, got rich, or at least survived the pandemic thanks to the game Axie Infinity. This is a new trend in the field of decentralized financial instruments — GameFi. The blockchain game with non-fungible NFT tokens also has its native coin (AXS crypto).
Our today’s review will explain the current hype around AXS cryptocurrency and the Axie Infinity game itself. Why is this project popular among gamers and also large institutional investors? Let’s try to find out!
Briefly About Axie Infinity Project
Blockchain game Axie Infinity is a successful project by Sky Mavis studio. A team of developers formed the general concept back in 2017. The slogan of the company:
We’re nation-builders. We build both the virtual worlds of the future and the infrastructure that makes them possible.
Their metaverse is run on blockchain and operated by users who can earn from unique NFT tokens.
Important Dates in the Project’s History
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- March 2018: An internal marketplace for NFT trading launched.
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- May 2018: A breeding option, which allows crossbreeding Axie creatures has been introduced. Users can breed Axies, use them in the game, or sell them.
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- October 2018: The first battle system based on the idle battle principle launched. The developers were inspired by the games Idle Heroes and Final Fantasy Tactics.
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- May 2019: A marketplace for exchanging Lands and Additional Items was launched based on an Ethereum Layer-2 scaling solution (Loom Network).
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- December 2019: Unified Land and Axie marketplace launched.
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- June 2020: a partnership with the Ubisoft Entrepreneurs Lab.
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- July 2020: Ronin’s testnet solution launched.
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- August 2020: The alpha version of the land gameplay was released.
In May 2021, billionaire Mark Cuban funded the project, commenting that he could play their metaverse for hours. All that remains is to add sound economic management.
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- September 2021: 800,000 units of AXS cryptocurrency worth more than $60 million were distributed among existing users during the airdrop. A Staking option launched.
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- November 2021: Katana’s own decentralized exchange launched on the Ronin sidechain.
Jeffrey Zirlin, a founder of Sky Mavis, believes the GameFi sector is key to the massive adoption of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology. Their team’s goal is to create worlds with real economic processes and infrastructure that belong to users. And in the future, this can become a place where everyone will live, earn money and have fun.
Axie Infinity NFT Game: Key Features to Know
Axie Infinity is a blockchain tactical battle game with mythical creatures based on the play-to-earn (P2E) concept. This is the most popular project in the GameFi sector in the fall of 2021 — more than 250,000 users play it every day. The trading volume on the domestic market has already exceeded 90,000 ETH (more than $436 million as of mid-November 2021).
Since the pandemic, thousands of users from developing countries have entered Axie Infinity, where they have found a new source of income. The Philippine government has even proposed taxing operations with the native token, as the game has become the main job for many citizens.
The essence of the game: users breed and use the mythical creatures Axies in battles. At the same time, they can make money by buying land plots, participating in battles, or completing daily quests. All in-game items, resources, creatures are tokenized and serve as NFTs, which can then be sold in peer-to-peer markets.
Basic NFT Objects to Buy:
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- Axie creatures
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- Land plots
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- Additional in-game items
All creatures are divided into nine classes. Moreover, 3 of them are rare and secret ones. To breed creatures of these special classes, you need a specific combination of 2 purebred Axies. Even then, the chance to create a secret-type character is 33%.
Axie Creatures Basic Stats:
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- Health (HP): how much damage Axie can take before being killed.
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- Morale: shows an Axie’s critical strike chance as well as its duration.
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- Skill: adds damage on combo attacks.
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- Speed: determines who will attack first, reduces the chance of getting a critical strike.
The characteristics inherent in each class are shown in the table:
When calculating potential damage during battles, a user needs to take into account the interaction of classes. For example, Beasts are weak against Aquatic (deal 15% less damage). In this case, on the contrary, Bug will deal hit 15% higher damage to Reptile.
Another type of in-game NFTs is Land plots. The homeland of creatures, called Lunacia, is divided into separate areas. These are houses and bases for the development of creatures. Users can buy and then improve them with additional items purchased or found during the game. You can even find Axie Infinity cryptocurrency on the land plots. There are two principles:
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- Additional resources can appear throughout Lunacia and are used to improve the plot.
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- The primary right to them belongs to the landowner.
Using their creatures, landowners can search for and mine resources. Thus, then they will be able to upgrade their land plots. As of November 2021, the metaverse consists of 90,601 land plots. Not all are still in circulation.
What Is AXS Cryptocurrency in Simple Words?
Axie Infinity Shards (AXS) acts as a governance token in the Lunacia metaverse. It was generated on the Ethereum network, ERC-20 standard. In 2021, the developers launched Ronin sidechain.
Using the bridge, holders can upgrade all their tokens: NFT (land plots, creatures, items), AXS, and LPS. Then transfer them to the Ronin chain and, if necessary, back.
The native coin was introduced to release the first game that is 100% holder-driven. The second reason is to create a mechanism to reward users for interacting with Lunacia, thus encouraging them to store and accumulate coins. Holders can receive rewards for:
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- Staking.
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- Participating in voting on project management issues.
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- Playing the game.
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- Content creation for users.
If you’re wondering where to buy AXS, you should definitely think about buying it at Switchere. On our platform, you have an opportunity to buy AXS in the fastest and most convenient ways using any available payment method. Moreover, we offer some surprising bonuses! Users of our platform enjoy a 0% service fee for the first order.
How to Start Playing Axie Infinity?
To start playing the game, you need to buy at least 3 Axies. The market forms the prices, so it is impossible to name the exact sum of the minimum initial investment. The 3 cheapest Axies listed by users for sale in November 2021:
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- Beast: $119.18.
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- Dawn: $139.85.
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- Aquatic: $142.
Thus, the minimum sum at the time is $400+. At the same time, it is not always reasonable to choose the cheapest Axies. You need to evaluate the class, stats, types of body parts, parents, etc. Therefore, users usually mention that the average initial investment is $600+.
So, how to start playing the game and become a member of the world of Lunacia? Here are the key steps to know!
#1 Register an Account
The very first thing you need to do is create an account on the official marketplace. You will be able to log in via mail and password or MetaMask.
#2 Download MetaMask Wallet
To store your tokens, you must download a digital wallet to play the game. We recommend using MetaMask, which takes around 1 minute to download and set up. Make sure to store your secret 12-word password (private key) in a safe place.
#3 Download Ronin Wallet
The next step is to download the Ronin sidechain wallet. This is a wallet created by the Sky Mavis team for Axie Infinity, which will allow us to do all of our transactions. Make sure to store your secret private keys in a safe place. Also make sure to activate your Ronin wallet. The button is located on the toolbar in the ‘Personal Account’ section.
#4 Buy Ethereum at Switchere
To buy some Axies, you’ve to go to an exchange and buy some ETH for fiat. If you’re wondering which crypto exchange to choose, then you should definitely think about buying Ethereum at Switchere. On our platform, you have an opportunity to buy and sell ETH in the fastest and most convenient way.
Here you can find a step-by-step instruction on how to buy ETH coin at Switchere — it’s easy as A, B, C! The main thing is to create an account at Switchere, buy some ETH, and enjoy a 0% service fee for the first order!
#5 Transfer ETH to MetaMask Wallet
Once you’ve set up your MetaMask wallet and bought some ETH, just take the Ethereum that is stored on Switchere and send it to your MetaMask. This is an important step because to use Axie Infinity’s client and their web app, you’ve to sign up with your MetaMask account to access your funds. Thus, you’ll need your ETH to actually make a purchase.
#6 Deposit ETH to Ronin Wallet
Just log in to your Axie Infinity account, link your MetaMask account and Ronin wallet. On the Axie Infinity main page, deposit some ETH into wrapped Ethereum (wETH) so that you can use it on the Ronin network. Just confirm the transaction and now you’re ready to buy your first Axies!
#7 Buy Some Axies
To buy your first Axies, go to the Axie Infinity Marketplace section. Use the filter to set the desired parameters. We already have a complete guide on how to choose the best Axies, make sure to go through it before making a purchase.
#8 Download the Game’s App
Once you’ve done all the steps mentioned above, you’re finally ready to play Axie Infinity! Just open the game site and click on the ‘Play Now’ button. The download of the app will start automatically. Available operating systems: Windows, Android, iOS, macOS.
Congratulations! Now you can start playing Axie Infinity, participating in battles, completing daily quests, and much more!
Axie Infinity Gameplay Process
The developers of the fantasy world have provided several different types of activity that will help upgrade characters and earn Axie Infinity (AXS) coins.
The first way is breeding. Like ordinary pets, Axies can be bred and produce offspring.
To prevent hyperinflation, the developers set a limit on how many times one Axie is able to participate in crossbreeding. Then it becomes sterile.
To breed new Axies, you need to spend two types of coins: AXS and Smooth Love Potions (SLP). The number of coins required depends on how many times the breeding has taken place. For example, if this is the first offspring, 600 SLPs is enough, and for the 7th time, you will need 10,200 SLPs. You can get Smooth Love Potions in the PvP Arena and the PvE Adventure Mode.
The kind of newborn creature depends on the genes. Each part of the body has 3 of them:
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- Dominant (D): 37.5% chance to pass this gene to offspring.
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- Recessive (R1): 9.375% chance to pass this gene to offspring.
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- Minor Recessive (R2): 3.125% chance to pass this gene to offspring.
To more accurately calculate the expected result, you can use a calculator created by the project team. You need to choose mom and dad, and the program will show the probabilities when breeding two Axies.
The second way to play the game is to participate in PvP battles in the Arena. This is a card game in which you have to destroy your opponent’s creatures. Each opponent puts three Axies on the battlefield and then plays them during the turns.
Most often, one tank and two Axies dealing damage are chosen for the team. Usually, damage dealers (DD) have low health and shield.
Hint: Plants, Aquatic and Reptiles are perfect for the role of the tank. The cards (skills) Rose Bud and Shiitake will help to enhance their ability to recover.
There is still little information about the third way to play (real-time PvE battles) in 2021. The announcement states that chimera monsters will attack the lands of Lunacia. Users will have the right to fight them, either alone or by assembling a team. If you manage to kill the chimera, resources will drop out of it, with the help of which you can improve the land plots.
How to Make Money in Axie Infinity?
In addition to the classic staking, the developers offer to make a profit just by playing the game. Other ways to make money are staking and investing.
In-Game Ways to Make Money
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- Participate in PVP battles. Those who hit the leaderboard according to the total number of points scored receive rewards.
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- Breed new Axies and sell them on marketplaces.
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- Collect or sell/buy rare NFTs. These are Origins from the limited line of 2018 and Mystics. The price in November 2021 ranges from $12,388 to $110,504,843.
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- Farm Small Love Potions (SLP). Potions are needed for breeding and upgrading creatures. You can then sell the coins on crypto exchanges.
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- Complete quests and receive AXS. The winner does not take all the coins: they still have to reward others in proportion to their skills and efforts.
Staking
The option became available only in September 2021. Holders were able to block their cryptocurrency and receive interest for it.
To start staking, you need to connect your Ronin wallet. You cannot use tokens that work on the Ethereum network or Binance Smart Chain — only those on the Ron Network will work. To transfer them there, you need to use the bridge.
Investments
Digital currency is a promising investment. After all, Axie Infinity is one of the most popular blockchain games. Many experts consider the GameFi sector itself to be one of the most promising.
The price of the token for the year from November 2020 to November 2021 increased by 122,310%. The ROI, according to CoinMarketCap, was 150,887% in the fall of 2021.
Conclusion
Axie Infinity is an NFT game that allows to build unstoppable Axie teams and defeat opponents. Each Axie has unique strengths and weaknesses based on their genes. With billions of possible genetic combinations, the possibilities are truly endless, so assemble your team wisely!
Many crypto experts believe that Axie Infinity is a promising investment in the long term. So the main thing left is to play the game and wait for the upcoming updates!
Have you played Axie Infinity? Feel free to share your experience in the comments below!
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