Ronin Resurgence: Pixels Fuels 700% User Surge

Ronin's Renaissance: Pixels Ignites a 700% User Surge

Is Ronin Back in the Gaming Game?

Ronin's user base has skyrocketed by an astounding 700% since the dawn of 2024, according to Token Terminal. This surge has eclipsed Solana's DeFi landscape, driven by memecoins, and even TON, the on-chain home of Telegram's burgeoning crypto endeavors.

The resurgent bull market has rekindled interest in various crypto narratives, including the gaming sector. Ronin, whose Axie Infinity dominated the previous gaming era, is once again a force to be reckoned with.

Ronin Games: Axie Infinity's Second Coming?

Axie Infinity, a blockchain-based game, allows players to collect adorable monster NFTs and engage in battles. By participating in gameplay, players can earn SLP tokens, which can be converted into cash on cryptocurrency exchanges.

The "play-to-earn" model has also gained traction, with players enrolling in scholarship programs and academies to participate in the game. However, Axie Infinity has faced economic sustainability challenges due to its reliance on an inflation-prone system.

CyberKongz has recently migrated to Sky Mavis' Ronin Blockchain for its Genkai Collection. Axie Infinity's Ronin Blockchain has also undergone a technological overhaul and expanded to new game studios, a year after a devastating $625 million hack.

Ronin Games: Pixels Steals the Spotlight

Ronin's resurgence has been spearheaded by a single game: Pixels. This low-fi farming game enables players to create digital land plots and earn digital currencies by completing quests. According to DappRadar, Pixels has attracted 1.25 million unique users in the past month.

The buzz surrounding Pixels is reminiscent of the mania that propelled Axie Infinity to prominence. According to The New York Times, play-to-earn gaming has resurfaced as a viable income stream, particularly in the Philippines.

Jeffrey Zirlin, head of growth for Sky Mavis, expressed surprise at Pixels' popularity. "Some thought crypto gaming would only take off when the industry had studio-quality video games," he told a crypto media outlet. Instead, the leading force driving the sector is a nostalgic pixelated farming game, a far cry from the cinematic masterpiece of Red Dead Redemption II.

Pixels' Origins on Polygon

Unlike Axie Infinity, Pixels was not created by Sky Mavis for the Ronin network. It originated on Polygon before migrating to Ronin in October 2023, ahead of the current bull run. At the time, according to Zirlin, Pixels had approximately 3,000 daily active users. That number has now soared to over 750,000.

Zirlin emphasized that Ronin's user base is even larger. With 12.7 million wallet downloads, the infrastructure is in place for users to acquire NFTs that enhance Pixels gameplay.

However, NFTs are not mandatory. Pixels differs from Axie in that it does not require users to be crypto-ready from the outset. Players can create wallets and start earning later on.

Ronin's Long-Term Outlook

Despite the "seasonality" of crypto gaming, Zirlin and Sky Mavis remain committed to the sector. "Gaming, like everything else in this industry, does well during bull markets and can taper off during bears," he said. "We're prepared to handle the ups and downs and are built for it."

Summary

Token Terminal reports a 700% increase in Ronin's user base since the start of 2024, driven by the popularity of Pixels. The game has attracted over 750,000 daily active users, surpassing its initial daily active user count of 3,000.

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