Axie Infinity’s Spreading Popularity in the Philippines: What You Should Know About P2E Trends
While you have been reading about how the US Senators plan cryptocurrency crackdown in the US, mass crypto adoption is taking place elsewhere in the world. And it matters as much as what happens in the Western World. For instance, the Philippines is one of the top 5 countries to have adopted crypto on a state level so much so that their government distributes bonds via a blockchain application. Similarly, Filipinos’ craze for Play To Earn (P2E) gaming, specifically Axie Infinity has been revolutionary. Continue reading below to get to know the background story about how P2E became a savior to the Filipinos in their difficult times.
How did it start?
A lot of people were out of work during the pandemic lockdown. Cabanatuan City, north of Manila was no exception. Art Art, an avid gamer turned to Axie Infinity, quite skeptically. He bought 3 ‘Axies’ for around $5 to enter into the game. Axies are like angry birds, except they are little monsters around which this game is built.
Did he get back his investment?
Yes, Art Art made over $20 from the first few days of playing the game! He had to breed Axies and win Smooth Love Potion (SLP) tokens. He could then sell the SLP tokens in an exchange to convert it to USD. The news spread like wildfire. Many of Art’s neighbors installed the game on their mobile and in no time, it brought cash for thousands of desperate people.
Lolo Silverio, a 75 years old man, started playing Axie Infinity along with his 65 year old wife Vergie to supplement the loss in their business income in 2020. The couple had been using the earnings to purchase their medicines. But beyond the income, Axie Infinity also symbolized ‘hope’ for the old couple. It was a new hobby to hold on to during the gloomy lockdown days. “Sometimes I lose, but I keep playing all day” Lolo was heard saying in a documentary video, “We pray that Axie Infinity does not go away”.
Axie’s $20 dollar revolution
A 20 dollar bill may barely cover your grocery shopping in the US. But it’s not the same in other parts of the world where the cost of living is a lot lower. For instance, a Filipino makes between $5 – $10 per day on average. For them, their Axie Infinity earnings were sufficient to put food on the table. Axie Infinity, that launched as recently as in 2018, was already transforming the lives of people. The team could not have come up with a more genuine, organic follower base even if they were to invest millions in their marketing. As the Axies became more expensive, the team introduced scholarships to players to lease Axies instead of paying a huge sum to buy them. It made the platform more accessible.
Future of P2E and future of work
Gamers could not directly monetize their passion until the rise of P2E in 2020-2021. NFT asset ownership and the ability to sell the reward tokens in the exchange opened many creative doors for artists, developers and gamers alike. But most importantly, it improved the lives of the daily wage earners which perhaps signifies P2E’s biggest achievement. We are yet to see if P2E really brings about a fundamental change in the nature of work, but It is definitely an industry to keep a close eye on.