Argentines Flock To Play-To-Earn Crypto Games For Extra Income
Many people in Argentina are switching to play-to-win crypto games to support their needs and income, with the country’s player population doubling in recent years.
According to Bloomberg, Argentines often earn more from these games than their paychecks, as inflation, which has hit a 10-month high, eats away at their earnings.
Argentina – South America’s second-largest economy – has risen to first place in Latin America and fifth overall in terms of for-profit gaming.
Recent figures indicate that around 10,000 Argentines visited the Decentralized Games this year. Decentral is the biggest metaverse company that has the most players in the world.
Crypto games to the rescue
Brazil’s neighbor Argentina also makes the list and is currently considered the seventh most popular destination for play-to-win cryptocurrency games, Bloomberg reported.
Both countries are facing rising inflation, second only to Venezuela in Latin America.
Basic commodity prices in Argentina are rising at a rate of over 50% per year, but basic wages have been growing at a rate lower than inflation for the last four years.
In Brazil, inflation rose last year to more than 10% a year, according to the report.
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Crypto total market cap at $1.869 trillion on the daily chart | Source: TradingView.com
earning while having fun
In layman’s terms, play-to-win games are video games in which the player can gain real-world benefits.
While individuals have long made money from video games through tactics such as “gold farming” and unauthorized markets for in-game items, the advent of blockchain technology and NFTs has fundamentally altered the game.
Axie Infinity is one of the most popular P2E games in Argentina.
Axie Infinity is a non-fungible token-based online video game developed by Vietnamese studio Sky Mavis. The game is notable for its in-game economy, which uses Ethereum-based cryptocurrency.
Axie Infinity players collect and craft NFTs that depict creatures known as Axies.
Big investment needed to play
According to Mauricio Ramos, Latin American Executive Director of Axie Infinity, citizens play on behalf of Americans and Germans due to the impossibility of purchasing their own accounts.
Many of these games need a significant upfront investment, which can run into the hundreds of dollars, he explained.
Gabriel Mellace, Director of Investor Relations at Decentral Games, said:
“Statistics from Argentina and Brazil indicate that the numbers will continue to grow… Young people are not just motivated by financial gain. They are also looking for fun.”
Argentina was already a hub of bitcoin activity before this spike in players playing to win.
A growing number of residents have become freelancers, in part due to the possibility of receiving payments in cryptocurrencies. Around 90% of crypto payments were made in BTC or ETH.
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Featured image from Bloomberg.com, chart from TradingView.com