Over the last one year, the word ‘Meta’ has attracted a lot of attention. One of the Indian play-to-earn guilds that deals with renting and lending of virtual assets to masses for yield farming in the metaverse, MetaMisfits, has recently concluded AxieUtsav, India’s blockchain based play to earn event which garnered commendable amount of response.
While describing the existence of metaverse and role of blockchain in it, MetaMisfits founder Ajoy Das shared with AnimationXpress, “To be honest, the concept of the Metaverse has been prevailing since a long time! However, I believe, in order to implement it successfully; blockchain and NFTs have played a major role. Ever since 2021 specifically, Metaverse has witnessed a surge. On the other hand, the adoption of NFTs is still in its nascent stages but will of course render a significant impact on the gaming sector.”
Today, a lot of gaming companies are investing in the new edge technology and set foot to revolutionise the gaming ecosystem. Das added, “I have always seen gaming enthusiasts investing their money into the games and working hard for the in-game rewards. However, with the emergence of Web3, NFTs, metaverse, and blockchain coming into the scenario; the in-game economy will expectedly become more valuable than the real-life economy. Apart from this, what I also feel is that the concept of true ownership and visibility of ownership has always been in need in games. And I am of the view that NFTs and blockchain are the long-lost solutions to these issues!”
According to him, MetaMisfits was conceived with a vision to break the entry barriers of NFTs for the masses. They envision transforming into a brand in the future and being recognized for building a well-knit community that people can call their home. They can live there in real life as well as in the metaverse space and connect with like-minded people. Currently, they have an asset valuation of $70K which has been bootstrapped. They have been able to achieve this milestone with their deep expertise in Axie Infinity, Pegaxy, Elpis Battle, Guild of Guardians, Cyball, and many more. They are solely focusing on monetising the in-game assets to generate wealth. However, they plan to launch their own gaming platform by the end of this year. 
Commenting on the challenges, he shared, “The biggest challenge with metaverse and NFTs is that India has a huge population but 99 per cent of it is still stuck with Web2 and centralised projects. The lack of proper education and awareness about blockchain, play-to-earn games, NFTs, and Web3 is a major hurdle restricting the growth of metaverse and NFT in the country. Adding to it, the high-cost entry to NFTs and projects is also a barrier that obstructs their accessibility to the masses.”
According to him, in India, blockchain-based gaming faces its fair share of challenges. One of the major hurdles is that people are still stuck with Web2 and centralised games. A particular centralised body is governing the segment and is enjoying the benefits while the players have no true ownership. The lack of talent is another factor hindering the growth of blockchain-based gaming in the country.
Also, the awareness about the segment is very less. He added, “A major barrier obstructing the segment’s growth is that parents don’t consider gaming as a viable career option and prevent their children from pursuing it as a profession. This is primarily due to the lack of awareness. Thus, the dire need is to educate the masses about NFTs, blockchain, Web3, and everything related to the segment as well as incubating and supporting talents.”
According to Das, the growth potential of the technology is inspiring and not overhyped. He shared, “I do believe we are in the nascent stages of adopting blockchain gaming, metaverse, and NFT. But what is indeed an undeniable fact is that there is huge growth potential. We are the early movers into this space and we are yet to witness growth and disruptions. The future is unpredictable but it will surely be promising and India will soon emerge to be a leader in this segment!”
They have not associated with any crypto currency exchange partners as of now. Neither they have their own token yet, but they do intend to release their tokens in the coming times. Currently they are mostly using Eth, ERC 20 tokens, BNB, Solana, Matic, in-game tokens such as SLP, VIS, AXS, PGX, and so on for now.
It is true that global companies like Facebook, Epic Games, Ubisoft are betting big on Metaverse and according to Das it is a strategic move as it will benefit the segment significantly. He shared, “But what needs to be clear is the motive and idea behind such associations. The fact that Web3 is trending and decentralisation is being welcomed with open arms should be considered. I feel as long as we have this clarity, there will be room to grow. The small players need not worry in this case. I would also like to highlight the fact that a major factor boosting the growth of Web3 is the community. If the community that you are building is true and supports the gaming segment, then, I believe a project does not need to care about brands and big companies. I say this because I feel that good work and projects can never be overshadowed. They might not be well received in the present but they will be able to garner the deserving attention and support from the people in the future.“
Going forward they plan on being the early movers in the blockchain gaming space as they don’t want to lose out on the opportunity. They know for a fact that the market has a huge potential for growth and they intend to grab on to the right chances! They envision to make MetaMisfits a national brand for a Web3 Guild/Community. Alongside, they also want to spread awareness about NFTs, Blockchain, Web3, NFTs, the Metaverse, and Cryptocurency. They are planning to expand their footprints at the pan India level as well as educate the youth, the elderly, and the upcoming generation and onboard them by being a bridge for them to transcend from Web2 to Web3 smoothly. Furthermore, they also want to build communities exclusively for gamers, artists, developers, actors, and others with the sole aim to create value in the metaverse as well as in real life. They also intend to shift to the DAO model, release NFT projects, and develop a play-to-earn gaming platform in the times ahead!
Here are few FAQs which we asked him to decode about blockchain and metaverse for one and for all:
How will you explain metaverse in layman’s terms?
To explain Metaverse in layman’s terms, basically, it refers to the concept of a virtual world on the internet where everything, or at least most of the applications from real life have been replicated along with an economy for the virtual world. In the Metaverse, every element will have its own avatar which it will use to interact with other elements or aspects.
What is blockchain in gaming? What are the key trends in blockchain in gaming?
Blockchain Gaming is a concept where every transaction that is taking place in the game is recorded in the public ledger which can be accessed and viewed by anyone. Blockchain and NFTs basically distinguish the true ownership for the in-game assets.
As per me, the key trends for blockchain gaming would be NFT, play-to-earn games, metaverse, and DAO. Decentralisation will be the next in-thing in the segment which will actually empower the players to decide the future of the game.
NFT and blockchain will revolutionise the gaming ecosystem in 2022?
I agree that NFT and blockchain will revolutionise the gaming ecosystem this year. We will be seeing more games of Indian origin emerging at the forefront of the global gaming ecosystem. They wouldn’t even have to struggle for funding. They will be community-funded if they are genuine and innovative enough to garner the investors’ interest.
What is noteworthy is that the gaming sector is gradually adopting NFT and blockchain. Hence, we are yet to witness the true potential of NFT and blockchain-based play-to-earn games as this can happen only when the major corporations and brands would be ready to embrace these concepts. As I shared above, NFT and blockchain complement the concept of true ownership and decentralisation and are the long-lost solution to the issue of visibility of ownership.
There are no frameworks available around blockchain gaming and NFT and metaverse. It is completely unregulated. What could be the possible risk factors for users?
The possible risk factor for gamers and users that could be there is that not all projects are going to be successful. There will be scammers and shady projects present in the market which exist simply to deceive you. Hence, it is advisable that you should always conduct a thorough research from your end and have first-hand information of what you are getting into. This will help you seamlessly manage the operations and deal with any inefficiencies or issues that might arise in the future.
According to you, what crypto currency platforms are reliable?
Well, I am inclined towards Binance, CoinDCX, WazirX, and Coinswitch. I have had exceptional experiences with these platforms and I am of the view that all of them are reliable and offer the best. But I also feel that many more exchange platforms such as Defy, Paxful, and others will soon join the league.