Published on: 15/12/2022
ZEBEDEE survey reveals gamers positive about Web3, crypto
A survey by ZEBEDEE, the leading Fintech and payment processor for the gaming industry, has suggested that gamers are supportive or neutral about integrating Web3 technology and crypto into gaming.
The company conducted the ZEBEDEE Blockchain Gaming Survey in late September 2022 to study more than 1,000 U.S. responders who engaged in gaming activities regularly. Overall, the result revealed that most U.S. gamers are all right with Web3 technologies that can transfer in-game assets for exchange or sale with other players, contradicting the rumor that gamers were against cryptocurrencies and Web3 technology.
According to ZEBEDEE CFO Ben Cousens, there was a misconception that gamers were primarily anti-crypto, and the survey proved the opposite. Most gamers have not even played play-and-earn games with real financial rewards. Cousens said it could be an opportunity to attract them to the play-and-earn ecosystem.
“What struck us most from the survey findings was that there’s clearly a misperception about gamers and their resistance to crypto integration, as most gamers actually have a positive-to-neutral opinion on crypto rewards in game,” Cousens said.
“Further, despite the bulk of industry attention being focused on NFTs, we found that Bitcoin stands out as the most popular decentralized asset among gamers when compared against other cryptocurrencies, including NFTs.”
Blockchain and NFT gaming companies have raised more than $3 billion in investments throughout the first three quarters of 2022. However, there have been some negative sentiments regarding the technologies. ZEBEDEE conducted the Blockchain Gaming Survey to raise awareness and improve perceptions about blockchain-gaming technologies and cryptocurrencies.
Survey results
According to the survey, gamers who know about Web3 technologies and cryptocurrencies tend to be crypto owners. Around 60 percent of gamers hold some crypto assets, and 55 percent do not own any cryptocurrencies.
Gamers do not perceive cryptocurrencies equally. The survey showed Bitcoin appeals more to gamers than newer tokens and NFTs. Bitcoin is favored by 25 percent of the respondents, followed by Ethereum at 18 percent and Dogecoin at 14 percent. Most gamers are more interested in earning Bitcoin than NFTs.
The survey also showed how long gamers generally engage in gaming activities every week. The previously mentioned 60 percent of gamers who hold crypto assets play 15 hours or more. More than 50 percent spend 10-14 hours, 46 percent play 5-9 hours, and 32 percent play less than four hours.
Almost 70 percent of gamers said they were interested in free games if they could earn cryptocurrencies as rewards. Half the respondents said that the ability to sell or trade video game assets easily, like characters and items, would be beneficial.
Although most participants were positive, around 10 percent of gamers still have negative perspectives about integrating Web3 and crypto into gaming. Nineteen percent said the two aspects would make the games feel more business-driven. Twenty-three percent said the ability to sell video game assets would negatively impact their gaming experience.
The survey also showed that 32 percent of gamers had no opinion on the matter, and 38 percent said they had no information about cryptocurrencies, NFTs and blockchain technologies.
