{"id":465850,"date":"2022-06-20T18:01:00","date_gmt":"2022-06-20T15:01:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/scams-in-gamefi-how-to-identify-toxic-nft-gaming-projects\/"},"modified":"2022-06-20T18:01:00","modified_gmt":"2022-06-20T15:01:00","slug":"scams-in-gamefi-how-to-identify-toxic-nft-gaming-projects","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/scams-in-gamefi-how-to-identify-toxic-nft-gaming-projects\/","title":{"rendered":"# Scams in GameFi: How to identify toxic NFT gaming projects"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a3db8501587b\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a3db8501587b\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/scams-in-gamefi-how-to-identify-toxic-nft-gaming-projects\/#%E2%80%9D_Scams_in_GameFi_How_to_identify_toxic_NFT_gaming_projects_%E2%80%9C\" >&#8221; Scams in GameFi: How to identify toxic NFT gaming projects  &#8220;<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-2' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/scams-in-gamefi-how-to-identify-toxic-nft-gaming-projects\/#How_do_NFTs_fit_into_gaming\" >How do NFTs fit into gaming?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/scams-in-gamefi-how-to-identify-toxic-nft-gaming-projects\/#How_to_spot_a_scam_game\" >How to spot a scam game?<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/scams-in-gamefi-how-to-identify-toxic-nft-gaming-projects\/#The_projects_team\" >The project\u2019s team<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/scams-in-gamefi-how-to-identify-toxic-nft-gaming-projects\/#Reviews_on_professional_platforms\" >Reviews on professional platforms<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/scams-in-gamefi-how-to-identify-toxic-nft-gaming-projects\/#Projects_on_social_networks\" >Projects on social networks<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/scams-in-gamefi-how-to-identify-toxic-nft-gaming-projects\/#Smart_contract\" >Smart contract<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/scams-in-gamefi-how-to-identify-toxic-nft-gaming-projects\/#Future_income_of_the_project\" >Future income of the project<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-9\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/scams-in-gamefi-how-to-identify-toxic-nft-gaming-projects\/#Network_marketing\" >Network marketing\u00a0<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h1><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"%E2%80%9D_Scams_in_GameFi_How_to_identify_toxic_NFT_gaming_projects_%E2%80%9C\"><\/span>&#8221; Scams in GameFi: How to identify toxic NFT gaming projects  &#8220;<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/images.cointelegraph.com\/images\/840_aHR0cHM6Ly9zMy5jb2ludGVsZWdyYXBoLmNvbS91cGxvYWRzLzIwMjItMDYvODNhMjc2ODMtYTc5OS00MTA1LTgyNTctNjI2MGUxNjg4MzdjLmpwZw==.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"post-content\" data-v-2a0745c6>Over the last couple of years, <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/game\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"7\" title=\"Game\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">game<\/a>s using blockchain <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/technology\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"4\" title=\"Technology\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">technology<\/a> have been actively developing and attracting new players, and the decentralized games market \u2014 broadly referred to as GameFi \u2014 has gained great popularity.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The GameFi industry started back in 2013, and since then, the sphere has been slowly developing, but in 2021 the popularity of decentralized games exploded along with the boom in nonfungible tokens (NFT). According to the D<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>Radar analytical service, the total value of one of the most popular blockchain-based games, Axie Infinity, exceeds $550 million.<\/p>\n<p>But the GameFi industry has its issues. Many projects often \u201claunch\u201d regardless of the game\u2019s development stage.<\/p>\n<p>And while Bitcoin\u2019s (BTC) price trend can enhance or weaken the success of GameFi projects, there isn\u2019t necessarily a direct correlation.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Despite the bear market, the price of many GameFi tokens is growing today due to their NFT component as investors aim to make money on the resale of in-game heroes and digital items, rather than concentrating on the improvement of game mechanics.<\/p>\n<p>When choosing a GameFi project, it is worth considering the marketing and technological component: How actively the project is promoted, and what benefits the project\u2019s token bestows upon its participants.<\/p>\n<p>However, one needs to be wary about pie-in-the-sky promises from GameFi token projects, as scams abound within the space.<\/p>\n<p>One of the biggest GameFi scandals was in the fall of 2021 when the Squid cryptocurrency based on the <em>Squid Game<\/em> show collapsed to almost zero after rising to $2,800. <\/p>\n<p>The token, which was based on but not affiliated with the Netflix <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/watch-movies-tv-seriess\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"8\" title=\"Watch Movies &amp; TV Series\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">series<\/a> <em>Squid Game<\/em>, first appeared in October 2021. It was a crypto game that would consist of six rounds, similar to the rounds of deadly competition in the series\u2019 plot. <\/p>\n<p>To participate in each round, users needed to pay with Squid Tokens. The game was scheduled to launch in November. Developers would receive 10% of the funds raised, and the winners of the game 90%. At the time of the token\u2019s release, users noted that it was impossible to sell the purchased currency. <\/p>\n<p>Furthermore, observers started to grow suspicious when it was discovered that there had been no official connection between the token, Netflix and the authors of the series, so they began to warn users about a possible scam. When such warnings became widespread, the scammers promptly withdrew all the money. According to several reports, the scammers made away with $3.38 million in total.<\/p>\n<p>The leaders of the \u201cclassic\u201d gaming industry are highly suspicious GameFi and tend to avoid the industry altogether, which is a sign for users to be cautious. Gabe Newell, CEO of Valve \u2014 one of the biggest video game developers in the United States \u2014 in February 2022 commented on his firm\u2019s decision to <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gamespot.com\/articles\/gabe-newell-comments-on-crypto-nfts-its-more-about-the-bad-actors-and-less-the-technology\/1100-6501073\/\" data-amp=\"https:\/\/www-gamespot-com.cdn.ampproject.org\/c\/s\/www.gamespot.com\/amp-articles\/gabe-newell-comments-on-crypto-nfts-its-more-about-the-bad-actors-and-less-the-technology\/1100-6501073\/\">stay away<\/a> from the GameFi sector. <\/p>\n<p>Newell claimed that games with NFT and blockchain mechanics are \u201csuperficial and sketchy\u201d and that NFT creators and projects are \u201cnot people you really are wanting to do business with.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>Newell added that there are purportedly rampant instances of fraud within the NFT sector, stating that due to the volatility of token prices, players don\u2019t even understand when and what to buy.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Recent:\u00a0Elusive Bitcoin ETF: Hester Peirce criticizes lack of legal clarity for crypto<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney joined his colleague earlier this month by calling the Fortnite Token a scam and stating that the company is preparing legal action to shut it down. However, the creators of Fortnite Token responded by describing it as a fan-made project with no specific owner or company behind it. Fortnite Token first appeared in late 2021 and, without a doubt, was trying to tie into Epic\u2019s mega-hit battle royale game.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_do_NFTs_fit_into_gaming\"><\/span>How do NFTs fit into gaming?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>To understand GameFi, one should get acquainted with NFTs and their integration with smart contracts. An NFT is an asset whose digital receipt is placed in the blockchain.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The smart contract is associated with the NFT. This sounds serious and professional; although, in reality, it is just a small piece of code. And this little piece of code can be anything, including a link that leads to a JPEG file stored on a central server. Indeed, the lion\u2019s share of NFTs presently is just that. <\/p>\n<p>A smart contract, which is used to \u201cmanipulate\u201d an NFT object between games, is not a multifunctional tool. It doesn\u2019t include a model, textures, description, sound, animation, etc. so that an item or character can be easily transferred from one title to another. Thus, for the integration between two games to work, these games must be built, run and maintained through a single infrastructure or gaming engine. Such integrations currently don\u2019t exist in the gaming industry.<\/p>\n<p>Furthermore, an NFT game can work only if it has a large pool of users with its own economy, where players can buy and sell in-game items in the form of NFTs. However, a lot of traditional games already have such economies. <\/p>\n<p>For example, Eve Online sells and buys ships for real money, while Counter Strike: Global Offensive is pushing skins for the price of apartments and cars. In <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/general\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"3\" title=\"General\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">general<\/a>, NFTs themselves have no value, and it is the task of the NFT owner to convince users that their assets are worth real money.<\/p>\n<p>It turns out that even if the developers of a particular game do not want to deceive the players, but really develop their project, they need to convince users of the uniqueness, freshness and point of interest of their project, and this is extremely rare.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_to_spot_a_scam_game\"><\/span>How to spot a scam game?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>NFT scam games are often large-scale and premeditated. Most investors in such projects are not experts but beginners, and scammers take advantage of and lure inexperienced users with the help of advertisements and beautiful sites. Users should, therefore, pay close attention to several details (explained below).<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_projects_team\"><\/span>The project\u2019s team<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Developers of professional projects always have accumulated experience. Their biographies can be easily found on the internet, with a track record of how successful their past ideas were.<\/p>\n<p>However, there are many serious projects in GameFi that are launched by anonymous teams. Little information can be found about them because they are hidden behind nicknames or pseudonyms. <\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Reviews_on_professional_platforms\"><\/span>Reviews on professional platforms<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>When studying a project, one should never rely on advertising slogans. It is better to read reviews about them on independent professional platforms. The blockchain community quickly responds to the emergence of new projects. Within a few hours, any idea will be analyzed from all sides.<\/p>\n<p>But scammers have adapted and figured out how to deceive users. Some teams shill projects by writing positive reviews about the company on third-party sites. They pre-register several hundreds of accounts on large forums under the guise of real users. When a command is given, they send the text prepared according to the training manual. So, investors can\u2019t rely on reviews alone.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Projects_on_social_networks\"><\/span>Projects on social networks<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Be sure to look through the <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">social<\/a> networks of the project and pay attention to the number of people involved by their activity in chats and comments and the nature of the messages. There are no secret projects without users.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Smart_contract\"><\/span>Smart contract<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>The easiest way to check the project\u2019s smart contracts is to use such resources as Etherscan or BscScan. The block explorers will provide you with information about when the project was created, brought to the market, how many users it has, and how many tokens were issued.\u00a0<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Future_income_of_the_project\"><\/span>Future income of the project<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Every project is created to make money, and it is important to understand where the added value will come from. A person shouldn\u2019t invest until they understand the source of a project\u2019s profit.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Network_marketing\"><\/span>Network marketing\u00a0<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>There are many GameFi projects that are built on a multilevel marketing (MLM) system. This is similar to classic network marketing, which isn\u2019t a scam in and of itself. A large number of good projects have used MLM to attract new users, but if the project has no source of income other than network marketing, then it is likely a scam. In addition to MLM, there must be value-added mechanisms. Real projects can\u2019t unreasonably promise users huge percentages of profits.<\/p>\n<p>From games to piggy banks: Educating the Bitcoin \u2018minors\u2019 of the future<strong><em>Recent:\u00a0From games to piggy banks: Educating the Bitcoin \u2018minors\u2019 of the future<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Ethan McMahon, an economist at Chainalysis, told Cointelegraph that one should pay attention to the links that appear on a project\u2019s website:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cScam projects like Squid Game often start with just a white paper, a landing page and a token listing on a major crypto exchange. They may tout fake partnerships, non-existent employees, and\/or 3D renderings stolen or purchased pre-made. Other potential red flags include typos and broken links. Of course, it\u2019s also worth checking out whether you can actually play the game. If not, it could be a pump-and-dump or rug-pull scheme.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Although the NFT gaming market is indeed overvalued, NFTs as an investment have yet to reach their potential. NFTs need to be understood more broadly rather than believing they are mere items you receive after countless hours of grinding. The negative bias toward NFT games among skeptics was formed precisely against the backdrop of volatile trading in assets with no clear use case. <\/p>\n<p>NFTs can and should have intrinsic value. In order for the NFT market to mature, a strong link to real assets and services is needed.<\/p>\n<p>Pedro Herrera, head of research at DappRadar<strong>,<\/strong> believes the future of crypto gaming is bright, hinting that it might move on without NFTs:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cIn my perspective, blockchain games will be massive, but we are still a couple of years away from seeing an actual mass adoption event. Traditional gaming is a $60-billion industry where people spend around $20 billion per year on game purchases like wearables, guns and skins. When the first blockchain AAA game combines a good gaming experience with crypto assets, we\u2019ll see traditional gamers, purists turn their attention to blockchain games. And also, there is the Web3 metaverse where MMORPGs will become a predominant way of socializing and playing. So, the future of blockchain games is bullish. As for scams, there will probably be a couple, but it is more common to see them in NFTs.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><template data-name=\"subscription_form\" data-type=\"nifty_newsletter\"><\/template><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News<\/a> articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/general\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">General category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/cointelegraph.com\/news\/scams-in-gamefi-how-to-identify-toxic-nft-gaming-projects\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8221; Scams in GameFi: How to identify toxic NFT gaming projects &#8220; Over the last couple of years, games using blockchain technology have been actively developing and attracting new players, and the decentralized games market \u2014 broadly referred to as GameFi \u2014 has gained great popularity.\u00a0 The GameFi industry started back in 2013, and since&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":465851,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/images.cointelegraph.com\/images\/1200_aHR0cHM6Ly9zMy5jb2ludGVsZWdyYXBoLmNvbS91cGxvYWRzLzIwMjItMDYvODNhMjc2ODMtYTc5OS00MTA1LTgyNTctNjI2MGUxNjg4MzdjLmpwZw==.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[74867,95118,74355,80,10751],"class_list":["post-465850","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general","tag-altcoin","tag-nft","tag-adoption","tag-games","tag-gaming"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/465850","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=465850"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/465850\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/465851"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=465850"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=465850"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=465850"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}