The crypto and NFT gaming space is busier than ever lately, what with prominent games starting to release, token airdrops piling up, and a seemingly constant array of other things happening at all times. It’s a lot to take in!
Luckily, Decrypt’s GG is all over it. And if you need a quick way to get caught up on the latest moves around crypto video games, we’re happy to present This Week in Crypto Games.
Our weekend roundup serves up the biggest news from the past week, along with a few other tidbits you might have missed. We also showcase a few of our original stories from the week.
Biggest news
Hamster Kombat airdrop date set: Leading tap-to-earn Telegram game Hamster Kombat announced Wednesday via its official channel that it will launch its long-awaited HMSTR token on The Open Network (TON) on September 26 and hold its airdrop for players on the same date.
The token was originally set for a July rollout, but was delayed due to additional planning needed for such a large-scale drop. Hamster Kombat has attracted more than 300 million players since launching this spring, the team said in July, and data from Telegram shows more than 80 million active players over the past month.
But the airdrop announcement came amid two hours-long spurts of downtime for TON last week due to demand over another airdrop—one with a much smaller audience than Hamster Kombat. Can TON handle the Hamster Kombat launch? Developers from both TON and the Hamster Kombat team discussed the challenge with Decrypt's GG.
Telegram Game 'Hamster Kombat' Reveals Token Launch, Airdrop in September
Hamster Kombat, the leading tap-to-earn game on Telegram, announced Wednesday via its official channel that it will launch its long-awaited HMSTR token on The Open Network (TON) on September 26 and hold its airdrop for players on the same date. The token was originally set for a July rollout, but was delayed due to additional planning needed for such a large-scale drop. Hamster Kombat has attracted more than 300 million players since launching this spring, the team said in July, and data from Te...
And Rocky Rabbit too: Hamster Kombat wasn't the only anticipated game to announced airdrop details last week. The rising Telegram game Rocky Rabbit, which twists the Hamster Kombat formula with a fitness theme, plans to drop its own token on TON on September 23.
Are they launching before Hamster Kombat to avoid getting lost in the hype? Perhaps. Whatever the case, the RabBitcoin (RBTC) token is another big one for Telegram gamers in September.
Here Are Today’s ‘Rocky Rabbit’ Enigma and SuperSet Daily Combo Solutions
Editor's note: Rocky Rabbit has paused its gameplay until September 24, when the "new Rocky Rabbit era" is set to begin. As such, there are currently no SuperSet combos or enigma puzzle solutions to update this story with. Rocky Rabbit is a rapidly rising Telegram tap-to-earn game that riffs on the premise of hits like Notcoin and Hamster Kombat. In this case, the tapping is augmented by a bodybuilding and combat vibe, where you’ll unlock fitness and skill upgrades ahead of an apparent battle mo...
Forgotten Runiverse beta begins: Ronin-based massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) Forgotten Runiverse entered open beta on Monday, with the move positioned as a significant step forward in the franchise’s quest to become a household name.
“I see this open beta as our first real coming out party,” Bearsnake, pseudonymous co-founder and COO of Forgotten Runes—the broader universe which Forgotten Runiverse falls under—told Decrypt’s GG. “The biggest swing for the IP to date is this open beta. It's going to be the thing that we really hang our hat on.”
Forgotten Runiverse Open Beta Billed as 'Coming Out Party' for Ethereum Franchise
Ronin-based massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) Forgotten Runiverse is entering open beta on Monday, with the move positioned as a significant step forward in the franchise’s quest to become a household name. “I see this open beta as our first real coming out party,” Bearsnake, pseudonymous co-founder and COO of Forgotten Runes—the broader universe which Forgotten Runiverse falls under—told Decrypt’s GG. “The biggest swing for the IP to date is this open beta. It's going to b...
NFL Rivals new season: Officially licensed mobile football game from Mythical Games, NFL Rivals, announced that its second season will launch on September 5 alongside the kickoff of the National Football League (NFL).
Its second season, called "Year 2," will introduce new game modes, “distinctive” pack drops, and new ways for fans to engage with the sport. John Linden, CEO of Mythical Games, told Decrypt's GG that he believes the new PvP mode will be the “biggest upgrade” to the game since the introduction of the in-game NFT marketplace.
New NFL Rivals Season Adds 'Biggest Upgrade' Since NFT Marketplace
NFL Rivals, an officially licensed mobile football game from Mythical Games, announced Friday that its second in-game season will launch on September 5 alongside the real-world season kickoff of the National Football League (NFL). Mythical Games said that the mobile game attracted over 5 million downloads and more than 115 million games played in its first season. Its second season, called "Year 2," will introduce new game modes, “distinctive” pack drops, and new ways for fans to engage with the...
ICYMI
- GameStop’s stock jumped after the retailer announced it would lean into selling retro games via new stores.
- Telegram game X Empire announced it will burn inactive users’ coins before the airdrop.
- The NFL players union, the NFLPA, sued DraftKings on Monday over its abandoned NFT fantasy game.
- Esports team Complexity announced its plan to build fan app as part of a deal with Sonic Labs.
Esports Team Complexity to Build Fan App on Sonic in Sponsorship Deal
Complexity, a prominent and long-running North American esports organization, has announced a multifaceted sponsorship deal with blockchain company Sonic Labs, the firm behind the upcoming Sonic layer-1 network. Sonic Labs will become Complexity's exclusive blockchain sponsor, with its branding set to be added to team jerseys. The collaboration is built around fan engagement, including sponsorship of streamed Counter-Strike 2 tournaments and community game night events. Additionally, Complexity—...
- Crypto gaming network Oasys secured funding from Japanese financial giant SBI Holdings.
- An official PGA Tour Web3 game was announced and is set for release in 2026.
- Play-to-earn RPG card game Legend of Arcadia raised $4 million in a seed funding round.
- Trial Extreme game developer Gameplay Galaxy announced a $11 million funding round.
- Blowfish Studios' game Darktimes will launch on Sui in a team-up with Mysten Labs.
- MapleStory Universe developer Nexon revealed its Nexpace (NEXP) token protocol.
GG spotlight
Here are a few of our original stories from this past week that we think are well worth a weekend read:
Can TON Even Handle the 'Hamster Kombat' Telegram Game Airdrop?
Telegram tap-to-earn game players got exciting news this week, as the developers of viral crypto game Hamster Kombat announced that the HMSTR token launch is now set for September 26 on The Open Network (TON), following a delay from the original target of July. But that announcement was couched by plenty of less appealing news around the network. Last weekend, Telegram co-founder and CEO Pavel Durov was arrested in France, prompting a price plunge for TON plus uncertainty around the Telegram-lin...
Ethereum Gaming Network Geist Is Members-Only to Prevent 'Industrial Farming'
Pixelcraft Studios, the company behind crypto game Aavegotchi, is creating a “members-only” Ethereum layer-3 gaming network called Geist, built with the scaling tech of both Arbitrum and Base. The move comes as the company fears that “industrial farming” is an issue preventing real players from enjoying crypto gaming. “A lot of crypto games are farms,” the pseudonymous CEO and founder of Pixelcraft Studios, Coder Dan, told Decrypt, “[and] there’s nothing wrong with a farmer.” “But the problem is...
‘Ragnarok: Monster World’ Beta Teases a Sharp Ethereum Riff on ‘Clash Royale’
The first “closed beta test” for Ragnarok: Monster World—a mobile game based on the popular Ragnarok Online role-playing franchise—isn’t very closed after all. But it is pretty fun. Built with optional NFT assets on Ethereum gaming network Ronin, Ragnarok: Monster World delivers a simple, streamlined strategy experience for iOS and Android that’s more than a little bit reminiscent of Supercell’s mobile smash, Clash Royale. Getting into the weeklong beta test doesn’t require ownership of NFTs, no...
Crypto's Hamster Obsession Gets a New Fix: Betting on Rodent Car Races
Every day in crypto seems to bring a new race to capture the attention and coins of the world’s degen traders—many of whom have an apparently insatiable desire for the next sufficiently amusing, ridiculous, or grotesque premise on which to spend their collective billions. Now, a newly organized betting platform is hoping to entice those gamblers with something they (hopefully) haven’t seen before: wagers on real hamsters, racing in real (plastic) cars, streamed in high definition with live comme...
What Is 'MemeFi'? The Telegram Tap-to-Earn Game and Sui Airdrop Details
When it comes to tap-to-earn games on Telegram, finding any kind of originality isn’t easy. But MemeFi actually puts a unique twist on the formula. It is essentially the same at its core as many other Telegram games, in that you tap on the screen to earn virtual currency. However, this time there is more of a point, as every time you tap you take a small amount of health off the meme-inspired boss you have to take down. There’s the usual suspects you would expect to tap on, with versions of Pep...
Edited by Andrew Hayward
