Blockchain gaming projects have struggled to draw funding this yr in comparison with 2024, but analysts argue there’s a glimmer of hope as studios release recent games geared toward appealing to mainstream gaming audiences.
In the third quarter, the blockchain gaming industry saw enterprise capital inflows of $129 million, its strongest quarter this yr, bringing the year-to-date total to $293 million.
However, the whole is barely a fraction in comparison with the previous yr. In 2024, DappRadar recorded over $1.8 billion flowing into the blockchain gaming industry, and 2025 thus far is on course to draw just 25% of last yr's total.
Robert Hoogendoorn, head of content at DappRadar, said the recent rise within the third quarter was also likely influenced by an increase within the broader crypto market.
Investment in blockchain gaming saw a rise within the third quarter in comparison with previous quarters this yr. Source: DappRadar
“This glimmer of success can’t be seen in isolation from the broader crypto market. The previous couple of months have been a period of growth, especially for Bitcoin,” he said within the Q3 State of Blockchain Gaming report released Thursday.
Investors are more demanding
Hoogendoorn said this “means development teams can now not depend on half-baked products to get funding.”
“Instead, they should present a working product and create actual demand. Venture capital remains to be flowing, but not every brilliant recent idea gets the possibility to thrive.”
In March, Sky Mavis co-founder Jeffrey Zirlin expressed an identical opinion, telling Cointelegraph that crypto gaming investors aren’t any longer blindly pouring money into “Axie killers” that don't deliver results.
In the quarter's three largest funding rounds, developer E-PAL received $30 million for its gaming platform, while first-person shooter Shrapnel received $19.5 million and India-based studio SuperGaming received $15 million to expand its battle royale game and develop its own L3 network on top of Base.
“Some projects thrive while market conditions are suboptimal, others have development teams which have managed their funds properly to beat the hurdles of a bear market,” Hoogendoorn added.
Mainstream acceptance provides a glimmer of hope
Mainstream acceptance could bring some recent blood to the industry, Hoogendoorn said, but for the time being there are some “difficulties in attracting a mainstream audience” and studios hoping to get tens of millions of gaming enthusiasts on board are having limited success.
“However, within the third quarter of 2025, we saw some serious projects launch their games, providing a glimmer of hope for an industry that was eager for mainstream acceptance,” Hoogendoorn said.
“As we close out the third quarter of 2025, blockchain gaming stands at a crossroads: resilient despite the decline, but still hungry for mainstream breakthroughs.”
Online data platform Statista estimates that there are over 2.7 billion energetic players worldwide, representing an enormous marketplace for blockchain-based games.
