To infinity and back: Inside Axie’s disastrous year

Teaser from the restofworld newsletter:

Created by the Vietnamese company Sky Mavis, the NFT game Axie Infinity launched using a “play-to-earn” model, rewarding players with cryptocurrency. These cryptocurrency tokens can be exchanged for real money. At its peak in 2021, some Axie players were making as much as $2,000 a month, turning the game into a viable way of making an income. It was especially popular in the Philippines, Vietnam, and Venezuela, where players found that they could earn more with Axie than with their day jobs. Getting started required an investment, but this initial investment could be quickly recuperated — as long as the Axie ecosystem kept growing. But when the broader NFT and crypto market slowed, players started leaving Axie, and the token price crashed. Some gamers in developing countries had invested far more than they could afford to lose. One player in Vietnam told us his family could lose its house: “My wife cried a lot. I feel sorry for my wife and children. … It’s my fault. I hate myself and also hate Sky Mavis.” Then, things for Axie Infinity went from bad to worse: the game was hacked for $620 million — the largest heist in crypto history.