Blockchain gaming projects have struggled to attract funding this year compared to 2024, but analysts say there is a glimmer of hope as studios release new games aimed at tapping into the mainstream gaming audience.
In the third quarter, the blockchain gaming industry saw an influx of $129 million in venture capital, its largest quarter this year, bringing the total for the year so far to $293 million.
However, the total is only a fraction compared to last year. In 2024, DappRadar recorded over $1.8 billion entering the blockchain gaming industry, and 2025 is so far on track to attract just 25% of the previous year’s total.
DappRadar chief content officer Robert Hoogendoorn said the recent third-quarter surge was also likely influenced by a surge in the broader crypto market.
“This glimmer of success cannot be seen in isolation from the general crypto market. The last few months have been a period of growth, primarily for Bitcoin,” he said in the State of Blockchain Gaming Q3 report released on Thursday.
Investors are more demanding
Hoogendoorn said this “means development teams can no longer rely on mediocre products to acquire funding.”
“Instead, they need to show a working product and create real demand. Venture capital keeps flowing, but not all brilliant new ideas have the chance to prosper.”
In March, Jeffrey Zirlin, co-founder of Sky Mavis, shared a similar opinion, telling Cointelegraph that crypto gaming investors are no longer blindly throwing funds into “Axie killers” that fail to deliver on their promises.
The three biggest funding rounds of the quarter saw developer E-PAL attract $30 million for its gaming platform, while first-person shooter Shrapnel received $19.5 million and Indian studio SuperGaming secured $15 million to expand its battle royale game and develop its own L3 network on top of Base.
Related: Crypto gaming had a mixed first quarter as transactions increased and investment totals fell: DappRadar
“Some projects thrive despite market conditions not being optimal, others have development teams that have managed their funds properly to overcome the obstacles of a bear market,” Hoogendoorn added.
Mainstream adoption brings a glimmer of hope
Mainstream adoption could bring new blood to the industry, Hoogendoorn said, but so far there have been “difficulties attracting a mainstream audience,” and studios hoping to onboard millions of video game enthusiasts have had limited success.
“However, during the third quarter of 2025, we saw reputable projects launch their games, creating a glimmer of hope for an industry yearning for mainstream acceptance,” Hoogendoorn said.
“As we close the third quarter of 2025, blockchain gaming finds itself at a crossroads: resilient amid contraction, but hungry for mainstream breakthroughs.
Online data platform Statista estimates that there are more than 2.7 billion active gamers worldwide, representing a massive market for blockchain-based games.
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