Summary

“Play and Earn” games allow users to mine or collect cryptocurrencies and NFTs that can be sold on the market. By playing the game regularly, each player can earn more items or tokens, which the user sells and earns income from. Some players even regard these blockchain games as their own income subsidy or even their entire source of income. However, this type of activity is risky, as you usually need to make an initial investment to purchase characters and items before you can experience the game.

Blockchain helps ensure the collectability of these items and creates an efficient digital economy. Blockchain technology and NFTs can create digital products that cannot be copied. This gives rise to the concept of digital scarcity.

To cash out, you need to deposit your NFT or cryptocurrency into the NFT market or an exchange like Binance. It's unlikely that you'll be able to exchange it directly for fiat, so it's a good idea to sell it first for a stablecoin.

Once you sell your NFT or token, you can exchange your stablecoin for the fiat currency of your choice and cash out using available channels in your country. Another option is to use stablecoins with cryptocurrency cards such as the Binance Visa Card.

Introduction

From trading simple non-fungible token (NFT) collectibles such as Cryptokitties ), blockchain games have gone through a long development process. Now you have the opportunity to earn money by playing crypto games, even if you don’t have the rarest NFTs in your wallet.

The idea sounds appealing because video games rarely give players the opportunity to sell digital assets for real-life gains. With this new “play and earn” model, users can now make money in the crypto world.

What is a "play and earn" game?

The "Play and Earn" game allows players to earn a steady stream of cryptocurrency income just by playing the game. The mechanics of each game may vary, but rewards typically come from staking, mining the game’s currency, or generating tradable NFT items. In earlier blockchain games, users mainly relied on random chance to make profits. However, "play and earn" games have created an in-game economy and business model where players can earn income through games.

Axie Infinity on the Ethereum blockchain is a famous example. The game combines traditional video game elements and gameplay with a new blockchain game mode. For example, Axie Infinity offers adventure modes, PvP battles, and tournaments—common in the traditional gaming industry. The game is available for Windows, Android, Mac OS and iOS platforms.

How does the "Play and Earn" game work?

Due to the combination of gaming and finance, "play and earn" games belong to the GameFi category. Each game offers a variety of monetary incentives to entice players to experience and progress. As mentioned above, it is often a grinding aspect to repeat specific actions that allow users to earn income through two main ways:

1. Earn in-game cryptocurrency. One example is Axie Infinity's Smooth Love Potion (SLP), which players can obtain by completing daily tasks or fighting monsters and players.

2. Earn or trade in-game NFT. Each NFT may represent an in-game item, character, or other collectible. Depending on the game, these items may be purely decorative, or they may serve an in-game use or purpose.

There is also a third option for earning money through "play and earn" games: betting. Some NFT games allow users to lock NFTs or cryptocurrencies in smart contracts, thereby generating rewards. For example, staking MBOX tokens will provide users with MOMO NFT blind box rewards. Each reward contains a random NFT of varying rarity, which can then be sold on the secondary market. However, to earn significant staking rewards, you will need a very large initial deposit.

How does blockchain technology ensure the security of "play and earn" games?

"Play and earn money" is not a new thing. Many online games (usually massively multiplayer online role-playing games) have fiat-based auction houses or secondary markets maintained by gold miners. For cryptocurrency games, the key difference is that these currencies and items exist on the blockchain. Several properties of blockchain make it easy to prove ownership, legitimacy, and rarity.

You can think of a blockchain network as an immutable database. It is maintained by a distributed network of computers (users), each of which holds a copy of the blockchain data. This means it is nearly impossible for any individual to change, copy or delete blockchain data.

As a result, blockchain games are developed in a way that prevents fraud or corruption such as item duplication, coin hacking, and other vulnerabilities that are common in traditional games. An important factor in determining the value of an in-game item is its rarity. There is no copy and paste on the blockchain. If an item is unique, it cannot be copied. This helps create real value for in-game items.

How much money can people make from "earn while playing" games?

Games are generally not known for rewarding regular users with money. It may be difficult for you to understand that ordinary players can earn income from blockchain games. In fact, many people are making a living through crypto games like Axie Infinity, especially in developing countries.

Mining provides a more stable source of income, and your earnings will be proportional to your skill and game time. This method of mining has proven popular in the Philippines, a country where Axie Infinity has even become an alternative to unemployment benefits. Depending on the market price and game time, players can earn between $200 and $1,000 per month by mining SLP. Mining returns are generally lower than those from trading NFT creatures and items, but are much safer for anyone who needs a regular income.

For games like "Axie Infinity", you can even use NFTs (Axies) to create new NFTs. However, you cannot accurately predict the value of a newly bred Axie. As of October 2021, the most expensive Axie (angel) was sold for $131,970 on November 7, 2020, and is now priced at 3,000 ETH. While these numbers sound enticing, due to their random nature, it's difficult to predict the average revenue of players selling "play and earn" games.

How to start experiencing the "play and earn" game?

Each "play and earn" game places different demands on new players. At the very least, you will need a crypto wallet like MetaMask or Binance Chain Wallet to store your cryptocurrencies and connect them to the game.

You may also need to make an initial investment in the game, such as setting up a team of characters or purchasing items used in the game. The digital crypto economy is generally not a "free lunch."

As of October 2021, Axie Infinity requires an initial investment of approximately $600 to purchase 3 Axies. While this cost can be recouped after just a few months of playing the game, it still creates a barrier to entry.

Another option is to pursue what is called a "scholarship", where you can borrow an Axie from another player for free and then share the proceeds with that player (i.e. the manager). In other words, a portion of your earnings will be given to players who provide "scholarships." Once you create your initial team and complete daily tasks and challenges, you will begin steadily earning SLP, an ERC-20 that can be traded on Binance and other crypto exchanges.

How to cash out the benefits of "play and earn" games?

When playing NFT games, we mentioned that there are two main options for earning income: finding NFTs and selling them, or playing games regularly and receiving a steady stream of in-game cryptocurrency.

These events will bring you NFTs, tokens, or both to sell on the secondary market. Depending on the specific cryptocurrencies and items you own, you can sell your NFTs and tokens on Binance. You can easily add Ethereum and Binance Smart Chain (BSC) NFTs to the Binance NFT Market, but you’ll need to check if Binance lists the non-fungible token you want to sell in your country. You will also need to verify your account by completing the KYC process.

Cash out cryptocurrencies from "Play and Earn" games

To cash out tokens like SLP or SAND, you need a trading platform with tradable trading pairs provides you with the cryptocurrency you earn from "play and earn" games. If you want to use your earnings in real life, you also need to consider whether you can exchange the tokens for fiat currencies (such as USD and EUR) and withdraw them to your bank account. Another option is to use a cryptocurrency card to spend your cryptocurrencies (such as the Binance Visa Card).

You can also convert your earnings into stablecoins, but converting them to fiat currency requires completing an additional step. Storing your funds in a token like BUSD is more stable than storing it in a volatile token like SLP, SAND, or Bitcoin (BTC). Let's look at a quick example:

You've managed to earn some SAND by playing The Sandbox, and now you want to sell it. To cash out your SAND, you first need to deposit them into your Binance account.

1. If you are using MetaMask or another cryptocurrency wallet, you can copy the deposit address to the sending wallet to transfer cryptocurrency tokens. Don’t forget, you’ll need to pay the fees in cryptocurrency, such as Binance Coin (BNB) on Binance Smart Chain or ETH on the external network.

2. Then, in the trading platform view, select the appropriate SAND trading pair to trade. SAND/BUSD is a good choice because BUSD can be easily converted to fiat currency and can be used to lock in your earnings.

3. Next, sell your SAND using any order type you prefer. In this example, we use a market order, but you can also use a limit order or a limit-take-profit-stop-loss order.

4. Now you will have BUSD, which can be converted to fiat currency on BUSD markets such as EUR/BUSD. Once you've sold for fiat, you can withdraw cash from Binance, the specifics will vary depending on the country you live in and the methods available. You can find more information on our FAQ page.

Cash out NFTs from the "Play and Earn" game

If you have earned in-game NFT items and collectibles in the "Play and Earn" game, you need to NFT trading platform to trade to cash out your gains. The Binance NFT Market has a deposit feature that allows you to sell your NFTs directly on Binance. You can also use decentralized exchanges as long as your NFT is compatible with them.

1. To sell your NFT on Binance, please create or log in to your Binance account. You need to make sure your NFT is in a Wallet Connect compatible wallet, such as Metamask. You also need to complete KYC verification.

2. Next, go to the Binance NFT homepage, click [User Center], and then click [Deposit].

3. Depending on the network your NFT is on, select BSC or ETH. You will then see the address to which you need to send the NFT.

For more detailed instructions, see How to Deposit NFTs to Binance. Once you import an NFT, you can then sell it in a variety of different cryptocurrencies via auction or fixed-price formats. BUSD is a good choice when setting up a sale as it has low volatility and can be easily converted to fiat currency. See how to sell NFTs on Binance NFT Market to find a method that works for you.

Tax Implications

If you decide to cash out your earnings using Binance, there are several options available to you, depending on your country and local regulations. However, it is important that you review the tax implications of any trading platform you use to cash out. You may also be in a legal jurisdiction that affects the legality of cryptocurrency, so always conduct your own due diligence.

Summary

Earning income using cryptocurrencies On the other hand, the "play and earn" game is a new development. As with most new projects and ideas, you usually need to be ahead of everyone else to get the most out of them. However, "play and earn" games allow players to earn money. But you should always be cautious as many games can be highly risky and unsustainable due to poor token economics or even fraud.

If you want to explore GameFi and earn more through "play and earn" games, head to the Binance NFT page. Games such as "MOBOX" and "My Neighbor Alice" regularly launch NFT blind boxes, which contain NFTs available in the game world and can help you play the game.