axie

If you were around during the peak of the Play-to-Earn (P2E) era, you remember what it felt like. It was chaotic, exciting, confusing, and honestly a little unreal. People were quitting jobs, guilds were onboarding tens of thousands of players, and every Web3 conversation ended with, So what’s the next #Axie ?

But as fast as P2E exploded, it became equally clear that something wasn’t sustainable about it. And this is where the industry began to shift toward something more stable, more authentic, and ultimately more aligned with what gamers truly care about: Play-and-Earn (PaE). And no community had a front-row seat to this evolution quite like @Yield Guild Games YGG.

The biggest flaw of early P2E was not that people were earning money. That part was actually beautiful it opened doors for players in emerging markets, gave communities a new source of income, and built a global gaming movement. The real issue was that the earning part overshadowed the playing part. Most of the time, players weren’t joining games because they were fun they were joining because the spreadsheet said the returns looked good. And as soon as the returns dropped? So did the playerbase.

I think this showed us something important if your entire ecosystem depends on continuous new capital flowing into the game, it’s not a game it’s an economic machine pretending to be a game. YGG understood this shift earlier than most. When the P2E bubble began unraveling, they didn’t abandon Web3 gaming they doubled down on the idea that games should be long-term, skill-based, and genuinely entertaining.

That’s where Play-and-Earn comes in. It's not about removing the earning component. It’s about putting earning in its rightful place as a supplement to gameplay, not the backbone of it. PaE rewards the player, not the speculator. It rewards effort, not automation. It encourages ecosystems where players engage because they enjoy the world, not just because they need to meet a daily quota.

YGG has been vocal about this transition. Instead of guilds renting NFTs to scholars for purely economic output, the new model encourages players to choose games they actually like. This seems simple, but it completely changes the incentives. It creates communities instead of workforces. It builds fandom instead of dependency. And it transforms guilds into hubs of education, collaboration, and long-term growth.

The games themselves have evolved too. Early P2E titles were often shallow, repetitive, and designed around tokenomics rather than player experience. But the new wave of Web3 games like Illuvium, Pixels, MetalCore, and Parallel are built with real game design principles. They offer competitive modes, deep mechanics, high-quality lore, and actual fun. The earning component becomes a reward for engagement, not a job.

One of the most underrated elements of this shift is identity. P2E treated players like temporary workers. PaE treats players like community members. That’s why soulbound achievements, reputation systems, on-chain credentials, and long-term progression matter so much. This ties the evolution of PaE directly into the rise of systems like YGG Soul, where players build an identity instead of just extracting value.

Another major factor in the transition is sustainability. P2E economies were almost universally inflationary. Tokens pumped at launch and collapsed as player numbers dropped. Play-and-Earn changes this by focusing on skill-based progression, deflationary sinks, seasonal rewards, limited-supply drops, non-monetary incentives, reputation-based access. This reduces dependence on token prices and gives players reasons to stay even when markets fluctuate.

I think the biggest difference between P2E and PaE is cultural. P2E created a mindset that games owed players money. PaE brings back the idea that players owe games their time because they’re actually enjoyable. When those two mindsets blend fun gameplay plus meaningful rewards you get ecosystems that can last for years instead of months.

YGG’s role in this evolution can’t be overstated. As one of the earliest and largest guilds, their shift in philosophy rippled through the entire industry. Instead of optimizing for yield, they began optimizing for community. Instead of onboarding anyone with a wallet, they started nurturing players who actually care about the game. And instead of chasing quick returns, they focused on education, identity, and long-term participation.

Today the Play-and-Earn movement represents a more mature, more realistic version of the Web3 gaming dream. It’s no longer about chasing #APYs it’s about creating digital worlds where effort, creativity, and skill matter. And if there's one thing the last few years taught us, it’s that the games that survive are the ones people play because they want to, not because they have to, and that’s exactly where Web3 is heading next.

@Yield Guild Games
#YGGPlay
$YGG

The current trading price of #Axie Infinity is at $4.47, following an unsuccessful attempt to surpass the 50-day Exponential Moving Average (EMA), indicating a possible forthcoming decrease in value.
A decrease in price would lead to an additional 2.89 million $AXS being valued below their initial investment, culminating in a situation where 94.4% of investors would experience financial losses.
The primary factor contributing to the stagnant price movement is the inactivity exhibited by Whales, who possess a significant majority of the supply, accounting for 94% of the total.

The price of Axie Infinity has exhibited a downward trajectory since the commencement of the year subsequent to reaching its peak in late January 2023. The stock of AXS has the potential for upward movement, contingent upon a significant shift in the behaviour of a particular cohort from passivity to engagement. This particular group consists of the Whale addresses that have remained inactive for a period of around 17 months.
The price of Axie Infinity is nearing its lowest levels.
The current selling price of Axie Infinity is at $4.47, exhibiting a decline as it has been unable to surpass the 50-day Exponential Moving Average (EMA). As a result, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) declined below the neutral threshold of 50.0, indicating the potential development of a negative momentum. This may potentially trigger a subsequent decrease in the value of the cryptocurrency, causing it to surpass the current year-to-date low of $4.13.

The price of Axie Infinity is gradually approaching new lows in 2023, which may result in a significant majority of investors experiencing a financial loss of over 94%.
In addition to reaching a new bottom for 2023, the price of Axie Infinity is anticipated to decline below $4.00 and regress beneath the established downtrend line. The aforementioned boundary has been violated on a single occasion, namely during the middle of the month of August.
In the event that Axie Infinity price successfully rebounds from both the downtrend line and the $4.13 support line, it may potentially avert a significant decline. Moreover, in the event that the rebound momentum successfully propels AXS over the resistance level denoted at $4.84, it would render the bearish argument worthless, so allowing the cryptocurrency to reach a peak not seen in the last two months.

The likelihood of a successful recovery is minimal.
Currently, a decline towards the support level of $4.13 might have severe consequences for consumers, as a significant portion of the altcoin's supply is currently valued below this threshold. Based on the Global In/Out of the Money (GIOM) analysis, it is estimated that around 2.89 million AXS tokens, with a total value of over $13 million, are at risk of incurring losses.
Based on the measure, the procurement of this product was conducted at an average cost of $4.52, with the minimum recorded buy price being $4.39. If the price falls below this threshold, all available supply would be valued below its acquisition cost, leading to an increase of 1.59k addresses in the group of investors experiencing losses.
Currently, around 93% of AXS holders are not seeing profits. If a further 1.59k addresses were included, this proportion would increase to 94.4%. However, it is intriguing to note that the occurrence of this phenomenon is ultimately determined by the same group of organisms that may potentially experience these detrimental consequences - whales. 
Whale-held AXS addresses presently possess over 255 million tokens, equivalent to a valuation exceeding $1 billion, constituting 94.5% of the total circulating supply. Hence, their behaviours exert a significant influence on the price as well. Nevertheless, these investors have remained vulnerable for a duration of around 17 months.
The transaction volume has exhibited a consistent average of less than $5 million since May 2022, occasionally seeing intermittent increases. The occurrence of these spikes has seen a notable decline since the commencement of the year 2023, and during the course of the preceding nine months, the mean value has decreased to $3 million. 
The dominant ownership of whales in the market has led to a dearth of transactions, so impeding any potential rebound and perpetuating a sustained downward trend in prices. If this trend persists, there is a possibility that the price of Axie Infinity might reach new lows in 2023. Therefore, it is imperative for investors who wish to engage in AXS to closely monitor the trading behaviour of large-scale investors, sometimes referred to as "whales."