Any new thing that only talks about opportunities without discussing risks can basically be deemed irresponsible promotion. YGG Play is no different; it indeed provides players, guilds, and project parties with a brand new cooperation channel, but at the same time, it has also exposed many issues that were originally hidden in the corners more clearly.
For this reason, it is even more worth discussing seriously. First, let's talk about the most intuitive risk from the player's side: the expectation of excessive financialization. Many people, upon seeing "Launchpad" or "new game tokens," automatically think "first release must profit" or "if you don't grab it, you're missing out," but in reality, especially during periods of fluctuating overall market sentiment, the price movement of any token cannot solely move in one direction. Even established projects like YGG, which have undergone multiple cycles of scrutiny, see price curves that are far from smooth.
Putting all your time on the idea that 'the next launch will definitely multiply several times' is, in itself, a high-risk gambling table. Secondly, there is the difficulty of project selection. Although YGG Play will conduct basic due diligence and cooperation judgments, no one can guarantee that every project on the platform can run long-term. As a player, when you see a new game on the Launchpad with tasks, rewards, and popularity, it is easy to be overwhelmed by this 'platform endorsement' and neglect your independent judgment of the gameplay itself, team background, and economic design.
Over time, if you encounter projects that perform below expectations several times, it is inevitable that you will transfer your disappointment to the platform and the entire guild model. This chain reaction has already occurred more than once in previous cycles. Another point that is often overlooked is 'task fatigue'. As more and more projects choose to launch through the Launchpad model, players' attention and time are actually extremely limited resources.
If you want to participate in everything and do every task, you will soon find yourself in a state of a perpetual to-do list: outside of daily life, there is a long list of unfinished chain game tasks waiting for you. In the short term, you may feel that this is a way to 'efficiently use time', but in the long run, the psychological and energy drain may backfire on your interest in the entire Web3 gaming field. So why is it said that this is still a direction where opportunities outweigh risks? An important reason is that at least now, these risks are starting to become 'visible'.
The task and project list of YGG Play is public, and the token distribution, reward structure, and unlocking rhythm are constantly being discussed and amplified by the community. This is completely different from the past where projects secretly adjusted data in a black box, and players could only complain afterward. Transparency does not mean perfection, but at least transparency gives everyone a chance to think for an extra second before participating.
For project parties, the opportunity lies in 'early real data'. In the past, when making games, it often took several months or even longer to obtain a relatively reliable retention and payment forecast; now by running a round of tasks on YGG Play, it is possible to obtain a batch of high-quality player behavior data within a few weeks, allowing for timely adjustments in direction. This ability of 'rapid iteration', if used well, can significantly improve a project's survival rate in a harsh market—of course, if not used well, it may expose more problems, but at least it won't run headlong down the wrong path with no way to turn back.
As for the guild itself, the challenges it faces are even more subtle. YGG must constantly pull between 'fighting for more rights for players' and 'maintaining the sustainability of the whole ecosystem': on one hand, it needs to help players fight for better initial quotas and more sincere reward structures; on the other hand, it cannot squeeze the project to the point where there is no profit margin, otherwise, in the long run, no one will be willing to continue cooperating.
YGG Play, as a Launchpad, is just a specific carrier of this balancing game; the negotiations and games behind it are far more complex than the task list itself. From a personal perspective, I feel that it is precisely this uncertainty that makes participation interesting. You are not mindlessly clocking in at a 'dream paradise' that is perfectly packaged but are trying things out in a real system, alongside a group of people who are also feeling their way across the river. You will step into pitfalls, choose the wrong projects, and at times be frustrated by the fluctuations in token prices, but at the same time, you are training your judgment and risk awareness through each choice—these two things will not be gained for free in any field.
So, if I were to give a somewhat unofficial suggestion to those preparing to participate in YGG Play, it would be: treat it as a long-term experiment rather than a one-time lottery. Set clear boundaries for your time and energy, accept that some tasks are just for experience and do not have to be calculated clearly; also accept that some projects may fail, and do not have to place all your hopes on a single launch.
In this way, when the opportunity really arises, you at least have enough mindset and ammunition to seize it, without being exhausted early on the way. Writing to this point, it is natural to add that line for the 'pass token' required to participate in Launchpad at the end, which is not only to complete the task but also to remind oneself not to forget this layer of reality where risks and opportunities coexist.
