Remember the thrill of classic gaming? Well, get ready for a blast from the past because Sega’s beloved trading card game, Code of Joker: Evolutions, is making a grand return! And this time, it’s stepping into the future on the Sui blockchain.

Anthony Palma, the head of gaming partnerships at Mysten Labs, shared some insightful thoughts with Web3 Gamer, explaining, “For some of us, that ‘golden age’ of gaming from over a decade ago still hasn’t been topped. There’s a real yearning for those kinds of experiences.”

He further elaborated, “Looking at the current game landscape, it’s clear that gamers are increasingly drawn back to those nostalgic titles.”

Palma points out that there’s a smart advantage to revamping classic games with digital assets instead of starting completely from scratch with new Web3 games. Think about it – people are already familiar with the game, which means it’s much easier to get them excited and playing.

“When a game, a game company, or a well-known IP already clicks with players, they’re much more likely to be open to seeing how digital ownership can make their gaming even better,” he added.

Mark your calendars! Code of Joker: Evolutions is slated to launch on iOS, Android, and PC towards the end of summer 2025.

This revival is part of a growing wave of beloved classic games finding new life on the blockchain, tapping into that shared sense of nostalgia.

Remember Atari? They’re joining the party too! In July, AtariX, the Web3 arm of the video game pioneers, announced they’re bringing classic titles to the blockchain. They’ve teamed up with Base, Coinbase’s Ethereum layer-2 scaling solution, to make it happen.

They kicked things off with Asteroids, the iconic space-themed arcade shooter from 1979. And even earlier, in January 2024, the folks at Ninjalerts, a Bitcoin Ordinals portfolio tracker, actually inscribed a Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) emulator onto the blockchain. Talk about retro!

It’s not just the older generations who are feeling the nostalgia. Believe it or not, a 2023 survey by Kellogg’s found that a surprising 24% of Gen Z participants in the UK own a retro gaming console. Plus, there’s a growing buzz around things like cassettes and DVD players as well!

Do gamers actually care about digital ownership?

While blockchain games often highlight the concept of “owning your assets,” one gaming industry insider isn’t so sure gamers are all that interested.

“I personally don’t think player ownership is a big deal,” stated Hantao Yuan, co-founder and content creator at Moku, during the leaders roundtables at the YGG Play Summit 2024. These discussions were made publicly available on March 13.

Yuan used Pokémon as a prime example. “Pokémon isn’t raking in $6 million daily because people are obsessed with owning digital creatures. They’re in it for the love of the brand, the characters, and simply having an awesome time,” Yuan explained.

In Yuan’s view, Web3 gaming isn’t reaching its full potential because the focus is misplaced – crypto tokens are being used for “the wrong kind of marketing.”

“Take Pump.fun, for instance. They’ve built a real business model and are generating actual revenue. In the Web3 gaming space, many projects aren’t actually focused on building a great game. They’re more concerned with creating a product just for token generation events [TGEs], rather than focusing on long-term live operations and player experience.”

Arief Widhiyasa, co-founder of Confiction, shares a similar perspective. He believes blockchain games are holding themselves back by primarily targeting crypto enthusiasts, when they should be focusing on showing regular gamers the real value in digital ownership.

“Ultimately, it’s about figuring out how to open gamers’ eyes – to give them the ‘red pill’ and help them understand just how cool and valuable Web3 gaming can be,” Widhiyasa suggested.

“Right now, all the buzz is around memecoins,” he observed. “One of the biggest hurdles we face is competing with that hype. I’m not sure games can really compete when it comes to that kind of potential upside,” he added honestly.

Interestingly, according to the Blockchain Game Alliance’s 2024 report, a solid 71% of industry professionals still believe asset ownership is the biggest draw of blockchain gaming. But the message doesn’t seem to be resonating as strongly with everyday gamers.

Hilmar Veigar Pétursson, CEO of CCP Games, pointed out a key issue: most gamers naturally assume they already own their games and in-game items. So, for them, the idea of “digital ownership” doesn’t exactly feel revolutionary.

“I don’t think it’s that appealing to many players because, honestly, it’s a pretty reasonable expectation for gamers to assume they already own the stuff they buy. But technically, they don’t,” Pétursson explained.

Pétursson concluded that blockchain gaming companies are basically trying to sell gamers something they already believe they possess.

Gamers are confused about digital ownership

But here’s a fundamental question: does buying the right to play a game actually mean you own it?

“Think back to when you used to buy games in physical boxes,” he reminisced. “You could lend them, sell them, and then go buy another game in a box,” he added.

“We’ve somehow landed in this tricky situation where we have surprisingly limited rights over things we’ve already paid for,” he highlighted.

“Most people haven’t really woken up to the realization that they don’t actually own the digital stuff they’ve purchased,” he stated.

Hot take: Coinfish

Let me tell you about Coinfish – it’s seriously one of the strangest Telegram games I’ve come across in a while! But here’s the kicker: I actually enjoyed it, and trust me, I loathe fishing in real life.

With all the buzz it’s been getting since it launched in October, I just had to dive in and check it out for myself.

Coinfish, created by the blockchain wizards at MEETLabs, casts you in the role of… well, some sort of bear-like creature? It’s not entirely clear, but cute nonetheless.

Your mission? To fish your heart out for four perpetually grumpy-looking stray cats who are parked right beside you, clearly judging your angling skills (or lack thereof).

The game world is teeming with more fish (and even sharks!) than you’d ever see on a real-life fishing trip. Maybe that’s precisely why it’s surprisingly fun. The bigger the fish you snag, the better the rewards you reel in. But here’s the catch (pun intended): you have to buy your own bait, and the good stuff will set you back a bit.

Yep, it’s a classic “you gotta spend money to make money” kind of game.

Will Coinfish revolutionize your life? Probably not. You’ll likely play in short bursts of 20-30 minutes and then move on. Yet, somehow, it’s managed to wiggle its way into my regular weekly gaming routine – just a quick fishing session, appease the hangry cats, and get back to the day.

If you were ever a Tamagotchi enthusiast back in the day, Coinfish might just scratch that same itch. It’s like low-effort daily care, but with added fishing!

And the absolute best part? No seasickness, no dodgy boats, and definitely no endless, fruitless hours stuck out at sea.

Other News

— Heads up! Games For A Living is launching the beta for Diamond Dreams on March 18th.

— Exciting news for Xbox fans – another Web3 game is joining the lineup this year! This time, it’s the spooky horror FPS, The Bornless.

— And for something completely different, Mojo AI has unveiled the WorldWide AI Gaming platform, where AI agents go head-to-head in epic digital battles.

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Ciaran Lyons

Ciaran Lyons is an Australian crypto journalist. He’s also a standup comedian and has been a radio and TV presenter on Triple J, SBS and The Project.