Game On: The Hottest Coming Gaming Token Airdrops

Airdrop season is in full swingwith apps, protocols, and other projects seizing on this spring’s bear market vibes on tokens to eventually drop their tokens — potentially rewarding millions of crypto users in the process.

What exactly is a air drop, however? When it comes to crypto tokens, an airdrop is typically a way for a project to reward its early adopters and contributors by giving them a portion of a newly launched token, all while distributing the tokens far and wide for decentralized management.

When it comes to blockchain networks and tokens prepared specifically for gaming, there are some pretty compelling airdrops on the horizon in the months ahead. Here’s a look at what’s to come for gamers—there may still be time to get involved and score some tokens ahead.

Notcoin

Notcoin is a gaming project that runs on the messaging app Telegram, and it has gained more than 35 million players who have frantically tapped a shiny coin to mine trillions of Notcoin. However, the “mining phase” ended on April 1st, and the game is currently not offering rewards as it prepares to launch its NOT token on The Open Network (TON).

The NOT token will be minted at the end of April, co-creator Sasha Plotvinov told Decrypt’s GG at Token 2049 Dubai, and the game will return after that with a new reward model in place — and new types of games planned for the future be planned. Previously, the token coin was expected on or around April 20 along with the Bitcoin halving, but this was delayed to give the team more time to plan for the large-scale claim.

Immutable zkEVM

Ethereum gaming platform Immutable has launched “The Main Quest”, a reward campaign tied to the growth of its recently launched Immutable zkEVM layer-2 network.

Immutable says it will serve up at least $50 million in IMX token rewards to early users who play certain games like Guild of Guardians and MetalCore — both expected to launch in the near future — as well as users who trade immutable NFTs and use Immutable zkEVM decentralized exchanges. More details here.

Saga Protocol

Saga is a new blockchain network primarily designed for gaming, so it makes sense that the way users could possibly earn a share of the airdrop was by playing games. Following “play-to-airdrop” campaigns across several games running on testnet, as well as other networks, the SAGA airdrop has occurred and the token is now live alongside the mainnet.

Now that the mainnet is live, Saga is boosting the rewards engine again with a new set of airdrops planned for SAGA token players. The network collaborates with projects across Ethereum, Solana and Avalanche to offer stakeholders packets of tokens and NFTs from various games and applications.

Illuvium

Illuvium is one of the most anticipated crypto game franchises, spanning several interoperable games – and the team behind them is seeking to boost adoption amid the upcoming open beta launch by engaging in an airdrop campaign.

According to details from the team, Illuvium will reward players with “airdrop points” during the next private beta play period from April 30 to May 28, and then also on the test net open beta for anyone to play from May 28 until an undetermined date . At some point after that, the open beta will begin on the mainnet and continue to award airdrop points to players.

Illuvium already has an ILV management token, so it is unclear whether the project plans to distribute ILV itself or perhaps run a separate play-to-earn token within its ecosystem. Either way, the team said in a press release that the airdrops will collectively be valued at $25 million or more.

Nice island

Launched in open beta in January, Nifty Island is a sandbox-style game that enhances the feel of Animal Crossing, Roblox and Fortnite’s creative mode, allowing you to customize your own island and play with other users. And it offers a play-to-airdrop campaign with many different ways to potentially earn ISLAND tokens.

According to a tweet thread, Nifty Island will award points to users based on factors such as how much they play, how many players they refer to the game, and what other NFT assets they own in linked wallets. It’s unclear when the token drop will take place, but people are flocking to potentially get a piece of the ISLAND launch.

MetalCore

MetalCore, a mech shooter built on Immutable zkEVM, is offering closed beta players “points” (or points) that will translate into an airdrop award of the upcoming MCG token when generated. The closed beta runs until May 14th. Studio369 previously told Decrypt’s GG that it aims to launch an open beta and the token sometime in May, though it’s unclear if those estimates remain up to date.

On top of all this, MetalCore also announced a collaboration with the Mon protocol that operates the MON token linked to fellow Immutable zkEVM game, Pixelmon. MetalCore will add special tasks that allow players to earn MON tokens, though it’s still unclear when given that the games (and their respective tokens) are still not open to the public.

Delabs Games

Delabs Games, the publisher behind the Mario Kart-esque Rumble Racing Star and other upcoming games, has launched its Ladybug’s Journey Campaign, serving up reward points that will translate to an airdrop of GAME tokens. Points are awarded for playing games and completing missions linked to social media engagement and other actions. Click here for more details.

Nyan Heroes

The Solana hero shooter Nyan Heroes, which features cats piloting giant mega-suits, ran an early access playtest in late March and early April via the Epic Games Store on PC – giving a play-to- included air drop campaign.

The Overwatch-like shooter’s campaign awarded users “MEOW” points, which will eventually translate into NYAN tokens for eligible early players. Owners of Nyan Heroes NFTs are eligible for even greater token rewards. However, it is not yet known when the actual token will start.

Highland

Long-running metaverse game Upland, which allows you to buy property and play in locations based on real-life cities, is set to launch an Ethereum token linked to its in-game Sparklet coin, which will eventually give players their earned value will be removed from the game. .

In the run-up to the launch of the Ethereum token, the EOS-based game is launching its “Share and Build” campaign, using similar strategies to Portal and BlockGames by encouraging users to spread the word on social media.

Apeiron

Along with Pixels, here’s another game running on Axie Infinity’s Ronin chain doing an airdrop campaign. Apeiron is billed as a glamorous amalgamation of classic god games (like Populous) and card-fighting “roguelite” experiences, delivering an experience that surely requires careful strategy.

In January, Apeiron unveiled a play-to-airdrop campaign that will reward players of the Epic Games Store battle demo with points for the future ANIMA token drop, along with incentives for completing other actions or owning certain NFTs. Click here for more details.

Pirate Nation

Pirate Nation, a fully on-chain strategy game built on an Arbitrum-based network, has introduced a BOOTY reward point system tied to gameplay and social interactions, with accumulated points potentially used to “reward further out of the to determine the sea.” Sounds like an airdrop to us. More details here.

Blood flow

BloodLoop, an Overwatch-like 5v5 hero shooter that runs on Avalanche, debuted its play-to-airdrop campaign on March 4th. Over the course of three months, players will be able to test the game and potentially earn a share of millions of BLS tokens via weekly contests.

You’ll need to play some of the game though, as BloodLoop’s Twitter account says you’ll need to complete tasks on a “battle pace” to unlock airdrop eligibility. More than 500,000 players have reportedly already signed up, making it a potentially hot one to watch, but it’s unclear when to expect the game to go live. However, entries will close at the end of April.

AI Arena

AI Arena, a game that pairs Super Smash Bros-style fighting with artificial intelligence smarts, recently completed a play-to-airdrop campaign with 40 million NRN tokens up for grabs. Another 40 million tokens will be allocated for the game’s NRN prize boxes. The game challenges players to train AI fighters that automatically fight on their behalf.

Following the conclusion of the latest play-to-airdrop competition wave, AI Arena’s developers are sorting through the data before the token drops.

Space Nation Online

Space Nation Online, an unchanging outer space zkEVM game created in part by disaster movie maestro Roland Emmerich (“Independence Day”), is offering token rewards to NFT-owning players who jump into its current closed beta.

We liked what we played in the beta, although server issues cropped up consistently. However, the studio says it is addressing the issues, and the beta has been extended until May to compensate for the hiccups.

Elixir Games

Crypto game launcher Elixir Games is gearing up to drop its token after raising $14 million in funding from investors such as Square Enix and the Solana Foundation, and it’s offering $1 million in rewards through a “season pass” campaign that runs on kicked off April 4.

A preview suggested the campaign would include “daily airdrops” along with contests across 12 games, and there’s ELIX iconography all over the track. The updated trailer below offers a tease of what to expect, but you can find the latest details via Elixir’s Twitter account.

Edited by Ryan Ozawa.

Editor’s note: This story was originally published on December 27, 2023 and was last updated with new information on April 26.