As the gaming industry continues to experience substantial growth, the community of NFT game development is also emerging. The NFT-based game Axie Infinity hit $1B, the highest sale of all time for any NFT. To help you create your own NFT game using ICO, we have prepared this 10-step guide. If you carefully follow these steps, you will create a successful NFT gaming platform and reach new levels of achievement.
Step 1 – Create the GDD NFT Game Technical Document
When users play your game, they expect an exciting and distraction-free experience. This can only be possible when everyone involved in the game creation process is on the same page and executing the vision correctly. There are complicated concepts involved in creating an NFT game, and simple communication among your team without complete documentation will not be sufficient for its successful execution. This is where a GDD, or game design document, will help the game owners and creators.
What is GDD and why is it important?
The game design document (GDD) is a detailed document that covers all relevant information and what you envision the game will be. It will serve as a great brochure for your entire team, including game developers and designers. It will ensure that everyone knows exactly what they are supposed to do and what the game is about.
People with limited experience in the gaming industry may tell you that it is an unnecessary step. However, according to professional game developers, this document is a crucial element of the entire development process of your game. GDD serves as an accessible tool for everyone involved in the development process.
Furthermore, once the game is completed, you can use this document to go back and forth with your team to make necessary changes. Everyone will be completely familiar with it. It will also help avoid any confusion or potential issues that will ultimately delay the development process. It is always good to have a complete, written roadmap in front of you when working on something as large as an NFT game.
What are White Papers for?
This document can also serve as a White Paper when you want to raise money through an ICO (Initial Coin Offering). This technical document comprises the full plan for your game, and investors will obtain all relevant information, such as what the game is about, what goals it aims to achieve once finished, how much money will be required for its development, and who is behind the development process. All this information helps secure the ICO because investors generally request a technical document before deciding to invest.
How to write a game design document
Before you start, you must understand that each GDD is unique based on the concept, theme, and entire world of the game. This can be a lot to assimilate, but this initial effort will be worth it in the end if done correctly.
Next, you can download two templates for developing a game design, which will help you get started. You can modify it according to the specifications of your game and as you see fit.
Step 2 – Define a roadmap with phases
Once you have finished your GDD technical document, it is time to move on to the next step, which is to define your goals and deliverables for game development. Game development can be a challenging and painful process, so it is best to break everything down into phases in a clear roadmap to know where you are headed.
No matter what project you are working on, everything needs a strategic plan known as a Roadmap. It visually defines the desired outcomes and includes the major milestones you will take to reach the final destination. It serves as a strategic tool and a communication tool that articulates strategic thinking among the whole team and informs everyone about the goal and the plan to achieve it.
How to start?
Before you start making a roadmap, ensure you have determined the vision of your game and have a high-level strategy to make that vision a reality. The strategy does not have to be completely documented; that's what this roadmap is for. But you should know the main components of your game development strategy and the reasoning behind it.
Here are some things to consider:
● Make sure to create a visually clear roadmap.
Think beyond boring spreadsheets; you're creating a game that needs to be visually appealing, so you should also create an attractive-looking roadmap. There are many different software and platforms that offer great options for creating one for free.
You can create a roadmap for your game development project for free from this link: Link
● Does each element of your roadmap have a strategic justification?
A roadmap is not simply a list of features for your game. It should have a persuasive and clear case behind each step of your plan. Everything should have a solid strategy and clear justification behind themes and characters so your team can understand their importance.
Step 3 – Create an ICO token and list it on BSC
After sorting out the documentation part for your game, it’s time to secure some funds for your project! Now you will need to create an ICO token and list it on the Blockchain (BSC), where you can seek funding for your project. Before starting to create an ICO, there are a few things you should consider first.
Comprehensive understanding of the relevant market
Make sure you have done your homework and have a deep understanding of your market. Know your target audience and see if your game is good enough for them to give you money. Since you are creating your own ICO token, there is strong competition: there are over 1500 cryptocurrencies at this time, according to CoinMarketCap’s data. So, to beat the competition, think of a meaningful way to present your project. You can create a thread on the BitcoinTalk forum.
Legal aspect of your ICO
Now, the most important part before creating an ICO is to understand the legal aspect of your ICO. Is ICO legal in your country? If so, what things are involved? With the growing number of ICOs, there are many ICOs exposed as scams or running away with the raised funds. Therefore, there are different regulations when it comes to ICOs, depending on your country. You will need to learn to navigate the current regulations regarding cryptocurrencies and stay updated with any future changes to act accordingly.
Having a lawyer with ICO regulations and experience in cryptocurrencies by your side will always be helpful! Even if you follow all laws and regulations, you will need to be completely transparent when handling other people's money.
Creation of an ICO token
When creating an ICO token, what you need is to have a solid distribution plan. This plan varies according to the requirements of your ICO and can have different stages of token sale. Some of those stages include private sale, presale, the actual ICO general sale, and more. Once you know the plan, you will be able to clearly specify how the tokens will be distributed. This includes the following decisions:
● The amount of tokens needed.
● How to divide those tokens among team members.
● How many to sell during each token sale stage.
● When to issue additional tokens.
The creation of the token itself is not the difficult part; crowdfunding is! Ethereum's website offers a straightforward process to create an ICO token and even lists the code you need to use. Let's move on to the more complicated part of your ICO token.
Setting a soft cap and a hard cap
Setting a standard in your funding is an essential requirement for the legal, financial, and marketing aspects of your ICO. For that, you must set a soft cap and a hard cap. The minimum investment amount required to consider your ICO a success is called the “soft cap," while a “hard cap” is the maximum amount of investment you are willing to accept for your project. The soft and hard caps are counted in US dollars, but with ICOs, they are accepted in cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and others.
Soft cap
When deciding the soft cap for your ICO, you need to create a minimum viable product (MVP) to analyze the costs involved in launching the project. This includes all expenses such as operation, development, marketing, and salary expenses. We recommend that you add a small additional amount to cover unforeseen costs that are inevitable in any project.
Hard cap
A hard cap can be quite difficult to handle because if you set it too low, you won't finish the game, and if you're too high, this will also be a problem. The extra money can be a waste because you will have to spend it on bonuses for advisors, or it will just sit in your account for years. It is never a good idea to start a business by creating a bad reputation for asking for more funds than necessary!
So, when choosing both the soft cap and the hard cap, it is important to select the precise amount, and it is not just a number you should guess for your ICO. You need to consider specific factors based on your game and create tangible sums to determine the precise amount for each cap.
Step 4 – Create your own NFT Marketplace
The NFT game you are creating will have a digital certificate of ownership. To sell this game, you need a platform, and this is where your NFT marketplace comes into play. The NFT marketplace platform offers a decentralized platform to create, store, sell, and buy your NFTs. They focus on selling specific digital assets such as digital art, songs, memes, tweets, and, of course, games.
MiT Software offers a customizable NFT marketplace development platform where you can easily perform the required activities for your game. They provide all the functionalities, features, and other tools necessary to create your NFT marketplace. Here, you will find potential buyers for your game and be paid through cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum. For more information on NFT marketplace development, click here!
How does an NFT Marketplace work?
These are the general steps involved in creating an NFT marketplace for your game:
● Register/sign up for an account on the platform.
● Set up a cryptocurrency wallet.
● Upload the digital collectible, in your case, your game.
● To put it on sale, you will have two options: set a fixed price or auction the item and choose an offer.
● The digital assets will go through moderation.
● Once the NFT is approved, your target customers will find it on the sales list.
● You can now start accepting offers.
● Once the auction ends, the platform will notify you of the best offers.
● MiT Software will regulate and approve the transfer of funds and digital assets.
Step 5 – Create preview designs for your game idea
It’s time to design some previews of epic game ideas! You cannot convince people that your game is worth investing in without a compelling preview. Since the gaming industry has topped all lists these days, surpassing nearly $300 billion in value, developers are creating some out-of-this-world graphics for their games. So keep in mind that you also have to create something extraordinary!
Whether you look at Steam or any other online game store, it’s easy to notice that the market is quite crowded. Making your product stand out can be challenging, and there’s no better way than to design a well-organized game preview since you have yet to develop the complete game, so you can't showcase your progress. Therefore, you need to design previews that represent your game idea in the best possible way.
Defining the idea
You already have an idea of the kind of game you will build. It can be anything from puzzles to strategy, battles to adventures, or even sports games. Regardless of the type of game you are creating, research a bit about similar games that already exist both within and outside of Blockchain. Learn from what succeeded in the past and why, and incorporate those attributes into your design. It would be best to have some creative brainstorming sessions with your team where everyone can express their ideas. Even better if you can hire some experts for this.
Have creative skillful people on your team
When it comes to NFT games, you will find hundreds of people with something similar to your idea who need funding. Here you have to convince people that your game has the best value to offer compared to any of your competitors. If you look at all the successful NFT games, they all have a cute common creature that attracts more users. Find something that gives your game an identity to help it catch attention and excite people. Regardless of the design, you definitely need a qualified 2D or 3D graphic designer or an expert programmer. If you don’t have them on your team yet, hire one. Check this link; you will see that each game token has a special character that makes it unique but appealing. These examples will also help you choose a design for your game!
Step 6 – List the Game Token
It is better to list your game token in the early stage because in the DeFi space, those who enter early get the most profit. There are different platforms that help you get your projects in the early stage before they enter the mainstream. These platforms are known as decentralized launch platforms. Investors are always looking on these platforms to identify promising projects in early stages and participate in presale rounds.
You can list the new game token project on a decentralized launch platform application like DxSale. They have integrated the Binance Smart Chain, Ethereum, and Solana blockchains to create their first launch platform. The goal is to make the entire process for new projects like your game as simple as possible.
What is DxSale?
DxSale.Network is a platform as a service (PaaS) that offers the ultimate platform for fundraising and tokenization; you can put all your funding processes into this single application. They claim to offer true decentralization, automation, and flexibility, which no other platform currently provides. It offers multiple products and features like DxLaunch, DxSwap, DxLock, and DxFarm.
How does it work?
The process will start from importing your token, raising capital, then locking it, and finally listing it on a decentralized exchange. Your potential investors will be able to find the sale listing of your game token on DeFiLaunchpad and DxLaunchpad from DexSale.
Why choose DxSale?
As you embark on your journey in the world of decentralized finance, you need a platform that is as simple as possible for you since you already have to analyze the entire game development process. The DxSale network will be your best option because it does not require a whitelist or a minimum token to offer its services. It provides a unified platform for everyone, from a novice to an experienced user, to create and launch their projects.
Step 7 – Create the Token Presale Website
Before diving into the details of the website, you must understand the importance of the presale for your game token. Before your ICO arrives, you should have a presale with a lower fundraising target and better prices. A presale will give you a better chance of making money than the ICO itself; therefore, more and more cryptocurrency projects are raising funds in their presales.
It is beneficial for your team and the investors if everything goes well and your game becomes a success. You will obtain the funds you need to finish your game, and investors will acquire a new cryptocurrency project that will gain more value in the future. The presale can also help generate excitement for your NFT game long before the ICO, with hopes of a price increase when it goes public. Now, let’s move on to the website!
Content
When creating the website, know that investors will only be interested in three things: the team behind the project, the objectives of your project, and the necessary measures to protect investors' interests.
Next, you should add the roadmap you created earlier to your website. Showing this to people will ensure that you have realistic and achievable goals and that you have already hit some of the key milestones. It will offer more confidence to investors regarding your project. The roadmap should include an alpha version, a beta version, a public version, and any other essential milestones to achieve. Make sure the dates are concrete, and breaking down the costs associated with each task will be another plus!
Most importantly, ensure there is information about the token distribution so that investors know how the project’s currency will be distributed among your development team.
Layout
For the design, make sure it is a single-page landing page. It is convenient and presents all the necessary information in the correct order. Take a look at this design of the token sale homepage from Dribbble.
Security
This is the most integral part of your website, and you don’t want it to go down for even a second. Once your token garners enough interest from people, all of them will visit your website at the same time. This can crash a website, and that’s the last thing you would want in such a situation! Don’t hold back and make sure to invest in the best and most reliable hosting service.
Consequently, you should also consider the large number of DDoS attacks and hacking threats, especially since your NFT game will be executing an ICO. Look at past examples; many websites have been hacked, leading to significant losses. Therefore, it is of utmost importance to maintain strict security so that your investors’ money does not end up in the hackers’ wallets.
Design
As mentioned earlier, you need to take your Game A to the design department. The website design should reflect the same excitement and high quality as your game, appearing friendly yet professional. Even a small mistake can cause an investor to close your website, and you don’t want that! Hiring a person or company specialized in building and designing your website will always be a good idea.
Step 8 – Join Telegram and Discord Groups to Create FOMO
This step is all about building a community for yourself, creating excitement, and igniting fear of missing out (FOMO) among your investors!
Unlike Telegram channels, groups created on Telegram give participants the opportunity to easily interact with each other. This approach is beneficial for both projects and users.
For example, Telegram groups provide an excellent way for developers/promoters/project managers to connect with current and potential investors. Another advantage of Telegram groups is that they have a limit of 200,000 members, making it very easy to maintain larger social networks and groups that are eager for news, updates, and much more.
Additionally, digital currency conversions are occurring within Telegram because many features are introduced to boost community discussion. For instance, creating groups and inviting people to the group is free.
To sell your tokens, building a community is very important. For community development, you will need Discord or Slack groups to easily communicate with potential buyers and manage public relations. The truth is that token sales are always driven by early promotions, and fortunately, this initial hype can be backed by a solid community. Additionally, if you don’t reach the community quickly, you may have to suffer losses as your token rapidly declines. Furthermore, by building trust within a core group of fans, you can ensure that your tokens remain useful and valuable.
What is Investor FOMO?
FOMO stands for Fear Of Missing Out. Investor FOMO occurs when investors feel the need to chase an investment that has already skyrocketed by 1000%. To better understand investor FOMO, we can take this example: Have you ever noticed that a dog or child becomes immediately interested in a toy when they see someone else playing with it? So why are they suddenly interested? Is it just the existence of the toy that triggered the unexpected interest, jealousy, or a claim of ownership? Or is there more to it?
People, like investors, are not very different from dogs or children when it comes to FOMO. They also don’t want to miss out on good opportunities in the form of investments. The more founders create FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) for investors, the more likely it is that their company will secure the investment.
How Founders Foster FOMO
The relationship between the founder and the investor should always be based on patience. This means that startups/owners should find a way to present themselves personally to the investors. Moreover, the initial outreach should not be cold, as this approach is not well-suited for creating FOMO.
Building a relationship with investors starts with creating a strong connection with several individuals in the investor sphere who are respected by the investor. The investor will listen to them by heart. Furthermore, suppose a founder successfully builds a relationship with the target investor. In that case, the founder also has to inform the investor that they are interested in similar funding investors/partners because it could be best for the company.
Another strategy that founders can adopt to create investor FOMO is to scale the "mountain of successful investors" as soon as possible. That is why the advice for relationship building was crucial; when you have a connection with high-profile investors, you are more likely to capture your target audience. To build trustworthy relationships, startups can create an “investor roadmap.” To develop an investor roadmap, you can identify three main things:
● Which investors should be targeted by the founders?
● Who are the competitor investors?
● Who are the allies and supporters in the investor network?
This is how FOMO can be leveraged and established. The startup/founder is much more capable of obtaining investments for the company on more favorable terms when they can generate FOMO among investors. If you are a startup/founder seeking investments, now is the perfect time to develop an “investor roadmap” and start working on building relationships with those close to the investors.
Step 9 – Design NFT Game Illustrations / Collectible Items
This is nothing new for us; NFTs represent an amazing new space in the world of cryptocurrencies. There is a lot of money that people can earn, but the positive aspect is that you can sell your creative content here because NFTs have introduced a new type of gaming industry that operates on the “digital collectible first” pattern. This means a gaming company offers supplies and collectibles to the game customer first. This can even allow individuals and gaming customers to establish their own rules and enable people to create their own experiences and rules.
Unlike other developers who are more focused on developing the game, collectible developers emphasize creating visually appealing digital aesthetics and collectibles that people want to have. This is definitely a great example of decentralization!
How to Create NFT Collectibles?
You can buy NFT collectibles from other creative artists and resell them at a higher price, or you can create your own NFTs and sell them online. Here, we give the example of how to create an NFT collection on one of the platforms, “Rarible.” This platform is affordable and easy to set up.
These are the steps:
● Go to Rarible.com and click on the “Create” icon in the top right corner.
● Select the “Choose file” option and upload your MP3, PNG, or GIF file. The maximum file size must be 30 MB.
● Now you can enter the price you would like to have or just leave it as “Put on sale.”
● Enter your description and NFT name.
● The next step is to set your royalties and receive payment if it is resold on the secondary market.
● Now select “Connect Wallet and create.”
● Tap “MetaMask” and connect the wallet that we have already set up.
● Now you will need to pay the “gas fee” to continue processing the listing.
● Tap “Start” to sign the sale order with your digital wallet.
● Finally, “Log in” to the pop-up from MetaMask.
Step 10: Develop the Game According to the Roadmap
Now that you have taken care of everything, it is time to take action. You have the idea, you wrote the technical document, created your token, handled the presale requirements, and now build your cryptocurrency game development team.
Cryptocurrency Game Development Team
The success of your project depends on your team! You likely already have a team working with you through all the previously mentioned steps. However, game development is complicated, and there will be much sweat and tears involved (metaphorically)!
Therefore, it is best to have a dedicated team of developers to bring your project to life, correctly utilizing proven working tools and techniques.
These are the skills you need to develop the NFT game:
● Expert UI/UX designers
● Blockchain network experts such as BSC, Solana, Ethereum, Polygon… and Smart Contract development
● Quality control and testing professionals
● Project managers with experience in blockchain development projects.
We will conclude this tutorial with some examples to help you understand market situations and what games to reference! Below, we have also included the top 10 NFT game development engines to help you make a better decision.
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Axie Infinity
This NFT-based game tops the list due to its large fan base and popularity. This game fully represents the “Play to Earn” model, where players have the audacity to fully own in-game assets. An important part of this game is the virtual/digital pets, commonly known as “Axies.” Additionally, the virtual pets can be traded for Ethereum on NFT markets. The value of each virtual pet depends on its specific traits and rarity.
Sorare
This is also a game that ranks among the top NFT games. In this fantasy football game, you create a team based on game assets. Choose your favorite football player and earn rewards for their real-life performance. This game is different from others because your team is represented by the NFTs, and you need to collect the football cards.
Nine Chronicles
This free role-playing game has a technical twist. You play as an adventurer, slay monsters, collect loot, explore the vast fantasy world, and fight against other players. Here’s the technical twist: this game is made on a peer-to-peer network of miners and players like BitTorrent. This means that not only a company owns a central server for this game.
Splinterlands
This game is perfect for die-hard fans of “Magic the Gathering” and even has a mobile-friendly version, making it easy to play. This game operates on the HIVE blockchain, formerly known as "Steem," and is different from other Ethereum games.
Gods Unchained
It is a free game created to include NFT elements in a known card trading system genre. Players collect cards by buying them from other players or winning PVP (Player vs Player) matches where card quality and player skills generally determine the winner. When you win a match, your victory reduces the enemy's health to zero. You earn experience points for every victory, and when your experience bar is full, you level up and add the new card collection. Remember, each card is compatible with the ERC-721 Token and can be traded on NFT markets.
Evolution Land
This game is like a typical city-building game where you can build structures, fully purchase in-game assets, and expand your space. Each continent in the game lies on a different blockchain. Moreover, you need to use units called "Apostles," and they must be collected to search for expanded attributes based on unique units.
The Sandbox 3D
You can think of this game as a replica of popular games like “Roblox” and “Minecraft.” This game is a metaverse voxel-based game and one of the most played and active NFT gaming platforms where players can trade and develop virtual assets. This gaming platform also offers commercial tools to animate and eventually make the objects while they inflates in the markets. Additionally, this gaming platform has introduced the SAND ERC-20 token as the NFT token of the metaverse.
Town Star
Do you remember the famous “Farmville” and “Words with Friends” games? This incredible game is also developed by the creators of those games. Town Star runs on a six-day cycle every week. Every Tuesday, all players start from scratch, and the world map resets. Hire workers, build the farm, trade, and become the most successful farmer. Additionally, the farmer earns the Gala tokens at the end of each cycle.
Battle Racers
The idea of this game is to combine different parts and weapons to make the cars stronger. Players mix different weapons and parts that benefit them on arcade-sized racetracks. You can register your winning cards on the blockchain and eventually sell them for cryptocurrency on OpenSea.
The Six Dragons
In Six Dragons, you can create items, register them on the NFT platform, and then sell them for a good amount. This game can easily be a good source of income and entertainment. It is playable on PC, and players can witness its PS version for the year 2021.
Comparison of Information on the Top 5 NFT Game Development Engines
GAMESDAPP
There are many NFTs that utilize Ethereum technology, but this company offers NFTs on different networks such as EOS, TRON, and NEO. The key benefit of NFT gameplay is developing the NFT game to open up huge revenue-generating opportunities. Their NFT games allow players to take ownership of their in-game assets instead of the game developer. Additionally, their NFT game marketplace attracts a large audience.
Unity 3D
Unity 3D is the world’s leading online platform for creating and operating real-time interactive 3D content in an easy-to-use development environment. This platform is a powerful tool for experts and easy for beginners. You can easily create 3D applications, desktop games, mobile games, and console games.
Cocos2d
Cocos2d is a data-driven game development tool focused on content creation. This game development engine operates on an easy-to-follow content roadmap and provides a solid set of development tools for game logic and high performance for game creation.
Construct 3
This game development platform is a 2D engine that can be used to create and design your own games such as puzzles, role-playing games, platformers, shooters, or even storybooks. This engine can also be used to create physics-based games.
Buildbox
Buildbox is a no-code game development platform that focuses on creating games without the need for scripting or programming. The main audience for this software consists of designers, entrepreneurs, and gaming enthusiasts without prior experience or knowledge in game development.
Unreal Engine
Unreal Engine is a real-time 3D game creation tool that works in C++ code. You can also build simulations, use it as a video editor, sound studio, animation rendering, etc. The game engine is used by architects, engineers, app developers, and others.
After the exceptional success of the NFT game Axie Infinity, the trend of developing NFT games has topped the charts and continues to grow. To enter the world of decentralized finance, creating a new cryptocurrency product for the market and making it appealing to players is the best way.
Players are always looking for new and diverse experiences and are eager to earn money while playing them. This offers you a great business model!
If you want to create an NFT game with your own ICO, connect with us at MiTSoftware. We have years of experience in development and a team of experts on board to help you make your NFT game and ICO token a definitive success!