Dissecting December Developer Update || Axie Infinity
A few hours after appearing in the discord chat, Jihoz has finally updated us on the progress of Axie Infinity. A developer update has finally arrived! The update tackles some of the most awaited news whether it be Land, Ron as well as Battles V2.
No Land Gameplay Yet
Just recently people have been really excited for Land Gameplay to finally arrive. In the Axie Infinity whitepaper, it was stated in the roadmap that ”Land Gameplay Community Alpha” will be released this Q4 2021. To be honest, I have long felt that it would be impossible for Land to release this year despite the obvious schedule in the roadmap. This update has just proved my estimate correct. The developers have always been conservative in releasing massive updates so this delay is definitely not the last. I always remember that Axie Infinity always try not to underdeliver but to exceed expectations.
Despite this sad news, I am still optimistic that Land gameplay would be a great success due to the fact that the developers do not wish to release a half-baked product. The demands and criticisms of players may have put a lot of pressure on the developers but they have always held on. I do hope that Land gameplay next year but for now I will have to manage my expectations since I would rather be pleasantly surprised rather than be disappointed of a massive flop.
DAU Growth: Sideway Trend and Connection Issues
A developer update will always have some news concerning the ever growing number of players in Axie Infinity. In just 2 months, the number of players have increased to almost 3 million! Despite not yet releasing Axie Infinity in the Google Playstore and Ios app store, the number of players have kept on increasing. This may even increase even more when Axie Origins or Battles V2 be released for the general public!
Though this might seem like good news, the massive amount of players have its side effects. Recently, I am getting a lot of “connecting” issues while playing once again. I hope that the problem few months back does not happen once again wherein a player could not enter the Arena or Adventure due to the massive spike in player growth.
Aside from this fear of network disconnection, I still have some observations with this “DAU Growth” news. In this chart from the developer update, it is clearly shown that the amount of active players does not coincide with the number of Axies on Hold. It seems that the growth has reached a plateau at around an estimate of 2.5 million active players. This may be an indicator for a lot of thing such as:
- New play-to-earn games might have attracted a lot of players
- High starting cost to join Axie Infinity
- No more hype
- Slower ROI(return of investment) due to low value of SLP
Conversely, this may not be all that bad in my own opinion. It would not be healthy for the game to grow exponentially since it may cause “Connecting” and “Disconnected” issues once again. Reduced hype would mean that there will be less players joining just for making a quick buck. Slower ROI may cause some FUD in the community but I feel that this is just crypto being crypto. It could go up and down anytime. Moreover, Battles V2 or Axie Origin will most likely onboard new players to start playing Axie Infinity using free to play Axies. This may solve the problem wherein a lot of players who wish to try the game first before putting in to the ecosystem.
Side note: DAU – Daily average users
Art Leeks: Very Juicy Leeks
The new art leeks for Land Gameplay looks amazing! Despite the delay for the Land Gameplay, I am amazed to read that there are new blood joining the Sky Mavis team. More people means more hands which also means new ideas and more creativity!
The concept art for the structure look a bit different from the teasers in V2. Structure look less Japanese inspired and looks cuter. Furthermore, I got the feeling that some structures look like kitchen tools like the kettle. Changes might still be done to all the teasers but I am feeling bullish for Axie Infinity with this leeks!
Aside from the leeks of structures, we also get some new leeks for the upcoming Axie Origins/V2. The “power-ups” have also been leaked. Though there is no concrete news on its effects we can speculate now that “power-ups” may be greatly different from “evolution”. Just between you and me, but I feel that “power-ups” are tokens or resource a player gets when they “release” or burn Axies. Don’t get your hope up though since this is just a speculation of mine. Furthermore, the balancing of the game will definitely be affected since only players with a lot of Axies will benefit from this.
Now let us put those speculations aside to appreciate the smooth and polished looks of the special effects in Axie Origins/V2. It divinely exceeds the current alpha version. The colors stand out and the visuals are stunning. I am so excited by the upcoming V2.
The Most Important News: Community Driven Balancing
Now this may seem less interesting that the other leeks but I feel that this is the most important news that have been said in this developer updates. The developers definitely listen to the community. The outrage from the recent balancing have finally reached them! Now some players who “actually” play the game are part of the consensus that will add input for the balancing of skills. This will reduce the number of players criticizing the developers for “not knowing” or “not playing” the game. Balance patches will actually be based on the current Arena standards. Though I hope that the balancing will not affect only the top builds in the higher ranks but also the entire ranks. Aside from that, it seems that there will be no surprise patches to balance the game in the middle of the season. This means that players can now wreck havock with unfair teams without fear of sudden nerfs. Is this good or bad?
Axie Infinity Is still a centralized game. He developers hold the entire decision making for balancing updates. So having some advisors from players helps a bridge for now that the DAO is still not put in place. I wonder what will happen in the future when AXS holders make the decision. Will the top players still add input for the decisions? Who knows.
So what does everyone think of this new update? Feeling disappointed or feeling bullish? Do comment bellow what your thoughts are. I hope to hear your opinions as well. Or leeks if you have any :)
I am also looking forward to the release of Land, now I have to wait once more until 2022.
Great breakdown! I hope land gameplay will be avaliable soon. Will be a game changer!
I can still remember Jobolz when he got the news of that combo nerf during one of his livestreams XD
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