Bitcoin dipped to $105k this week amid a grinding US government shutdown in its tenth day and escalating trade tensions with China. Ethereum slipped below $3.8k, XRP shed over 10%, and the broader crypto market continues to liquidate billions in leveraged positions. However, despite the crypto market pull, Bitcoin ETFs like BlackRock's IBIT posted steady inflows this past week.
Regardless of the bloodshed, institutions continue to get more and more involved in crypto with this week Morgan Stanley lifted barriers, greenlighting crypto funds for all clients including retirement accounts. A consortium of Wall Street heavyweights including Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan is plotting a G7-backed stablecoin to be launched. Also, the regulatory environment and especially under the Trump administration, the SEC and CFTC dropped lawsuits, and installed Paul Atkins as chair to fast-track crypto-friendly rules. A poll of 800 investors showed 64% weigh candidates' digital asset stances in 2026 midterms, with strong Trump approval on rolling back Biden-era crackdowns.
With that being said, crypto is seemingly more linked to global macro factors than it has ever been. Tariffs and fiscal gridlock add to cryptos volatility, but institutional adoption and the loosening of regulatory restrictions are increasing more corporates involvements in crypto. Whether that is good for the long-term, we will need to see because now dumptober is in full swing.
SPS Weekly Performance Overview
Previous weeks, SPS has been an antithesis to the wider crypto and altcoin market. But this week saw SPS breaking down decisively, declining from $0.00750 to $0.00676. Market cap hemorrhaged from $3.79M to $3.33M, a 12% decline in one week that exceeded the price decline.
The $0.0072-0.0074 zone that functioned as resistance for two weeks is now decisively broken. This level flipped from bearing bulls back to a new resistance level. The critical support level is now $0.0066. This has been tested twice (October 15-16), creating a short-term floor. But with volume declining, this support is fragile. If $0.0066 breaks with conviction on heavy volume, the next support cluster appears around $0.006-0.0063, which aligns with July lows. A close below $0.0066 would confirm a new leg down to those levels. The chart shows a descending channel with multiple lower highs since October 12. The EMA20 is acting as resistance around $0.0069, with the EMA50 higher around $0.0072. All trend indicators align bearish unless SPS reclaims $0.0072 with strong volume.
Volume and liquidity averaged $82k this week, which is significantly higher than prior weeks. But the pattern reveals distribution rather than absorption. Current liquidity remains thin at approximately $25-40K on normal days. The thin liquidity environment means relatively small sell orders can trigger significant price movement downward.
Market Analysis - Trends
The splinterlands team held an October 16 town hall packed with positive sentiments and message. The team recapped recent wins such as Arcane card animations, new voucher drops, Halloween skins. Conclave Arcana sales hit 3.6 million, with a push to 4 million by year-end. Other highlights from the town hall included Land cards launching soon and brawl overhaul is coming in 2026. The team also provided insight into its financial operations with the team is halfway to breaking even on $3M annual operations. The team is hopeful with marketing pushes and roadmap updates, will result in splinterlands growing. However, the SPS price action tells a different story and its evident there are challenges.
I don't know the answer, but the sentiment toward crypto gaming tokens has deteriorated broadly. As a long-term player and content creator for splinterlands, I am secretly hoping that this will turn around. Many were calling for 2025 crypto bull run will result in an altcoin season which in turn would trickle down to splinterlands, but alas that seems like an ever passing dream at this stage.
Concluding Thoughts
SPS broke down decisively this week despite positive town hall messaging and roadmap updates from Splinterlands. The team is executing, and revenue is progressing, but the SPS price action is breaking support and volume patterns are showing distribution. Either gaming token sentiment has deteriorated, or investors do not believe player growth will materialize regardless of new features and marketing pushes. Structurally, SPS remains under pressure.
Are you new to splinterlands and want to learn to play the game? Check out my Ultimate Guide to Splinterlands: A Collection of Articles and Guides. If you enjoy reading my splinterlands content, please follow and support me by signing up to play splinterlands through my affiliate link: https://splinterlands.com?ref=mercurial9.
Thank you for reading, and hope you have a good rest of the day!
Follow me on these other platforms where I also post my content: Publish0x || Hive || Medium || Twitter || Substack
Posted Using INLEO
Thanks for sharing! - @clove71
