The chain games of the last cycle are facing a collective demise.

As the Meme Launchpads of Version are in full swing, some projects are becoming the abandoned children of the version.

For example, the once-popular blockchain game projects in the last cycle have recently faced a wave of shutdowns.

On May 16, the former star game project of the Solana ecosystem, Nyan Heroes, announced its official shutdown due to "funding shortages." The developer 9 Lives Interactive issued a statement on the X platform, admitting that they "cannot secure additional funding to complete the game."

In just one day, the NYAN token fell by as much as 37.2%, and subsequently, the FDV dropped to around 5M, evaporating nearly 99% from its historical peak.

The lower you are in the valley, the higher you shine at the peak.

Remember, this game once attracted 1 million test players and had a Steam wishlist of up to 250,000; yet its current market value may even be less than a Meme dog.

However, the downfall of Nyan Heroes is not an isolated case. Recently, several blockchain game projects have consecutively announced suspension of operations or development, with previous funding amounts ranging from millions to tens of millions of dollars, yet all have ended up in the same fate.

The cyclical nature of the crypto industry is vividly reflected in blockchain games. In favorable conditions, there is high financing, launching assets before products, while in adverse conditions, it gradually lays flat or even goes to zero...

There are community comments joking that the decline of blockchain games is a form of "natural selection."

The Portrait of Prosperity and Decline

Coincidentally, in 2025, multiple blockchain game projects such as Blast Royale, The Walking Dead: Empires, and The Mystery Society announced their shutdown or paused development.

These projects once attracted countless attention with high financing and the P2E (Play-to-Earn) model, yet within just a few years, they went from being at their peak to fading into obscurity.

Nyan Heroes: The Bubble Burst of Cat Heroes

This was indeed a star project in the Solana ecosystem, with the creative cat-themed hero shooting game accumulating $13 million in financing, including $2.5 million in a seed round in November 2021, $7.5 million in Series A in May 2022 (with a valuation of $100 million), and an additional $3 million round in March 2024.

The game test attracted 1 million players (official data), with wish lists reaching 250,000 on Steam and Epic Games Store, and the launch of the NYAN token in May 2024 further boosted market enthusiasm. However, on May 16, 2025, the developer 9 Lives Interactive announced that it would cease development due to "inability to secure additional funding."

Blast Royale: The Dismal Exit of the Battle King

Blast Royale is a Polygon-based mobile battle royale (Battle Royale Survival) game featuring 6 minutes of fast-paced battles and P2E mechanics. In April 2022, the project raised $5 million through an ICO, with investors including Dragonfly Capital and Mechanism Capital.

The game attracted early players with its lightweight gameplay, but has never achieved a large-scale breakthrough. In May 2025, the developer First Light Games announced the decision to terminate development due to "internal review," with plans to officially shut down on June 30.

The Walking Dead: Empires: The IP halo is not effective either.

A survival MMORPG developed by Ember Entertainment and published by Gala Games, based on the popular TV series "The Walking Dead" IP, incorporating NFT ownership mechanisms.

Although the specific financing amount of the project has not been disclosed, relying on Gala Games' financial support and IP advantages, it has been open for testing for more than a year, attracting fans to build bases and participate in battles. However, in May 2025, Gala Games announced that it would terminate the project on July 31 due to "comprehensive considerations".

The Mystery Society: A Fleeting Moment in the Deduction Game

Created by the former Disney and Club Penguin team, this project focuses on Web3 social deduction gameplay. In September 2024, it secured $3 million in seed round funding, led by Shima Capital. The project has received praise for its community-driven and innovative mechanisms, attracting active players to participate in early testing. However, on February 25, 2025, the developer Great Big Beautiful Tomorrow announced the suspension of development due to "industry challenges and insufficient funds."

We also created a table summarizing the blockchain games mentioned above that have announced the cessation of operations or development.

It can be seen that these games have basically raised a decent amount of funds in the previous cycle, and they all coincidentally used a mechanism that combines NFT and token assets with consumption in the game.

Famous VCs gather to invest, yet still find it hard to face the reality of failure.

Project Name Financing Amount ($) Highlights Operating Time Stop Operation/Development Date Claimed Reason Token Name Investment Lineup Token Status After Announcement Nyan Heroes 13M 1 million test players, 250,000 Steam wish list ~3.5 years May 16, 2025 Funding shortage NYAN Three Arrows Capital, Mechanism Capital, DeFiance Capital Price dropped about 49% on the same day Blast Royale 5M Polygon mobile combat mechanism ~3 years June 30, 2025 Internal review, possible funding issues NOOB Dragonfly Capital, Mechanism Capital Stable price, $0.0004372 on May 19 The Walking Dead: Empires Unclear Well-known IP licensed MMORPG ~3.5 years July 31, 2025 Sustainability issues None Gala Games ( publisher, specific VC not disclosed ) No specific token The Mystery Society 3M Former Disney team involved <1 year February 25, 2025 suspended Funding shortage MYSTRY Shima Capital Token not launched

Beneath the surface, player attrition, the imbalance of the P2E model, and the misalignment of asset and development priorities are the real driving forces. They boast high financing and promise grand visions, yet seldom deliver playable products.

However, some things are also an unspoken industry tacit agreement: the product itself is not the focus, and no one really wants to play these games. In a track that competes on creativity and content density, encountering those who rely on physical stamina and financial acumen for profit, the outcome is predictable.

Prosperity leads to decline; prosperity is in financing, while decline is in the gameplay.

Genes determine fate

You may have noticed that the more ironic part is the reason these blockchain game projects announced their shutdown - "lack of funds."

The suspended blockchain game projects almost always officially announce that the reason they are ceasing operations is due to insufficient funds, making it difficult to create a high-quality game.

Do these blockchain games really lack money? From the perspective of purely making games, perhaps they do not.

For example, the 13 million USD raised by Nyan Heros, let's not talk about the game for now, what does 13 million USD represent?

Not to mention top-tier AAA games, take the domestic pride, the seventh generation of the top single-player game IP "The Legend of Sword and Fairy," for example. According to public reports, its development cost was 67 million yuan. This means that if the financing funds of Nyan Heros were all used to make a game, it would be more than enough to seriously create a game like The Legend of Sword and Fairy.

The overseas cases are even more astonishing.

The renowned farming simulation game "Stardew Valley" was developed by solo developer Eric Barone over four years, with an investment of only about $50,000. After its release in 2016, it sold over 30 million copies worldwide, becoming a legend in independent gaming.

The graphics of this game are not much different from certain game projects that have raised over a million in funding.

This also indicates that games are products that emphasize creative quality and content density. One person, 50,000 dollars, can succeed with creativity and gameplay.

In contrast, it's very clear that many blockchain games are responding with "insufficient funds" and pausing development --- funds will always be insufficient at any time, especially when they do not want to use funds for game development.

The genes of blockchain games have already determined that they cannot move towards the direction of traditional game industry high quality and slow craftsmanship; they are more like resource pools and investment schemes, requiring the design of appropriate operational rhythms and investment rules to meet the needs of various primary and secondary investors.

Financing first and then taking action has become the optimal solution in this field; whether it will be successful or not is a matter for later discussion.

Looking at the success of traditional games, it is rather about doing things first and then raising funds.

For example, "Black Myth: Wukong" only developed a few scenes in 2020, and after stunning players with the quality by releasing a demo clip, it proved its potential and subsequently secured more funding.

Games like "Genshin Impact" and "Honkai: Star Rail", which are part of the new wave of domestic secondary games, also adopt a segmented development and iterative approach. Each version attempts to present new plots and characters, allowing players to feel a sense of immersion. As players pay for characters, they gradually accumulate funds to develop more versions and works.

These games are content-centric, with the storyline, art, and mechanics taking precedence, while financing is auxiliary rather than the goal. Web3 and traditional games are almost oppositional, with a speculative gene running through it all:

Players are investors, and the game is a Ponzi scheme—at odds with the patience and craftsmanship required by the game. The track itself is not hopeless, but the "first fund, then play" model is a dead end.

The rise and fall of chain games is actually an inevitable result of the misalignment between industry genes and user needs. Capital and concepts can create a short-term hype, but cannot sustain a truly viable gaming ecosystem in the long run.

As more and more games are debunked, the authenticity that emerges after the wave of shutdowns is worth looking forward to.