It was a year to forget for GameFi, which ended up being one of the worst-performing crypto sectors in 2025. (To be fair, though, pretty much all sectors did poorly.) And still no GTA 6!
While 2025 was a breakout year for spot altcoin exchange-traded funds, like the U.S. Ethereum (ETH) and Solana (SOL) ETFs, the tide didn’t shift in GameFi’s favor. But there was still time for one more surprise, as the GameFi.com domain was sold for $300,000 on Christmas Eve. Who’s building what? Here are the major GameFi headlines that kept the sector relevant in 2025.
The world’s football governing body, FIFA, dabbled in Web3 by launching its own blockchain and a mobile game called FIFA Rivals, helping attract major brands such as Adidas into the ecosystem. FIFA migrated from the Algorand ecosystem to its Avalanche-powered FIFA blockchain. Play Solana shipped its PSG1, a handheld gaming console that links crypto with portable gaming. The hardware device has an integrated crypto wallet for secure digital asset storage, 128GB flash storage, 8GB RAM, and an octa-core ARM processor for improved gaming performance.
It also later created a token, which had a tough launch. The launch mirrors Solana’s push into consumer hardware, such as the Seeker phone. Earlier this year, the first gaming console on Sui, SuiPlay0X1, also launched.
GameFi funding: Up, then Down. GameFi funding reflected broader crypto markets, with Q1 attracting $147 million-plus in VC checks. The figure dropped to $73 million in Q2 before climbing to $129 million in the next quarter, representing a 77% quarter-over-quarter increase. Then the funding dried up, with massive repercussions.
Web3 games forced to close shop. In 2025, dozens of GameFi projects ran out of runway as funding crashed 70% and token prices tanked from hype deflation. Poor retention (a 60% drop-off in 30 days) and unsustainable play-to-earn (P2E) models depleted treasuries, weeding out weak links. Moreover, DappRadar, a vital analytics platform for gaming, announced it would shut down after seven years.
AlphaTON acquires Gamee. Nasdaq-listed AlphaTON, a subsidiary of Animoca Brands, acquired a 51% stake in Web3 gaming platform Gamee. The deal includes an additional $4 million in GAMEE (GMEE) and WATCoin (WAT) tokens, marking GameFi’s giant step into TradiFi.
GameFi sector review. The Web3 gaming sector experienced a tough year, as evidenced by key metrics. Its market capitalization dropped by more than two-thirds to $7.8 billion, while trading volume was halved to $2.2 billion. The Fear & Greed Index peaked at 76 as the market inched closer to a full-blown altcoin season.
However, the tables turned as the index fell to 28, deep into “Fear” territory. Top gainers: YTD. Undead Games (UDS): +1,615.07%.
Yooldo (ESPORTS): +621.63%. Loaded Lions (LION): +454.3%. Power Protocol (POWER): +188.21%. CROSS (CROSS): +36.17%.
Top decliners. Moca Network (MOCA): -94.11%. Ronin (RON): -93.16%. Notcoin (NOT): -92.21%.
Beam (BEAM): -90.66%. Yield Guild Games (YGG): -87.63%.
Web3 gaming is ranked third on DeFiLlama’s narrative tracker, surrendering the lead to red-hot prediction markets and meme coins. What you can do now. Scout Web3 games’ staying power now, and dodge those would-be dead coins. Track GameFi’s 2026 glow-up after 2025’s sleepy stretch. Power up your grind today for a killer New Year launch.
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