Axie Infinity exploded this year and is primed to be even more exciting in 2021. We are very pleased to announce our contribution to the Axie Infinity ecosystem: AxieTree.
AxieTree is an open marketplace for borrowing and lending Axies.
New players will be able to try out Axie Infinity effectively for the price of gas by borrowing their choice of up to 3 Axies. Existing players will be able to experiment with different Axies and battle strategies. Axie owners will be able to lend out their Axies and gain a share of the SLP earned by borrowers.
We aim to be the gateway to Axie Infinity for both new players wanting to get started in the game and experienced players looking to hone their skills without incurring significant cost.
Why AxieTree?
Currently, there exist only two ways for new players to get started with Axie Infinity:
- Purchase 3 Axies
- Find a scholarship
Option 1 — Purchasing 3 Axies
Each Axie costs around $30 and a new player needs three to play. This $100 investment is a steep entry cost even in developed nations and is exacerbated by the fact that a new player is most likely unaware of the nuances of successful gameplay. Often this leads to a new player feeling discouraged early on and leaving a poor first impression and game experience.
Our own teammate John faced this problem when he was keenly interested in figuring out Axie Infinity’s metagame. The only way he could fight battles with different movesets was to purchase many Axies himself at significant cost, which led him toward building AxieTree.
Option 2 — Scholarships
Axie Scholarships began as a community effort to help new players get started with Axie Infinity. These scholarship programs became the backbone of a new paradigm that Axie Infinity enables in its “play-to-earn” model where scholars are able to receive Axies from Scholarship programs and play the game while sharing SLP income with the scholarship programs.
The team behind AxieTree believes strongly in creating a more open and fair world via crypto. It is extremely encouraging to read how Axie Infinity is changing lives in other parts of the world, where people are able to earn real, meaningful income from playing the game.
However, the existing scholarship programs have led to a situation of great power asymmetry between the scholars and the programs. Because of the sheer demand for scholarships, recipients of scholarship grants have very little say in the percent of revenue share they must accept, in addition to what types of Axie teams they receive. Many programs require the scholar to share 30%+ of their earnings with the program!
We created AxieTree because we envision a dangerous world without AxieTree. Rather than a fun game, we run the risk of turning Axie into “just a job”.
So… how do we empower every stakeholder in the Axie ecosystem while MAFA (Make Axies Fun Always)?
Enter AxieTree
AxieTree reduces the upfront cost of playing Axie Infinity significantly by allowing players to borrow 3 Axies for free, only paying for the cost of gas. With AxieTree, new players can play Axie Infinity at extremely low cost, and then decide to purchase their first 3 Axies in the Axie Infinity Marketplace when they gain a stronger understanding of the game.
Experienced players can also use AxieTree to access different types of Axies and try different play styles, without ever needing to buy additional Axies.
Axie owners are empowered to start unlocking utility of their Axies sitting in their account by lending them out to the AxieTree marketplace to get a share of SLP earned by borrowers. Lenders determine what % of the SLP earned by borrowers they should receive.
We believe AxieTree will make significant impact to the entire Axie ecosystem:
- New players will be able to try out Axie Infinity effectively for FREE (except gas) through borrowing.
- Existing players will be able to try different Axies and battle strategies for a fraction of the cost.
- Axie holders will be able to unlock utility of their large Axie holdings and put them to work through lending.
- Tournaments will see higher quality players, as more people can engage in higher levels of play with borrowed Axies
- Scholarships will be raised to higher standards, as Axie teams offered in scholarship programs will need to compete with the open market.
What’s next?
The team will be launching AxieTree’s public alpha on Dec. 25 — our Christmas gift to everyone 🎄🎁🦌
We’ll be releasing another post closer to the launch date with details about how the public alpha program will operate, in addition to some spicy “leeks” we have planned for the future.
NFTs are one of the most exciting areas in crypto and we believe Axies hint at their untapped utility and incredible potential. The team is excited to see how the trend will accelerate in 2021 and beyond.
Until then, come join us on Twitter and Discord!
With much love,
AxieTree — a community-focused project built by Axie players for Axie players.
Disclaimer: This is not an official Axie Infinity service. AxieTree is not affiliated with Sky Mavis or any of its subsidiaries, including “Axie Infinity.”
