Analyzing Structural Issues in the Web3 Gaming Industry: B3's Vision for Open Games

Key Points Overview

• After experiencing a speculative frenzy, Web3 gaming has fallen into a downturn, with the closed ecosystem being pointed out as a fundamental issue.
• A third-layer infrastructure project B3 optimized for gaming has emerged, aiming to build an open and interconnected gaming ecosystem.
• The vision of B3 is not only to address the limitations of the Web3 gaming industry but also to provide a new paradigm for the traditional gaming industry.

The Dilemma of the Web3 Gaming Industry: Speculation or Innovation?

Web3 games were initially seen as a growth engine for the gaming industry, but public interest has quickly cooled, and doubts about their innovativeness persist. Data shows that search volumes related to GameFi and trading volumes of major tokens remain sluggish.

Nevertheless, many builders still firmly believe that Web3 games will revive. However, after the wave of speculation recedes, it will be difficult to rebuild public trust. The Web3 gaming industry is still stagnating in search of a breakthrough.

Currently, Web3 games are at a critical crossroads: will they become a true vehicle for innovation, or will they fall into the final chapter of a speculative bubble? To move forward, the industry must confront its limitations and establish a clear breakthrough strategy.

Fundamental Limitations of Web3 Games: Closed Ecosystems

The core crisis of Web3 games stems from a closed ecosystem structure. Despite promoting openness and interoperability, the reality often falls short.

The current Web3 gaming ecosystem presents a paradox: most games operate on isolated blockchain infrastructures, creating "walled gardens". This fragmentation limits the growth potential of the industry. Game companies compete in a zero-sum environment, fighting over the "existing cake" rather than collaborating to "make the cake bigger", hindering innovation and dragging down overall development.

To break the deadlock, Web3 games must break the closed structure and build an open and interoperable ecosystem. This requires moving beyond technical fixes and making a strategic shift from individual competition to collaborative growth.

Some projects have started to tackle this challenge. For example, the B3 project proposes the vision of "Open Games," aiming to address interoperability issues from a structural level and provide a fundamental solution to the fragmentation of the Web3 gaming ecosystem.

B3: Opening a New Era of Open Gaming Ecosystem

B3 is a blockchain game infrastructure project created by former employees of a trading platform. The team found that existing blockchain infrastructure could not support the high transaction volume demands of game applications, and thus developed a high-performance, low-cost solution tailored specifically for games.

B3's ambitions go beyond optimizing throughput. After the mainnet launch in August 2024, the team will release the "Open Game Declaration," aimed at addressing structural issues in Web3 gaming. The declaration advocates for maximum interoperability, making games a part of the interconnected open ecosystem.

As of May 2025, the B3 chain has reached 6.9 million wallet addresses, with a total of over 300 million transactions, establishing its leading position in gaming infrastructure.

Open Game Level 3: Game Optimization Infrastructure

The third layer of the Open Game is the philosophical foundation and technical cornerstone of the B3 vision, achieving two main objectives through the concept of third-layer infrastructure:

1. Develop high-performance Rollup infrastructure "B3 Chain" to provide an optimized environment for gaming;

2. Help game companies build horizontally scalable "game chains" based on the B3 chain, maintaining interoperability while achieving independence.

B3 Chain: High-performance Rollup infrastructure built on a certain chain

B3 Chain provides infrastructure for game developers without the need for a dedicated blockchain. It inherits the security and flexibility of the EVM stack while achieving low-cost, high-performance transaction processing through an off-chain scaling solution based on Optimium.

This off-chain third layer infrastructure is specifically designed to meet the needs of the gaming industry. Existing second layer solutions are still limited when facing millions of concurrent gaming transactions. The B3 chain addresses this bottleneck through a third layer architecture specifically designed for gaming.

As of July 2024, the cost of a single transaction on the B3 chain is only $0.001, significantly lower than other mainstream public chains. This enables developers to operate blockchain games reliably and efficiently, eliminating cost friction.

Game Chain: A customized infrastructure that combines independence and scalability.

The B3 team provides internal toolkits and technical support for companies developing "Game Chain" based on the B3 chain. This model allows game companies to maintain autonomy while achieving seamless interoperability within the larger B3 ecosystem.

These game chains adopt a central radiating architecture: a certain chain is the central hub, and the B3 chain operates as radiating nodes with each game chain. This structure allows each game to run in an independent high-performance environment while maintaining cross-chain connectivity and shared infrastructure.

Developers can add functionality chains on demand, similar to designing microservices. For example, setting up a dedicated chain for high-traffic NFT transactions to avoid the "noisy neighbor problem".

Currently, four game studios are building a game chain, forming the early pillars of an interconnected open game ecosystem supported by B3 infrastructure.

Basement.fun: On-chain gaming platform

Basement.fun is the first front-end client of the B3 team, providing a user-friendly entry point for blockchain games. This platform allows users to experience blockchain games without needing professional Web3 knowledge, and provides developers with easy tools for deploying and managing blockchain games.

User-Friendly Design: Seamless Onboarding Experience

Users can register with just an email or phone number. The platform supports a global account model that integrates social login, EOA wallets, and smart wallets. The guest mode allows for instant games without login, significantly lowering the entry barrier.

To enhance usability, Basement.fun adopts the self-developed B3 account and the chain abstraction technology AnySpend. This feature allows users to instantly access cross-chain assets through a single login account without the need for bridging or exchanging, providing a smooth experience similar to Web2.

In addition to gaming, Basement.fun also serves as a social hub to promote player interaction. The "Play-to-Win" real-time tournaments, which feature a mix of competition and cooperation, support an immersive experience, with all game processes and rewards recorded on-chain to ensure transparency.

Developer-friendly release platform: web-based game launcher

Basement.fun serves as a publishing platform, providing a web-based game launcher for easy deployment and management of blockchain games. Through this platform, developers can implement key blockchain features such as token gating and a task system based on on-chain activities.

In addition, the platform provides operational tools such as game reviews, leaderboard management, and notification functions, allowing developers to focus on game design and content creation rather than backend infrastructure.

Hypothesis on the Future of the Gaming Industry to be Launched by B3

B3's vision for open gaming not only brings new possibilities for Web3 games but also for the entire gaming industry. Although the traditional industry has developed for decades, it is still constrained by centralized decision-making and closed economic structures. B3 aims to break these limitations by building a more open, interconnected, and community-driven ecosystem, paving the way for innovative new paths.

Has the decision-making power in game development shifted from publishers to the community?

In traditional games, large publishers control core decisions, limiting development and creative diversity. Studios often rely on commercially validated remakes or sequels rather than investing in new IPs, leading to a stagnation of innovation.

B3 will provide an alternative model through tokenized community governance. By using B3 tokens, the community can directly vote on game projects, and selected works will receive funding for development.

This model allows game development to more transparently reflect the interests of players rather than publishers. B3 aims to create a growth space for original player-driven creativity that is not restricted by top-down market logic.

Ultimately, the vision of open gaming for B3 goes beyond technological interoperability, introducing a more transparent and inclusive governance structure, empowering the community to shape the development direction, and injecting new vitality into the gaming industry.

Has the gaming industry shifted from competition to collaboration?

The traditional gaming industry suffers from structural inefficiencies, most notably the isolation of user data. This fragmentation leads to difficulties in precise targeting and cross-platform marketing. Coupled with rising user acquisition costs and declining marketing efficiency, companies face severe challenges.

In contrast, B3 has launched a global state system that aligns with the vision of open gaming, allowing user data, achievements, and evaluations to be recorded and shared across all game chains. This shared infrastructure supports more precise and effective marketing.

B3 proposes various collaboration models based on high interoperability. The "shared incentive" model encourages games to expand their user base collaboratively, replacing monopolistic user competition. The "shared liquidity" model enables the free flow of game tokens through B3 tokens or other underlying asset bridges.

The collaborative ecological structure of B3 points to a sustainable long-term development path for Web3 games, transcending competitive fragmentation and moving towards shared value creation.

Is the boundary between gaming and finance becoming blurred?

The gaming industry has long connected the virtual and real economies. However, these economic systems operate in a closed environment. Platform providers and publishers charge high fees, and users are restricted to creating captured value within a specific ecosystem. This centralized platform structure hinders users from fully realizing their economic potential.

B3 builds an open and extensible economic ecosystem through high interoperability to address these issues. In the B3 ecosystem, various game chains support the seamless use of digital assets across game environments. The shared token sedimentation model allows players to use B3 tokens to acquire premium items or special quests across games, creating a value cycle that transcends game boundaries.

This structure expands users' economic activities from a single game to the entire B3 ecosystem, empowering users to truly own and manage the value they create. B3 will create a closer connection between virtual assets and the real economy, establishing gaming as a legitimate economic activity that goes beyond entertainment. Its infrastructure will further improve and popularize models like scholarships.

Conclusion

The Web3 gaming industry is undergoing a transformation similar to the early 2000s dot-com bubble. Initial hype and speculative interest have given way to a downturn, raising fundamental questions about sustainability and exposing unexpected challenges. Such cycles are a necessary stage in the maturation of disruptive technologies. The industry must now focus on accurate self-assessment, practical problem-solving, and the conversion of innovative value.

In this context, B3's "open gaming vision" is of great significance. They not only create new games but also provide a clearer diagnosis of the structural issues in the Web3 gaming industry, along with specific solutions. While emphasizing the interoperability of technological philosophies, they are building an open collaborative ecosystem. B3 is gathering to push a certain chain towards the second-layer market.