Merry Christmas, happy Hanukkah, joyous holidays, or just hoping that your December 25th has some cheer in it this year! On this particular 25th we take a look at the top games and NFT collections in activity, with some surprising changes this week!
Alien Worlds made some rumblings again as they announced the implementation of land maintenance. With the Planetary Syndicates in full swing with elected Councils and proposals making their way through the system, Alien Worlds may have finally achieved some of the community synergy they have been looking to create these past two years!
We also have new releases from the MOMOverse, Star Atlas, Blankos Block Party, Delysium, and Benji Bananas, as well as new and ongoing Christmas / Seasonal events, and much, much more!
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Read on for a look at the most active web3 games and NFT projects for the week. And be sure to keep an eye on our website and Twitter feed for the latest developments in the web3 gaming space!
Top play-to-earn games by active users
| Game | Active Users 7 days | Change |
| 1. Alien Worlds | 360.43k | +6.73% |
| 2. Splinterlands | 274.4k | +6.23% |
| 3. Benji Bananas | 111.54k | -30.71% |
| 4. Farmers World | 87.92k | +6.14% |
| 5. Planet IX | 76.78k | +7.5% |
| 6. Upland | 66.29k | -4.27% |
| 7. Era7: Game of Truth | 42.04k | +0.46% |
| 8. Meta Apes | 37.93k | +58.05% |
| 9. Tiny World | 36.13k | -7.63% |
| 10. Axie Infinity | 34.79k | -13.95% |
Alien Worlds and Splinterlands remain strong with their recent announcements and ongoing game updates. Benji Bananas takes a hit in active users as they were between tournaments this week. But with a new one just starting, expect to see these numbers climb again.
We have a new entry into the top 10 with Meta Apes. They released a game update this week introducing Relics, which are mintable NFTs. And since the game is free to play, they likely have a lot of new players chasing that pot of NFTs!
Top 10 NFT collections by volume traded
| Collection | Volume traded 7 days | Volume Change |
| 1. Bored Ape Yacht Club | $13.4M | +3.42% |
| 2. Bored Ape Kennel Club | $10.288M | +594.79% |
| 3. Mutant Ape Yacht Club | $9.84M | +26.05% |
| 4. Otherdeed for Otherside | $8.47M | +116.98% |
| 5. Wolf Game | $5.03M | +185.75% |
| 6. Azuki | $3.23M | -12.16% |
| 7. CryptoPunks | $2.92M | +15.64% |
| 8. ASCIIBirds Genesis | $2.78M | ?? |
| 9. Clone X | $1.98M | -12.12% |
| 10. Gods Unchained | $1.96M | +46.18% |
As expected, the Trump cards dropped out of the top 10, though just barely (they currently sit at 11th with $1.95M in trading volume).
Instead, we have the Bored Ape group claiming the top four spots on the charts! The surprise entry here is the Bored Ape Kennel Club (BAKC), with a significant increase in volume. And the reason for that is a new trailer BAYC dropped a few days ago about an upcoming ‘mint event’ in January where holding a BAKC grants some sort of increased whitelist status. These canine companions now have a floor price of over 8 ETH!!
But at number five, however, we have a surprise entry to the top 10 this week. Wolf Game released the initial version of their full game about sheep and wolves which involves some fairly complex game mechanics and the destruction of sheep NFTs. With over $5 million in trading volume this week, we have to see if the players can sustain that sort of expenditure going forward.
And ASCIIBirds Genesis jumps into our charts with what is apparently a major amount of wash trading! When I was looking into this project to see where the volume was coming from, I found the same NFTs being ‘sold’ repeatedly over several days for the exact same prices! So, I don’t know what is going on here, but don’t ape into this collection thinking that it is the next hot thing! This is a great example of why you should always do your own research before buying anything!
