rewrite this title Small Screens, Vast Impact: Why Smartphones Will Break Web3 Gaming Into the Mainstream

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Victoria d’Este

Published: April 04, 2025 at 6:10 am Updated: April 04, 2025 at 6:11 am

by Ana

Edited and fact-checked:
April 04, 2025 at 6:10 am

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From the unprecedented hype of CryptoKitties to The Sandbox’s collaborations with the world’s most renowned brands, the value promise of Web3 games for the crypto community remained the same: to serve as the gateway for the general audience, onboarding it to the complex universe of digital assets through simple and intuitive concepts of entertainment. 

Yet, as time has passed, the industry now faces a crucial question: what will drive the adoption of Web3 gaming itself? The days of network congestion and technical difficulties are long gone, but the Web3 entertainment industry seems far from universal adoption… for now. 2025 seems to be shaping into a breakthrough year for the vertical that is coming to onboard new gamers through convenience, mobile integration, and seamless AI-powered user experience.

How Smartphones Changed the Gaming World

Back in the good old days of the first Rovio franchises and Minecraft PE, the gaming community was divided by the holy war between the PC and the console. Nobody took smartphones or tablets seriously. Mobile gaming was represented by, at best, a content-reduced adaptation of the “full” PC title. People continued buying PlayStation Portable.

But nothing is permanent, especially in tech. In just 15 years, the performance of smartphones’ hardware jumped from 1 GHz frequency and 512 MB of RAM in iPhone 4 to 4.4 GHz and 12 GB of RAM in most Snapdragon-based smartphones today. Under the phone’s hood now lies a formidable processing force capable of supporting cross-platform titles like PUBG, Fortnite, and World of Tanks.

In 2024, mobile games accounted for a stunning 49% of the global gaming revenue, leaving only 28% and 23% to console and PC gaming, respectively. Rapidly advancing smartphone technologies, accelerating lifestyle, and a general paradigm shift towards faster and more attention-grabbing game sessions culminated in a silent revolution. With 1.9 billion users, an 8% year-on-year growth rate, and a projected market size of over $626 billion by 2030, the mobile gaming market is now dominating the gaming industry.

This year, hypercasual mobile apps are getting popular, and this trend is unlikely to reverse. Consumers are voting for convenience, mobility, ease of use, and personalization — both in gaming and related entertainment industries like streaming or social media.

GameFi’s Revival

There is another overlooked change. In February 2025, DappRadar released a report concerning the state of GameFi. The industry is booming: with an almost 100% increase in players monthly and a stunning 386% rise year-on-year, Web3 gaming is getting back on track. 

7 million unique active wallets daily is still somewhat far from the traditional Web2 gaming engagement. What’s important, though, is that Web3 gaming is finally back on its feet to onboard the broader audience to its projects: according to DappRadar, after a dismal 2024 when GameFi and Metaverse investments plummeted by 38%, new data and key funding rounds indicate the investors’ rebuilt confidence in the Web3 gaming vertical.

So, what brings Web3 gaming back on the radar? Similar to the success stories of the Phantom Wallet and Pump.fun, Web3 gaming and the crypto industry in general are at that stage of development where adoption is driven predominantly by UI and UX advancements. To put it simply, it is no longer the promise of decentralized digital ownership and monetary incentives that helps attract new players to GameFi — rather, it is the convenience and seamlessness of the game session experience delivering better retention rates.

And this is precisely where the advent of rollups, account abstraction, and mobile gaming become the ultimate gamechanger. Modern GameFi projects have the upper hand over their predecessors. They offer quick and seamless wallet connection, fast transaction confirmation, and often low or no fees for in-game items. They also allow easy access from anywhere, anytime. It is no surprise that almost all of the major Web3 gaming projects are taking it to mobile. 

One of the leading projects driving this shift is ZKcandy, an AI-powered Layer-2 built on ZKsync’s Elastic Network. Designed with a focus on immersive gaming ecosystems, ZKcandy is setting a new standard for AI-enhanced gameplay. By integrating unscripted storylines, dynamic NPCs, and deeply personalized gaming experiences, ZKcandy is ensuring that mobile-first Web3 gaming is not just accessible but also engaging at an unprecedented level. 

The project benefits from the backing of iCandy Interactive—Southeast Asia’s largest game studio, responsible for over 500 games, including 180 AAA titles, with more than 300 million downloads. With strategic partnerships involving WEMIX, Animoca Brands, and Spartan Group, as well as over $4 million in funding, ZKcandy is well-equipped to redefine Web3 entertainment.

From Age of Dino appearing on Google Play to Heroes of Mavia going to the App Store, from the anticipated mobile launch of Project Legends to the deployment of The Sandbox, the Web3 industry is undergoing a fundamental strategy pivot.

There is no better proof this approach works than Off The Grid’s consistent 4.9 million monthly users. Yielding much higher levels of user engagement than the PC-only alternatives, mobile Web3 gaming seems to be the long-missing link to broader adoption.

AI-powered UX Needs to Follow

However, it isn’t only up to mobile to open the pathways for the inflow of new audiences to Web3 entertainment. The accessibility breakthrough must be supported by even better in-game UX and further degrees of integration with the most convenient mobile wallets. A recent survey by a16z Games shows that over 70% of game development studios are already using AI in their work, increasing productivity and reducing costs. The advancement of AI agents can also be leveraged to create an AI-enabled mobile-first Web3 entertainment infrastructure. From NFT economy management to personalized onboarding and HUD (heads-up display) interaction, AI agents have the potential to make the Web3 gaming experience even more seamless and accessible.

Mobile-first is the embodiment of UX-first, and it is up to AI to power this transformation. It is not only gaming that should be doing this. Entertainment’s pathway to onboard broader audiences and break the benchmarks lies in integration, convenience, and hiding the wires to eliminate the hurdles of the previous Web3 experience. 

Thankfully, the market participants seem to understand it, and the strategy pays back — just look at the 386% year-on-year increase. Web3 gaming can become the gateway to broader adoption and everyday use of crypto, but to do so, it needs to provide a perfect UX.

Bottom Line

As mobile gaming continues to grow in its influence on the global market, the success of Web3 gaming will go hand-in-hand with its ability to adapt and use available tools within the industry. In the very near future, Web3 gaming could become the cornerstone of digital entertainment, allowing for mainstream crypto adoption. With increasing investments and growing user engagement, 2025 may well be the year that Web3 gaming fulfills its immense promise.

About The Author

Victoria is a writer on a variety of technology topics including Web3.0, AI and cryptocurrencies. Her extensive experience allows her to write insightful articles for the wider audience.

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Victoria d’Este