Solana Foundation Chair: Play-to-Earn has "died," Industry's Billions of Dollars Investment Could be One of the Worst Bets

On March 21, Solana Foundation Chair Lily Liu stated that the blockchain gaming industry "will not recover." She noted that while the sector once aimed to fuel Web3 and the metaverse via on-chain assets and open worlds, real-world performance has fallen far short of expectations. Solana was once seen as one of the most promising public blockchains for large-scale blockchain games, thanks to its high performance and low-cost support for real-time interactions. Projects like Star Atlas and Stepn gained early attention, but the broader GameFi space has been in steady decline since its 2021 peak. Market analysts point out that blockchain games have long relied on "Play-to-Earn" and other token incentive models—but they lack the gameplay depth and content to attract core gamers, leading to weak user retention and unsustainable ecosystems. Firms including Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), Framework Ventures, and Animoca Brands have poured billions into the sector, with meager returns to show for it. Still, some companies are exploring pivots: Mythical Games and Gunzilla Games, for example, are gradually de-emphasizing blockchain elements, framing them as optional features rather than core mechanics to boost user experience and market adoption.