Can Traditional Web3 Marketing Route Make a Game Greater?

Now, an interesting question arises: what if Oh Baby Games had chosen the typical marketing and publishing tactics of a Web3 studio? It’s a fascinating “what if” scenario worth exploring. Check Part 1 if you are not familiar with one of the best Web3 racing projects.

The Allure of Traditional Web3 Tactics

If OBB had gone the traditional Web3 marketing route, they likely would have asked members to join their community, run a Zealy campaign, and engage them in social tasks in exchange for OG roles promising future rewards and airdrops. Such Web3 marketing strategies typically drive a surge of new users, creating an initial momentum that’s much stronger than organic growth alone.

Using these tactics, OBB could have dramatically increased their community size in a short time. Big influxes of users chasing token rewards would flood the Discord server, making it lively and full of activity. In theory, this approach would have resulted in more testers for their Web3 games, which might have seemed appealing from a development and feedback perspective.

The Inevitable Slowdown After Airdrops

However, history shows a common pattern: once the airdrop is over, server activity often drops to a trickle. Users who joined solely for rewards lose interest once the incentives vanish. As a result, the project would need to repeatedly re-engage users with more airdrops and promises, leading up to a token generation event (TGE).

This cycle typically leads to frustration when teams promise a game post-TGE but don’t deliver, causing people to lose interest and leave. The community becomes volatile—spiking during reward announcements, then drying up until the next incentive. This highlights a key issue in Web3 marketing: sustainability beyond the initial hype.

Leveraging Web3 Users Effectively

That said, a few Web3 projects have managed to leverage Web3 users extremely well. One strategy involves sustaining momentum even after the initial airdrop. After gaining a large influx of users, projects can run continuous engagement campaigns—something we’ve worked on with several others by incorporating hype engines—to keep people engaged, so they remain interested and can later be recruited as test players.

If OBB had adopted such an approach, they might have attracted more test players compared to their current organic path. People invested in tokens could potentially provide a wealth of feedback. However, the quality of feedback might be lower, as many participants could be “mercenaries” more interested in rewards than in providing thoughtful insights or genuinely improving the game. It’s a trade-off: quantity of testers could increase, but community quality might suffer.

Token-First Launch: A Risky Proposition

Another common Web3 approach is to launch a token first and then start game development. But how does reality pan out in such scenarios?

The Risk of Token Failure:There’s always a risk that external factors could cause the token to fail. If the token tanks, the game usually loses traction quickly. The team may become frustrated and move on, sometimes even before writing a single line of code. This pattern isn’t uncommon in Web3 gaming where projects stall because they got sidetracked by tokenomics instead of focusing on building a great game.

Token Success Doesn’t Guarantee Long-Term Players:Suppose a token becomes a tremendous success. Chances are, many people who didn’t get the airdrop might leave, leaving behind a core group that sticks with the project. However, even the best Discord servers see a retention rate of only about 50% each month. After three months, most of the initial surge could vanish if the game isn’t shipped or providing ongoing value. Timing becomes critical. For Web3 gaming projects relying on token success, having the game ready to go before the TGE is crucial to make the large community worth maintaining.

Will This Mean More Players for OBK?

A key question is: if the token is a huge success and the game launches immediately, will that result in more players for OBK? Based on our analysis of Web3 marketing trends, the answer is likely no.

Most Web3 marketing strategies tend to kill off product momentum rather than enhance it. These strategies often overestimate the number of true, engaged users. The influx of airdrop hunters muddies the data, making it hard to discern who genuinely cares about the game. With so many users chasing rewards, the feelings and feedback of true gamers might get neglected. Although a larger pool can yield more information on alpha testing and user sentiment, quantity doesn’t always translate to quality in Web3 gaming.

When the dust settles, players will choose to stick with a game because it’s genuinely fun and engaging—not because of token hype. At its core, success in Web3 gaming still hinges on whether the game is cool and fun to play.

The Power of Community: Can It Save a Game?

Is there a scenario where the power of community can turn a product into something exceptional? Yes, there are a few cases where a vibrant community has dramatically improved a product.

User-Driven Value:Take, for example, a UCG-driven game like “Banana.” In this world, the value of the game is driven entirely by how many people create content within it. The stronger the community, the more creations there are, and the better the game becomes. This concept aligns with user-generated content trends in Web3 gaming, where the community can directly influence a game's evolution.

Cult-Like Following:Another example is “Rabbit.” Despite having subpar hardware, Rabbit has cultivated a cult-like following. The developers actively hack their OS to enhance the device—similar to how third-party apps have enriched the iPhone experience. Here, the community’s passion and creativity help push the product forward despite inherent limitations.

How Could This Happen for OBB?

So, how could something similar happen for OBB? Initially, people might join for the token or rewards. But if the community is so great that people enjoy the conversations, make friends, and genuinely connect, they will stay. Over time, as members bond, tournaments and events become more than just a means to earn points—they become social gatherings.

Imagine OBB hosting local meetups or organizing online events where players race with friends rather than random strangers. This could transform a typical social racing game into a fun, community-driven experience. Leveraging genuine community connections can pivot the gaming experience from transactional to relational, something that traditional Web3 marketing often overlooks.

Key Takeaways for Users and Developers

For users and developers interested in Web3 marketing and Web3 gaming, here are a few takeaways:

• Incentives Can’t Save a Game: No amount of rewards or community-building gimmicks can salvage a poorly designed game. Gamers are discerning—they won’t stick around if the core gameplay isn’t enjoyable.
• Be Cautious with Web3 Hype: When developing a real game, it might be better to avoid being overly focused on flashy Web3 marketing tactics. The lure of rapid user growth through token incentives can lead to a situation where you “die before you even have a chance to create a real game,” as resources shift from product quality to marketing hype.
• Community’s Limits: A strong community can help bolster a game, but only to an extent. If the game itself isn’t fun or engaging, there’s only so much the community can do to save it.
• User-Generated Content and Input: Exceptions exist where the game’s core content depends on user input or creation. In these cases, a vibrant community can directly contribute to the game’s value, much like on user-driven platforms or evolving Web3 games that adapt based on community feedback.

In essence, while traditional Web3 marketing strategies could potentially increase numbers and initial activity for Web3 gaming projects like OBB, they come with significant trade-offs—particularly concerning community quality and product focus. The challenge lies in balancing aggressive growth tactics with genuine engagement and solid game development. Ultimately, success is grounded in offering a genuinely fun and engaging game experience that transcends marketing gimmicks. For OBB, the future success of Oh Baby Kart will likely depend on its ability to maintain a robust community while staying true to creating a great game, rather than relying solely on Web3 marketing hype.