Move-to-Earn: The Latest Crypto Sensation that Rewards Users for Engaging in Physical Activities

Introduction

Yea, staying active and living a healthy life can earn you real money in the virtual world – it’s a new Move2Earn industry that is raising inside the crypto industry.

This is a new era.

People now can earn real money on the internet by performing basic tasks such as jogging, swimming, playing games, running, boxing, shopping, etc. Move-to-earn, however, is one of these potentials of the virtual world.

I get a lot of questions on my Twitter about Stepn and the current hype around it - is it real, is it a Ponzi scheme, does it worth it, and so on. So I decided to write about the overall Move-to-Earn movement for people to get a better understanding of its basics. And then you can do your own research on this or that project.

How the Move-to-Earn platform works

Pokémon Go, an augmented reality mobile game was developed in 2016 and in some sense is one of the first prototypes of Move-to-Earn apps. This particular game uses the GPS in mobile devices to find, capture, attract and combat Pokémon, such that it appears like it is all happening in the players' physical setting. That marked the beginning of a new reality.

With the popularization of AR by Pokémon Go developers, Move-to-Earn incorporates the basic features of mobile Augmented Reality and play-to-earn (P2E) components, including blockchain technologies, to create an innovative uniqueness.

AR is a system that integrates three significant factors: a combo of the virtual and real worlds, an authentic communication system, and a 3D administration of real and virtual items. AR experience is immersive as it replaces the player's real-time ecosystem with a simulated environment. That is the motive behind M2E

Move-to-earn is a little bit different from Play-to-Earn (though one can be integrated into another); in P2E, players are rewarded for playing online games. M2E, on the other hand, enables users to earn actual money by engaging in outdoor physical activities like running, playing soccer, swimming, etc.

M2E uses smart devices like watches and phones to collate users' data while they indulge in physical activities; these data are then transmitted and converted into an in-app asset.

Following the covid pandemic, people were instilled with a vibrant consciousness of the necessity of living and maintaining a healthy and active life by engaging in outdoor physical activities. In the US, more and more people are participating in running exercises. In 2020, 30% of Americans, over 100 million people, indulged in health run and walking. This indicates a lot of potential in the move-to-earn since it incentivizes runners and rewards them accordingly using cryptocurrencies and NFT protocols.

Integrating GameFi and Move-to-Earn

Let’s call it MoveFi- Fitness Finance, an environment where people are rewarded for running, has experienced trials and errors. The errors are attributed to the absence of a basic app that accesses and collates people's data and rewards them accordingly. However, the present ushered in a transformation; it appears Move-to-Earn has gained its grounds by integrating GameFi into its protocol, bridging the gap of lack of applications for rewards.

With the advantages crypto and NFT offer, combining GameFi with move-to-earn enables people to become the true owners of the rewards gained in move-to-earn applications. These rewards can be further displayed, exchanged or traded.

Features of Move-to-Earn

First, it is a gameplay that transmits people's actual actions to a virtual reality, where they are rewarded accordingly using blockchain. Move-to-earn is a blockchain network that supports people to live a healthy and active life by incentivizing exercises on running and other physical activities. It incorporates an NFT marketplace. Move-to-earn application features NFT marketplace to allow users to earn money and receive their rewards.

Move-to-Earn uses GPS and Sensors. To create a fair reward system and avoid users who cheat, move-to-earn projects use GPS and Sensors to collate data as users participate in physical activities.

Move-to-Earn Projects

The M2E is a fast-growing crypto industry with lots of projects that market the move-to-earn protocol's advantages.

It has introduced a new way of making passive income in the crypto industry.

M2E projects such as StepN, Genopets, Dotmoovs, Step App, OliveX Peloton, Mirror, etc., attract users to live an active life by participating in physical exercises and getting rewarded.

These M2E projects use blockchain technologies like the metaverse, cryptocurrency, NFTs, sensors, GPS, user location etc., to connect people with keeping fit. Below is an insight into a couple of the M2E projects.

Please keep in mind that in this article we don’t touch on such things as tokenomics of the projects and other very important things. Some of the projects might become a scam. So please do your research before buying anything inside the apps and platforms. If you want me to speak about the tokenomical part of such projects - let me know on my Twitter.

Stepn

StepN is a Solana network-based mobile game app. It offers NFT sneakers, which players use to engage in physical activities like running, walking, etc. They earn GST or GMT tokens. These tokens can be used for in-game asset purchases, traded or exchanged.

StepN features a web 3.0 user-friendly dashboard, an NFT marketplace and a crypto wallet. For an immersive experience, users must maintain GPS levels to ensure accuracy. Interestingly, this move-to-earn project attracts many users and positive reviews because of its unique features and components. StepN is a mobile game app accessible through the different mobile OS app stores.

Currently, it’s the most famous M2E app.

Genopets

Genopets is the Move-to-Earn project that is built on the Solana network. Integrating the features of P2E and M2E. The gameplay involves raising, evolving, training and battling pets like in Pokemon Go games.

The game app also uses players tracking devices like smartwatches and phones to track the real-life physical activities of users, collate data and convert the same into XP for nurturing and upgrading pets.

Combining GameFi and M2E has made Genopest a bi-economic ecosystem. Users can participate in M2E activities, upgrade their pets, and earn NFTs and Genopets tokens, which can be traded or exchanged. Users are also allowed to engage in play-to-earn NFT games and earn passively. Quite interesting.

Move-to-Earn and the future

Of course, inside Move-to-Earn is a very good idea. It encourages people to walk more and run more. It even means that users can take a walk to their offices to earn tokens. It’s hoped that they’ll spend free time more productively and healthily.

Potentially, users of M2E will, in addition to making money can improve their health standards and remain largely healthy and active. The success of move-to-earn, just like play-to-earn, is an opportunity for more similar projects to emerge.

If you want the latest updates and research about DAO, metaverse, crypto, Play2Earn, and the NFT industry and to participate in different crypto contests and activities - Follow me on Twitter.

In the meantime, if you have any questions about crypto or you are a Crypto / GameFi / metaverse / NFT project and want to know more about how to promote your project, you can always contact me via Telegram (@baloyan)

P.S. Check out my previous articles at HackerNoon: