A clicker game on Steam recently became the talk of the town after flipping some of the most popular games on the platform. ‘Banana’ became a sensation for its NFT-like rewards, which can be sold for over $1,000 on Steam’s marketplace. However, the clicking phenomenon has sparked a debate among crypto community members about the state of crypto and web3 gaming.
Banana is an indie game on Steam that consists of clicking the image of a banana to obtain rewards. Although not the first of its kind, its players are rewarded with digital bananas every few hours. Rewards can go from common bananas worth pennies to rare bananas, which can be sold for up to $1,300.
The free-to-play game hit the news after it surpassed some of the most popular titles on the platform. Banana flipped Elder Ring and Baldur’s Gate 3 in the most-played games list. The clicker game only came second to Counter-Strike 2.
As of this writing, the game remains the fourth most played game on Steam, with over 344,000 current players and a 578,000 peak in the last 24 hours. Moreover, it reached an all-time peak of 917,000 players earlier this month.
Banana is the fourth most-played game on Steam. Source:
However, the simplicity of the game raised some alarms among gamers. Many believed the clicker game contained malware that turns devices into crypto miners. While others wondered if the game was a scam of sorts.
One of Banana’s developers, Hery, denied the accusations. Hery told news media outlet Polygon that it “is pretty much a stupid game” with bananas, not a scam.
Many users also speculated if the game was related to NFTs and cryptocurrencies, as it had an NFT-like feeling but without the blockchain technology. A Banana team member clarified that “Banana wants nothing to do with crypto.”
They that the game had no intention of integrating crypto as it doesn’t “mix well” with Steam. Additionally, they emphasized that it started as “a goofy game to collect some bananas on your Steam profile.”
Are Crypto And Web3 Gaming Going Banana?
Although Banana doesn’t plan on integrating with the crypto industry, the game sparked several conversations among the community. Several members took the opportunity to discuss its implications for web3 gaming.
A user highlighted the game’s popularity despite its simple mechanics, proposing the industry doesn’t need ‘AAA games’ to break out. Several community members agreed and there’s a misconception about the type of games needed in web3.
Although complex and super action games are believed to be the only option, “dudes just wanna have fun and make points,” said an X user. Seemingly, the sentiment among many was that the industry is “making it more complicated than it is.”
Some users that Banana and similar games could help with web3 gaming. The meme quality of the game was pointed out as a potential catalyst for broader adoption.
Similarly, this week, Avalanche Gaming discussed Banana’s implications on its Gamified Show. According to Paul Bettner, game developer and co-founder of Playful Studios, Banana could be a getaway to the larger world of crypto gaming.
To Bettner, “the behavior that we all love and participate in web3 as degens and web3 and crypto native users is, in fact, universal.” While watching the phenomenon of Steam’s clicker sensation evolve, the game developer that users were “a bunch of degens that don’t know they’re degens yet.”
Ultimately, he considers that “people are learning how to degen.” If most of these users knew “what a wallet or a blockchain was, they would realize they could do that at 1000x the scale on a blockchain.”
According to the weekly chart, the total crypto market capitalization is at $2.24 trillion. Source: TOTAL on
Featured Image from Unsplash.com, Chart from TradingView.com
Rubmar is a writer and translator who has been a crypto enthusiast for the past four years. Her goal as a writer is to create informative, complete, and easily understandable pieces accessible to those entering the crypto space. After learning about cryptocurrencies in 2019, Rubmar became curious about the world of possibilities the industry offered, quickly learning that financial freedom was at the palm of her hand with the developing technology.
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From a young age, Rubmar was curious about how languages work, finding special interest in wordplay and the peculiarities of dialects. Her curiosity grew as she became an avid reader in her teenage years. She explored freedom and new words through her favorite books, which shaped her view of the world. Rubmar acquired the necessary skills for in-depth research and analytical thinking at university, where she studied Literature and Linguistics. Her studies have given her a sharp perspective on several topics and allowed her to turn every stone in her investigations.
In 2019, she first dipped her toes in the crypto industry when a friend introduced her to Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies, but it wasn’t until 2020 that she started to dive into the depth of the industry. As Rubmar began to understand the mechanics of the crypto sphere, she saw a new world yet to be explored.
At the beginning of her crypto voyage, she discovered a new system that allowed her to have control over her finances. As a young adult of the 21st century, Rubmar has faced the challenges of the traditional banking system and the restrictions of fiat money.
After the failure of her home country’s economy, the limitations of traditional finances became clear. The bureaucratic, outdated structure made her feel hopeless and powerless amid an aggressive and distorted system created by hyperinflation. However, learning about decentralization and self-custody opened a realm of opportunities. Cryptocurrencies allowed her to experience financial control for the first time and expand her financial education.
Moreover, the peculiar nature of the crypto community sparked Rubmar’s curiosity about the other layers of the industry. As a result, she found a particular interest in discovering the diverse perspectives of investors, market watchers, experts, and developers. Her attempts to better understand the crypto space made her realize the strong links of the community with other industries, enriching her perspective of the sector. As someone who spends most of her day online, Rubmar enjoys finding the points where the crypto world meets with her other passions and hobbies –or her favorite memes.
In her free time, she usually finds joy in different art forms. As a child, she enlisted in every extra-curricular activity in her hometown, including music classes, dancing, jewelry making, and the local chorus. Despite her many attempts to learn different instruments, Rubmar only knows how to play the xylophone, which she played for 7 years in her school’s marching band.
She also has a passion for learning new languages and cultures, having set the goal to learn another six languages – currently attempting to learn Italian and Korean. Scrapbooking, paper crafting, and bookbinding are her biggest interests outside of work, constantly taking classes and attending workshops to learn new techniques. The rest of her free time is spent stressing over football matches and transfer market news or feeding cats –hers or stray.
In summary, Rubmar seeks to present entertaining and educational pieces to be enjoyed by everybody, aiming to report on the latest news and offer a unique perspective while adding a meme or a pun whenever possible.
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