Play-to-Earn: A Qualitative Analysis of the Experiences and Challenges Faced By Axie Infinity Online Gamers Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic

One of the most in-demand and divisive of these new games that allow players to collect tradeable crypto currencies is the Axie Infinity. Non-employed, along with the students, are finding it difficult to find stable employment since this pandemic brought many setbacks to employed and more particularly to unemployed students. This study explores the lived experiences, challenges, and coping mechanisms of Axie Infinity Players amidst the pandemic. The study employed the Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis with 20 participants. The following conclusions were drawn based on the study's findings: (1 )For the most part, playing Axie Infinity is not as easy as it looks. (2) Most of the Axie Infinity players are students and it takes a lot of their time playing Axie Infinity that most of their time is spent playing instead of resting and studying just to reach their quota for that day. (3)Axie Infinity is both a blessing and stress. The Axie Infinity play-to-earn game is described as a blessing because it became the number one source of income of the participants despite being amid this pandemic. It also became their source of stress because it adds pressure, tension, and strain to their lives as both a player and a student. (4) Axie Infinity players need a strong support system in their psychological, spiritual, emotional, and physical aspects to withstand the situation of lacking sleep and rest, the pressure of the need to reach the quota, slow internet connection, judgments of the people that surround them, and not being able to focus in both playing and studying. (5) Finally, Axie Infinity players value themselves by coping with negative experiences and challenges they have been through.