axies

Traders flock to the gaming cryptocurrency in the wake of a sector-wide price rally, but its gains are comparatively higher — much higher.

The price of Axie Infinity’s native token, AXS, more than doubled in just three days of trading amid speculation that it is going to revolutionalize the blockchain-enabled gaming industry forever.

The AXS/USD exchange rate reached a record value of $32.69 on Friday, up 31.28% intraday, and about 131% from its Tuesday low of $14.09. That placed the pair in the list of best-performing digital assets on a year-to-date timeframe; its 2021 gains are now above 5,000%.

Axie Infinity’s massive upside moves appeared due to its rising popularity as a play-to-earn gaming service. In detail, the Ethereum-enabled blockchain project is a Pokemon-like game, wherein players adopt, breed and trade digital pets — called Axies — in the form of nonfungible tokens.

Axie developer Sky Mavis called the game “a nation with a real economy,” which allows people to shape economic policies and practice local governance in a metaverse. The virtual environment has gained traction among netizens, insomuch that its total revenue closed toward $120 million in July versus $1.92 million at the beginning of this year.

Analysts at Delphi Digital forecasted that Axie’s revenue would reach approximately $153 million by the end of July and $1.1 billion by the 2021’s close.

What is AXS?

Axie developers focus on creating a play-to-earn model. In doing so, the project rewards players for the effort and time they put in both playing and growing the ecosystem. Every functional ecosystem needs tokens to transfer value. In Axie’s case, two assets fill that role: Axie Infinity Shards (AXS) and Small Love Potion (SLP).

Players earn SLP through Axie’s gameplay. They can later exchange the token for fiat, enabling a system where playing time turns into a person-hour wage. Axie reported that many of its players were making $5 a day by playing Axie, but the income surged to $20 as of late.

play-to-earn is basically yield farming, only it's prettier and it appeals to a larger base of people

that's it, that's the tea

— 0xElle (, ) (@0xElle) July 23, 2021

Meanwhile, AXS operates as a settlement currency inside the Axie Infinity ecosystem, using trading fees, governance, and Axies’ buying and selling. As a result, its holders receive 95% of Axie Infinity’s total revenue, just like a government that receives tax revenues from its citizens.

Sky Mavis holds about 20% of the total AXS token supply.

The proposition has helped to push AXS demand higher even amid an ongoing sector-wide downtrend. Since its launch, the Axie Infinity token has raked in more than 18,000% profits for its investors.

AXS price technicals

The latest AXS rally also surfaced in the wake of a sector-wide rebound, led by Elon Musk’s revelation that his space technology firm, SpaceX, holds Bitcoin (BTC). He also committed that Tesla would resume the Bitcoin payment option for its electric vehicles once the flagship cryptocurrency switches to green energy solutions for mining.

Related: Axie Infinity (AXS) axes almost half its value following 971% bull run

Bitcoin’s rebound from below $30,000 has sent altcoins in a similar retracement trajectory, thereby benefiting AXS. However, the Axie Infinity token posted better short-term profits than its digital asset rivals, given the euphoria surrounding its gaming project.

Technically, AXS’s latest move uphill had it break above its parabolic resistance. The cryptocurrency now holds $24.07 as its interim support while eyeing a run-up toward its next potential upside targets at $36.48, $56.57, $76.65, and so on.

Conversely, slipping below $24.07 exposes AXS to deeper downside levels at $19.78, $16.40 and $14.03.

AXS trading volume and market sentiment rise 

Additionally, VORTECS™ data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro detected a bullish outlook for AXS on Friday before its recent price rise.

In detail, the VORTECS™ Score, exclusive to Cointelegraph, is an algorithmic comparison of historic and current market conditions derived from a combination of data points, including market sentiment, trading volume, recent price movements and Twitter activity.

As seen in the chart above, the VORTECS™ Score for AXS first flipped green early on Friday at 00:15 UTC. Then the AXS prices began to rise, reaching as high as 78 four hours before the price peaked at $32.14.

At the time of writing, the VORTECS™ Score for AXS has slid back down to 65, suggesting that the conditions are still favorable for more upside price potential.

The views and opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cointelegraph.com. Every investment and trading move involves risk, you should conduct your own research when making a decision.