Blockchain gaming, P2E, GameFi, and the Metaverse saw a huge expansion in adoption since 2020. Games like ‘Axie Infinity’ introduced the world to a new way to earn online while having fun. However, like all industries, not every company will survive, and only the top names in the business stay standing.
Gala Games is one of those companies making waves in this space with a unique project. Decentraland, Star Atlas, and The Sandbox are just a few examples of the top competitors in the Metaverse and Gala Games.
Through its native token, GALA, it’s adding value to the online blockchain gaming experience for users around the globe.
Gala Games created a stable of high-quality games, with the additional benefit of the blockchain incorporating full ownership of NFTs and earnings on the platform. Gala Games describes the company as a blockchain gaming ecosystem, creating games users want to play.
Gala Games offers a platform featuring several fun games built on its Gala Network, which utilizes the GALA token to identify in-game assets owned by players. Users can purchase and sell assets with full control over their digital assets.
This guide covers how to and where to buy the GALA crypto token and then we’ll take a deep dive into this blockchain ecosystem to see if it suits your investing strategy.
Where to Buy Gala Games GALA Token
This section is our top picks of where and how to buy Gala Games GALA Crypto token. We chose these based on our experience of using them and considered fees, security, payment options and reputation.
- Uphold: Great Exchange for Newbies & Advanced Users
- Binance: Largest Crypto Exchange with Low Fees
- Coinbase: Highly Regarded and Easy to Use for Beginners
Visit The Top Pick
Uphold: Great For Buying & Selling Multiple Cryptos
Uphold is a comprehensive digital financial services platform catering to a worldwide audience, operating in over 184 countries and supporting over 200 traditional and cryptocurrency assets as well as commodities. Through seamless foreign exchange and cross-border remittance solutions, Uphold has facilitated over US$4 billion in transactions since its inception in 2015.
As a multi-asset platform, Uphold offers a distinct "Anything-to-Anything" trading experience, allowing users to effortlessly exchange between various asset classes. With integrated payment solutions, Uphold paves the way for universal access to financial services.
Founded on a robust framework of proprietary technologies and e-money applications, Uphold is dedicated to promoting a future where individuals and businesses globally can benefit from secure, transparent, equitable, and cost-effective financial services.
Pros
- 50+ Cryptocurrencies
- Easy to Use - Single Click Trading
- iOS & Android App
- Transparent Fees
- Well Regulated
Cons
- No Volume Discounts
Binance: Largest Crypto Exchange
Binance is the biggest cryptocurrency exchange in terms of daily trade volumes. Cryptocurrency investors can enjoy full access to trade over 600 crypto assets, including big movers like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and most of the top cryptos. With a minimum deposit of $10, investors can instantly start investing their crypto of choice.
Besides its large inventory of crypto assets, Binance also offers the lowest trade fees in the market. Binance charges 0.1% on all trades, and there’s an option for this figure to be further discounted by 25% for investors who hold Binance Coin – the exchange’s native token.
Funding your Binance account is seamless and straightforward. The exchange supports several deposit channels, including bank wire transfers, peer-to-peer (P2P) payments, credit/debit cards, and payment processors.
However, unlike eToro – deposits are not always free. For instance, Binance charges customers a standard fee of up to 4.50% on all crypto purchases made with debit/credit cards. Crypto deposits, on the other hand, are free.
This popular crypto exchange features a detailed learning curve and advanced trading tools, making it more suited for well-experienced traders and not beginners.
In terms of security, Binance offers the best security integrations. This broker features two-factor authentication (2FA), whitelisting, and advanced data encryption to protect customer funds and data. Also, Binance utilizes cold storage to store a vast majority of its funds, and the exchange also operates an insurance fund that protects customers in the event of an attack.
Pros
- Lowest trading fees in the market
- High liquidity on most cryptos
- Advanced trading tools
- Large crypto inventory
- Wide range of deposit channels
Cons
- Not beginner-friendly
Coinbase: Simple & Easy for Beginners
Coinbase is another great alternative best suited for newbie investors keen to learn how to buy this crypto. This platform is known for its reputation and simplified trading features.
The US-based platform allows investors to purchase, trade, and stake over 10,000 supported blockchain-based assets. To begin investing, investors must first register an account, which takes around 10 minutes. Coinbase allows users to invest a minimum investment of $2, which is one of the lowest prices in the crypto industry.
This exchange also integrates seamless deposit channels, like wire transfer, crypto deposits, debit/credit card, and e-wallet solutions, as well as fiat currencies like USD, GBP, and EUR available for cash out. Coinbase charges a standard fee of up to 3.99% for all debit card crypto purchases. However, investors enjoy 4% cash back bonuses whenever a Coinbase debit card is used to purchase crypto assets.
In terms of trading fees, users are charged between 0.5% and 4.5%, depending on the selected payment method, type of cryptocurrency, and total transaction amount.
One of the standout features that distinguishes Coinbase from other brokers is its versatility in terms of services and products offered to retail and institutional investors, ranging from exchange-based wallet and cashback visa cards, staking passive income, and asset hubs.
For security, the US-based exchange integrates 2FA verification as an added security layer to investors’ usernames and passwords, crime insurance that secures digital assets from theft and fraud, and many more. Coinbase is also licensed and regulated by top financial agencies like the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), New York State Department of Financial Services (NYSDFS), and Financial Crimes and Enforcement Network (FinCEN),
Pros
- Simplifies trading tools, perfect for beginners
- Wide selection of crypto assets
- Lowest minimum deposit in the industry
- Offers Coinbase debit card with 4% cashback bonuses
Cons
- High fees (and usually, a complex and unclear fee structure)
What is Gala Games?
The GALA token and in-game assets used in Gala Games titles exist on the Ethereum blockchain. However, the company has plans to move them to a sidechain in the future. Gala nodes (Founders nodes) currently power the Marketplace and game traffic.
Gala expects these nodes to power its sidechain eventually, but the details are unclear at this stage. According to the management team, the Gala ecosystem will reach capacity at 50,000 nodes, making it capable of handling up to 100 million monthly active users.
Currently, the Gala network has more than 22,000 nodes, but there are around 10,000 remaining licenses. A node license costs the user around 286k GALA, or roughly $60,000, and you can purchase the license directly from the Gala Games site. You can expect to earn around $100 per day as a node operator.
The network nodes provide security for the Gala Games ecosystem. Node operators must put in at least 6 hours per day to receive GALA tokens as rewards. Each node assists in hosting games, with these rewards sustaining and growing the Gala network.
To participate, users must download and install the Gala node software. Gala management intends to turn the network nodes into NFTs sold on OpenSea, and NFT marketplaces. Gala states node owners will receive the following benefits.
- Daily GALA token rewards.
- Random NFT airdrops.
- Voting rights.
- In-game token rewards, airdropped to node owners.
Players have the option of owning the NFTs they generate, and they also have the right to influence governance in the ecosystem. The Founder’s Node is a voting mechanism allowing node owners to influence game development on the platform.
The Gala Triple-Proof Node System
The Gala Games nodes are divided into three categories to maintain the integrity of the network. The three nodes form the framework for the Gala Triple-Proof Node System. Let’s unpack the TPNS in detail.
Proof-of-Work (PoW)
The PoW protocol in the triple-proof node system is the founder nodes. These tier-1 nodes feature design and construction on 50,000 owned NFTs. The Founder nodes consist of early network adapters. These users receive NFTs from new titles, receiving GALA tokens to their nominated node license.
Proof-of-Stake (PoS)
The PoS protocol in the triple-proof node stem are the paid nodes operating via smart contracts in a rental framework.
Proof-of-Storage
The PoS nodes allow for the hosting of games on the node network. It removes any reliance on other hosting platforms, such as Amazon Web Services. The mechanics of the proof-of-storage protocol maintain an economic structure, thus keeping the system consistent with all new game titles added to the platform.
Available Games
Since launching in July 2019, the Gala Games platform grew to 1.3 million active monthly users in its first two years, with 26,000 NFTs traded. The most expensive NFT sale through the Marketplace was for a staggering $ 3 million.
Gala Games is well-known for making fun of P2E and blockchain games people want to play. There are three primary titles available through the platform with more in development. Let’s look at each of them in detail.
Town Star
Town Star is the original releaser by Gala Games and a huge success for the company. It’s the first title from Gala Games to achieve status as a fully-operational game. Players can complete daily challenges to earn token rewards, but they’ll need o own an NFT to participate in these rewards.
Users can purchase their NFT from the Gala shop. Or, users can find these NFTs available on secondary markets like OpenSea. The games issue you challenges based on the number of NFTs you own. After completing an activity, Town Star rewards you with TOWN tokens for your achievements.
The number of TOWN tokens earned through each challenge varies depending on the caliber of your NFT.
Spider Tanks
Spider Tanks is another popular game released by Gala in the wake of its success with Town Star. Spider Tanks offers users a PvP brawler game compatible with desktop PCs and mobile. The game is currently in beta mode, but players have the option to buy NFTs for the game.
However, unlike Town Star, Spider Tanks is not an in-house development with Gala. Instead, it’s under development by award-winning Dutch game studio ‘Gamedia.’
According to management, Gala plans to introduce a native token for use on the platform while keeping the GALA token available. Currently, all NFTs are available for purchase with GALA tokens.
Mirandus
Mirandus is a highly-anticipated gaming title from GALA. It will also feature NFTs and GALA tokens as the backbone of the in-game asset framework.
The GALA Token – Tokenomics
The Gala Games platform uses the GALA token. It’s an ERC-20 token existing on the Ethereum Network. However, it’s also available on the Binance Smart Chain, where it features as a BEP20 token.
Users require GALA to pay for NFT purchases in the Gala Marketplace, and it also requires GALA as payment for Founder Node licenses. The Gala management team also has plans to implement GALA as payment for transactions by users on the Gala sidechain.
The Gala Games tokenomics are somewhat unclear, but it allegedly has a maximum circulating supply of 50 billion tokens.
The platform distributes just over 17 million GALA tokens every day, with 50% going to Founders Nodes and the rest going to the Gala Games Conservatorship to fund ecosystem development on the Gala Games platform.
The management team plans to half GALA issuance annually until it reaches zero. However, the current circulating supply of GALA tokens is somewhat mysterious to tokenomics experts. Both CoinGecko and CoinMarketCap show a small circulating token supply, while data from Etherscan shows the total circulating supply as 36 billion.
Therefore, with discrepancies around the circulating supply and its market cap, it’s challenging to peg the price potential of GALA. Another significant downside to GALA is its lack of demand compared to the available supply.
With millions of GALA tokens issued daily, this shows suspicious activity in the founder nodes selling their supply, which wouldn’t do anything good for the Gala Games ecosystem. We suspect the founders are selling due to the lack of ways to spend Gala on the platform at the moment.
We can expect this behavior to continue until the launch of the Gala Sidechain. After its launch, the token will gain more utility, and we expect demand to rise. However, there is no set timeline for the launch of the Gala Sidechain.
Another serious concern with the Gala ecosystem is its investment potential. The lack of utility shows that the management is not concerned with making GALA a suitable investment. The management focuses on use cases for GALA when interacting with games, not as a driver of profit.
So, this assumption leads us to believe the GALA token may have a better use case as an in-game currency, with the in-game items holding the value in the ecosystem.
Players have four ways to earn Gala tokens on the platform. They can earn tokens through gameplay on titles like Town Star and Spider tanks. The platform also offers users an affiliate program where they can earn GALA tokens by introducing new users to the ecosystem.
Users can earn GALA tokens as rewards for operating nodes or by profiting from GALA arbitrage on crypto exchanges listing GALA.
GALA Token Distribution
We’ve already discussed the basics of distribution on the GALA network. However, let’s dive deeper into it to understand its tokenomics better.
The total supply of GALA is 36 million tokens. However, it’s important to note that there are only officially 6.9-million tokens in circulation. According to management, the platform releases and distributes approximately 17,123,286 GALA tokens daily.
The ‘halving’ event with GALA distribution is set to occur annually, with the first halving event occurring on July 21st, 2022. On July 21st, the GALA network dropped its daily distribution to 8,561,643 GALA from a daily allotment of 17,123,286 GALA.
This halving event serves as a deflationary mechanism built into the tokenomics of GALA, allowing developers to manage the mechanism as required throughout the token’s Lifecycle. This action brings stability to the Gala ecosystem.
Gala Games Management Team
Gala Games gets its success from its solid management team. Gala has an impressive management hierarchy, with the start-up founded by Eric Schiermeyer.
Eric is a blockchain gaming pioneer and one of the founders of ‘Zynga,’ a popular social media and mobile gaming company.
Schiermeyer was a leader in the casual online gaming space and is responsible for bringing some of the most successful games to market. Hits like ‘Farmville’ saw massive adoption through Facebook. Other smash hit titles brought to market by Schiermeyer include Mafia Wars and Zynga Poker.
Eric decided to leave Zynga and start Gala Games in 2019, seeing massive growth in the project in just a few short years.
Schiermeyer envisioned creating a gaming platform where creators could keep the IP and ownership over their games. In 2020, Gala Games released a playable game, ‘Town Star,’ followed by an NFT collection titled ‘VOX.’
How to Buy GALA on Uphold
Looking to buy Gala? Get started on Uphold within minutes:
Step 1: Sign Up to Uphold
Visit Uphold and hit the "Signup" button at the top right of the website.
Once the account is created, Uphold requires that users enter their personal information, including legal name and date of birth, as shown on their government documents. They’ll also need to enter their home address information and verify their phone number to finalize the process. This is a basic verification process
Step 2: Fund Your Account
Uphold offers fee-free deposits to its customers. They can deposit funds into their Uphold wallet using cryptocurrencies, debit cards, bank wire transfers, and crypto deposits. New users need additional verification to use the debit card or wire transfer options.
In the sidebar, click the "Linked Accounts" link and choose to add a card or a bank.
Enter your card or bank details.
Step 3: Buy Your Chosen Crypto
Now search for your chosen crypto to purchase, you can choose a currency to pay with, the amount and the crypto you wish to purchase.
After selecting the trading pair, click on the “preview trade” option and it will show you the trade and fees, finally click "confirm trade" to make the purchase.
Pros & Cons of GALA
So, what are the pros and cons of Gala at a glance? Is it a worthy investment? Or should you look elsewhere when adding to your portfolio? Here are the advantages and disadvantages of investing in the GALA ecosystem.
Gala Pros
- Experts think Gala presents a good opportunity for investors looking for a long-term project offering good upside potential.
- The Gala Games network offers users a freedom-orientated blockchain project that has the potential to revolutionize the space.
- The Gala network utilizes several blockchain networks to create its unique three-layer mechanism.
- Gala brings fun to P2E gaming, releasing titles that people actually want to play.
Gala Cons
- There are several other industry players with competitive projects.
- The Sandbox and Decentraland have established projects drawing market share from Gala Games.
- The development team seems more focused on bringing utility to the GALA tokenomics rather than creating an investment project. This strategy could also be a good thing, depending on how we look at it.
Wrapping Up
The Gala network seems to have plenty of potential in the blockchain gaming space. The next five years promise investors a wild ride, provided the crypto space manages to recover in the second half of 2022.
However, with the overall market sentiment souring and the potential for an extended bear market in crypto stretching until 2024, investors should consider how they allocate GALA to their portfolio.
The triple-node network offered by Gala is unique, promising excellent governance and management of the platform while adding to the in-game experience for users.
Gala has a significant edge in the blockchain gaming space. With support for NFTs, a healthy marketplace, and plenty of promise, Gala looks to be one to add to your portfolio.
