Axie Infinity surged about 89% this week after it announced a major tokenomics overhaul aimed at reviving its in-game economy and curbing bot farming, lifting several gaming tokens as Bitcoin traded lower amid global liquidity worries. Traders and analysts linked the move to project-specific changes and broader market rotation into higher-risk assets.
Over the past 24 hours, Axie rose roughly 16.7%, bringing weekly gains to about 88.5%, while The Sandbox gained near 15.3%. Other gaming tokens, including Decentraland and Smooth Love Potion, recorded smaller weekly advances of about 4.4% and 0.7% respectively.
Bertie Wrench, founder of Bad Bikers, called the rally “purely capital rotation and high-risk speculation.” He added that macro pressures, such as stress in Japan’s bond market, make such sector rotations likely.
Illia Otychenko, lead analyst at CEX.IO, said the moves reflect low baselines and local catalysts, noting that “These localized developments likely helped lift sentiment across the broader GameFi sector, even without a clear narrative rotation from privacy-focused tokens.” Axie announced its tokenomics restructuring last week.
Users on the prediction market Myriad showed lower confidence for a Bitcoin surge, with a market contract assigning a 71% chance of Bitcoin reaching $100,000, down from 84% a week earlier (Ed. note: this reflects shifting trader sentiment).
Analysts warned that a lasting GameFi recovery needs stronger token utility and more players, noting sector weakness. Research from Delphi showed roughly a 75% sector decline in 2025 and about 55% less funding last year.
