Move-to-Earn (M2E) Gaming: Which Projects Actually Deliver in 2024?

Imagine earning crypto just by walking. Sounds too good to be true? Welcome to the Move-to-Earn space—where fitness meets blockchain rewards, and every step you take has real economic value.

What’s Driving the Move-to-Earn Craze?

Move-to-Earn (M2E) represents one of the most accessible entry points into crypto gaming. Unlike traditional Play-to-Earn games that demand complex strategies and long gaming sessions, M2E projects reward something everyone does: physical activity.

The concept is straightforward. Your smartphone or fitness wearable tracks your movements through GPS and accelerometers. These activities get verified on the blockchain, converting steps into tokenized rewards. Earn cryptocurrency or NFTs simply by jogging, walking, or hitting the gym.

The appeal? M2E democratizes crypto rewards. You don’t need gaming skills or deep blockchain knowledge—just movement. This has attracted millions of users who were never interested in traditional gaming but see fitness as an investment opportunity.

The Market Size and Growth Potential

According to CoinGecko data from April 2024, the combined market cap of M2E tokens stood just under $700 million. CoinMarketCap has cataloged over 30 move-to-earn projects, indicating both mature players and emerging contenders.

However, recent market data reveals significant shifts. Let’s look at how the major players are positioned right now.

Top Move-to-Earn Projects Breaking Through in 2025

1. STEPN (GMT): The Market Leader Despite User Decline

STEPN remains the largest M2E project by market cap, though it’s navigated turbulent waters. The project operates on Solana, leveraging the blockchain’s speed and low fees for seamless real-time tracking.

Here’s how STEPN works: You purchase or rent NFT sneakers to start earning. Physical movement generates GST tokens (Green Satoshi Tokens), which can be used to upgrade sneakers or traded for other assets. The governance token GMT unlocks premium features and participates in the ecosystem’s future direction.

The dual-token system creates an economic model designed to sustain long-term value. GST burning mechanisms help combat inflation, while GMT provides governance participation.

The numbers tell an interesting story. STEPN peaked at over 700,000 monthly active users but has since cooled to approximately 35,000 as of April 2024. Yet despite user contraction, GMT maintains strong market confidence with a current market cap of $44.52M. This suggests serious institutional interest remains, even as casual players have rotated out.

2. Sweat Economy (SWEAT): The Accessibility Play

Sweat Economy takes a fundamentally different approach—zero entry barrier. Download the app, start walking, earn SWEAT tokens immediately. No NFT purchases required.

Built on NEAR blockchain, the platform emphasizes scalability and cost efficiency. Its tokenomics model gradually reduces minting rates over time, preventing the hyperinflation trap that catches many M2E projects. This sustainability focus resonates with users looking for long-term viability.

The platform boasts 150+ million users across web2 and web3 ecosystems. It was named the most downloaded health and fitness app in 2022. Currently trading at a $10.60M market cap, Sweat Economy represents the accessibility segment of the M2E market—proving that lower token prices don’t equal lower utility.

3. Step App (FITFI): The Dual-Activity Reward System

Step App differentiates itself through dual-token architecture and cross-chain compatibility. Built on Avalanche, it uses KCAL tokens for gameplay rewards and FITFI for governance and staking.

The mechanics: Walk, run, or exercise to earn KCAL. Use KCAL to purchase Sneaker NFTs. These assets unlock additional earning streams through staking and trading. FITFI holders participate in platform governance and access deflationary strategies.

Step App has attracted over 300,000 users worldwide who’ve collectively walked 1.4 billion steps and earned 2.3 billion KCAL tokens. Current market cap sits at $2.33M, positioning it as a mid-tier player with real adoption metrics behind its valuation.

4. Genopets (GENE): Gamification Meets Physical Activity

Genopets transforms the fitness-to-crypto dynamic by adding creature evolution mechanics. Your steps convert into Energy, which powers your Genopet’s evolution and battles.

Operating on Solana, Genopets avoids the friction of complex ecosystems. The game employs GENE tokens for major transactions and governance, while KI tokens accumulate through gameplay. NFTs represent your Genopets and habitats—tradable assets with real market value.

The Genesis Genopets NFT collection has accumulated over 146,000 SOL in all-time trading volume, demonstrating healthy secondary market activity. GENE currently holds an $11M market cap, reflecting investor confidence in the gamification angle.

5. dotmoovs (MOOV): AI-Powered Sports Competition

Dotmoovs takes an unconventional path—competitive peer-to-peer sports battles analyzed by AI. The system evaluates creativity, rhythm, and technique, assigning rewards based on performance rather than raw activity volume.

Operating on Polygon for cost efficiency, the platform uses sport-specific NFTs to gate tournament access. This creates multiple revenue streams: competition prizes, NFT trading, rental income.

With 80,000+ players across 190 countries analyzing over 340 hours of sports footage, dotmoovs proves niche specialization can drive engagement. MOOV tokens currently trade at a $493.30K market cap, making it a speculative play with differentiated mechanics.

6. Walken (WLKN): Character-Based Progression

Walken parallels fitness activity to character development. Your steps boost your CAThlete through various athletic competitions—sprint, urban, marathon races.

The dual-token system features WLKN governance tokens and GEM in-game currency earned from activity. Token rewards scale with competitive performance, creating progression incentives beyond passive step-counting.

With 1+ million downloads on Google Play alone, Walken demonstrates solid mobile adoption. WLKN maintains a $3.3M market cap as of April 2024, appealing to players who want their character progression tied to real fitness achievements.

7. Rebase GG (IRL): Geo-Based Reality Gaming

Rebase GG experiments with location-based challenges—earning IRL tokens by completing tasks at specific real-world locations. This bridges the gap between exploration and digital rewards.

The 20,000+ player base shows proof-of-concept for location-based M2E mechanics. IRL tokens serve dual purposes as both rewards and in-ecosystem transactions, with growth potential tied to geographic expansion.

Move-to-Earn vs. Play-to-Earn: What’s the Difference?

Play-to-Earn (P2E) demands time investment in virtual worlds. Games like Axie Infinity require strategic thinking, resource management, and long-term commitment. Rewards correlate with gaming skill and market timing. Earnings can be substantial but volatile—dependent on token price fluctuations.

Move-to-Earn (M2E) turns routine physical activity into passive income. No gaming skills required. Rewards come from step counts, distance, or intensity—metrics that don’t fluctuate like market sentiment. Entry barriers vary (STEPN requires NFT purchases; Sweatcoin doesn’t), but the reward mechanism stays predictable.

Core Differences:

• Activity Type: P2E = virtual achievements; M2E = physical movement
• Skill Dependency: P2E requires gaming expertise; M2E rewards consistency
• Earning Stability: P2E earnings highly volatile; M2E more predictable
• Market Appeal: P2E attracts gamers; M2E attracts fitness-first audiences
• Tokenomics Complexity: P2E often features multiple token layers; M2E typically simpler
• Time Commitment: P2E demands active gameplay; M2E works with passive daily activity

The Real Challenges Facing Move-to-Earn Games

Unlimited Token Supply Problem

Many M2E projects feature infinite token supplies designed to reward early contributors indefinitely. STEPN’s GST token exemplifies this risk. As millions of users mint tokens daily, inflation can spiral, devaluing rewards. When player earnings drop to cents per day, engagement collapses—exactly what happened to several projects in 2022-2023.

High Barriers to Entry

STEPN charges hundreds of dollars for entry-level NFT sneakers. Step App and others follow similar models. While this creates scarcity and gaming appeal, it excludes the very demographic M2E games should attract—fitness enthusiasts without crypto experience or disposable income.

Blockchain Scalability

Millions of daily transactions stress blockchain networks. Solana and Polygon manage high volumes better than some competitors, but peak usage still causes congestion and rising fees, undermining the “low-cost micro-transaction” promise.

Pyramid Dynamics

Early users earning substantial rewards while latecomers earn pennies creates uncomfortable parallels to unsustainable schemes. Sustainable M2E requires continuous genuine use cases—not just new player inflows funding earlier participants.

What’s Next for Move-to-Earn Gaming?

Augmented Reality Integration: Imagine combining step-tracking with AR overlays—making fitness gameplay more immersive and engaging.

Advanced Health Metrics: Integration with medical-grade wearables could enable heart-rate-based earnings, sleep quality rewards, and personalized fitness incentives beyond raw step counts.

Multi-Chain Deployments: Cross-chain bridge infrastructure would let players earn on multiple networks simultaneously, diversifying token risk and expanding addressable markets.

Sustainable Tokenomics: Projects are designing deflationary mechanisms, controlled mint rates, and alternative reward structures to combat the unlimited supply problem.

The M2E sector has matured past hype. Today’s surviving projects demonstrate real user retention, sensible tokenomics, and genuine engagement. The next wave will likely emerge from teams prioritizing long-term sustainability over explosive user growth.

For players: Start with zero-barrier projects like Sweatcoin to understand M2E mechanics before investing in NFT-gated games. For investors: Monitor projects with controlled inflation, active communities, and diversified revenue streams beyond token sales.

Move-to-Earn gaming proved the concept works. Now we’ll see which projects can scale sustainably.