State of Immutable Q4 2024

Key Insights

• By the end of Q4’24, Immutable Passport had surpassed 3.3 million sign-ups. This growth was fueled by the continued expansion of the Immutable ecosystem, which saw over 250 gaming titles added in 2024.
• Total NFT sales volume across the Immutable ecosystem increased 55.3% QoQ to $79.5 million, despite drops in NFT buyers and sellers.
• Immutable zkEVM’s monthly active users declined by 20.6% QoQ to 2.0 million by the end of Q4. This drop was consistent with broader GameFi market dynamics.
• During the quarter, Immutable introduced several key integrations and features for Immutable Passport. These include the Embedded Passport solution with Sequence, Blockaid’s security infrastructure, and support for Telegram Mini Apps.
• In Q4 2024, Immutable removed its deployer allowlist for Immutable zkEVM as part of its progressive rollout. This update enables developers to deploy smart contracts, digital assets, and applications on the network without manual approval.

Primer

Immutable offers scaling solutions for NFTs and gaming economies. It provides zero-to-minimal gas fees for minting and trading NFTs, fast transaction settlements, and scalable gaming infrastructure. James Ferguson, Robert Ferguson, and Alex Connolly founded Immutable in December 2018. On July 9, 2018, the company raised $2.4M in a seed round with participants including Coinbase Ventures, Santiago R Santos, Continue Capital, and Nirvana Capital. Immutable aims to address critical challenges in the Gaming and NFT ecosystems, such as scalability, user experience, and developer efficiency, without sacrificing Ethereum's security and decentralization. Immutable achieves this through its two chains: Immutable X and Immutable zkEVM.

Immutable X is an Ethereum Layer-2 scaling solution leveraging StarkWare’s ZK-rollup technology to provide a high-throughput, cost-effective execution layer for gaming and NFT transactions. The protocol batches large numbers of transactions and submits validity proofs to Ethereum’s Layer-1, allowing Immutable X to handle over 9,000 transactions per second with zero gas fees for minting and trading. Immutable zkEVM is an EVM-compatible ZK-rollup, built using Polygon’s Chain Development Kit (CDK), which extends the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) to support high-performance applications. Optimized for gaming, Immutable zkEVM offers developers an EVM-compatible environment with reduced computational overhead and enhanced privacy features, allowing for efficient, secure execution of complex gaming applications.

Website / X (Twitter) / Discord

Key MetricsPerformance AnalysisNetwork and Ecosystem OverviewToken Price and Market Capitalization

IMX is the native governance and utility token of Immutable X and Immutable zkEVM. In Q4 2024, IMX’s price dropped 21.6% from $1.69 to $1.32 on Dec. 31, 2024 . The circulating market capitalization also declined, falling 16.0% from ~2.7 billion to ~$2.3 billion over the same period. As a result, IMX’s circulating market cap ranking went from 34th to 53rd in Q4.

NFT Trading Activity

In Q4 2024, total NFT sales volume across Immutable X and Immutable zkEVM rose 55.3% QoQ, from $51.2 million to $79.5 million. Despite this growth, average daily sellers declined 43.0%, from ~1,500 to ~880, while average daily buyers fell 38.1%, from ~1,300 to ~800. This dynamic suggests that while the number of market participants declined, the average transaction value increased. The rise in sales volume was driven by heightened demand for Guild of Guardians Heroes and Avatars NFTs, which accounted for over 99.0% of the total NFT trading volume in the ecosystem during the quarter.

The majority of NFT sales volume occurred on Immutable zkEVM, where Guild of Guardians NFTs are traded. Immutable zkEVM saw a 73.3% increase in average daily NFT sales volume, rising from ~$484,000 in Q3 to ~$839,000 in Q4. As a result, Immutable zkEVM’s share of total NFT sales volume across both chains surged to over 97.0% in Q4.

Immutable zkEVM

Immutable zkEVM experienced a drop in user engagement during Q4 2024 after surging to all-time highs in Q3. Average daily transactions fell 21.1% QoQ ~595,000 in Q3 to ~469,000 in Q4. Concurrently, average daily active addresses decreased 23.8% from ~267,000 to ~204,000, while average daily new addresses declined 29.8% to ~32,000 by the end of Q4. The QoQ decline in activity was consistent with broader GameFi market dynamics, and could be attributed to a cooldown following the surge in Q3 that was driven by the release of highly anticipated gaming titles like Guild of Guardians, Immortal Rising 2, and Illuvium.

Developer access to Immutable zkEVM progressively expanded throughout 2024. Initially, Immutable required manual approval for deploying smart contracts, digital assets, and applications. In October the platform removed its deployer allowlist, enabling “permissionless deployment” on the network. By lowering barriers to entry, Immutable is poised to benefit from increased developer activity, fostering growth in the coming quarters.

Transaction Fees

Transaction fees on Immutable zkEVM are paid in IMX. In Q4 2024, average daily transaction fees declined 17.0% QoQ from ~574 IMX to ~477 IMX due to reduced network congestion resulting from lower transaction activity. To enhance the user experience, Immutable currently covers all gas fees for Immutable Passport holders, eliminating the friction of gas payments for players.

DeFi TVL

DeFi TVL denominated in USD decreased to $13.8 million by the end of 2024. This could be attributed to the QoQ drop in the IMX token’s price, which reduced the USD value of locked assets. However, TVL measured in IMX increased by 16.99% QoQ to 10.33 million IMX, which could have been driven by capital inflows.

Qualitative AnalysisEcosystem Growth

Immutable continued to solidify its position as a leading scaling solution for gaming and NFTs throughout Q4 2024. By the end of the quarter, it had surpassed 460 games in its ecosystem and set a new personal record with 250 titles signed in a single year. As a result, G7 recognized Immutable as the fastest-growing Web3 gaming ecosystem.

Several additions to the ecosystem in Q4 2024 included:

• Nemesis Downfall: A play-to-earn (P2E) first-person shooter game that launched on Immutable zkEVM in October 2024.
• iBasket Manager 3: A P2E multiplayer basketball management game in which users strategically build and customize teams to win simulation games. It went live on Immutable zkEVM in October 2024.
• King Arthur: Legends Rise: A turn-based role-playing game (RPG) developed by MarbleX, the Web3 gaming division of Netmarble, Korea’s largest mobile game developer. The game launched on Immutable zkEVM in late December 2024, allowing players to engage in strategic combat, recruit heroes, and progress through a reimagined Arthurian legend.
• Arena of Faith: A multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) where players engage in 5v5 strategic battles to destroy the enemy’s “main crystal” while defending their own. It launched on Immutable zkEVM in December 2024 and features multiple gameplay modes that range from casual matches to competitive tournaments.
• EmberLore: A massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) in which players explore a fantasy world, capture and evolve creatures, and engage in combat. In October 2024, it was announced that the game would launch on Immutable zkEVM.
• DRKVRS: A third-person multiplayer shooter game set in a dystopian cyberpunk world that was announced in October 2024 as a future title in the Immutable ecosystem.

The Main Quest: Perpetual Rewards

The Main Quest is an ecosystem rewards program designed to drive engagement toward top games in the Immutable ecosystem. The program has funded Quest campaigns across notable gaming titles and enables players to earn “gems” by completing in-game objectives, participating in key events, and holding digital collectibles.

In Q4 2024, Immutable announced Chapter 2: Perpetual Rewards as the Main Quest’s next phase. Set to begin in January 2025, this update will provide continuous, structured rewards for completing daily tasks and will enhance gems' utility by allowing players to redeem them for weekly rewards. As part of the update, Immutable will also offer redesigned quests to drive user engagement and activity.

RavenQuest Phase 3 Closed Beta

RavenQuest is a sandbox MMORPG in the Immutable ecosystem that became the most watched Web3 game on Twitch in 2024 with one million unique viewers. In December, RavenQuest launched its Phase 3 closed beta update, allowing players to test new features and earn rewards ahead of the global rollout in early 2025. As part of this phase, RavenQuest held a land sale that sold 1,535 plots in just two hours. Additionally, it distributed ~11 million QUEST tokens and gem rewards to participants to fuel engagement in anticipation of the full release.

OVERTAKE Key Developments

OVERTAKE is the decentralized game publisher and gaming platform built on Immutable zkEVM. In November 2024, OVERTAKE launched the GameFest campaign, offering rewards like achievement points, gems, token airdrops, and in-game digital assets to users for participating in various quests on its platform.

In Q4 2024, OVERTAKE drove engagement within the Immutable ecosystem through several key developments:

• First Telegram Game Released: In November 2024, OVERTAKE launched Golden Guardians: Survivor. Enabled by its integration with Immutable Passport, it became the first Telegram-based game in the Immutable ecosystem.
• Launch of Somnis: Rumble Rush Quest: In December 2024, OVERTAKE expanded the GameFest campaign by launching Somnis: Rumble Rush Quest, enabling players to earn additional achievement points and gems by completing quests.
• Closed Beta Test for The Red One: Occultation: In December 2024, OVERTAKE released early access for The Red One: Occultation, an upcoming multiplayer shooter game. The event featured $10,000 USDC in prizes, gems, and custom player skins for players.

Immutable Play Release

Immutable Play went live in November 2024. The platform integrates directly with Immutable Passport to offer a unified interface for users to discover and access games built on Immutable zkEVM. Furthermore, it enables users to manage their in-game assets and serves as the primary access point for participating in Main Quest campaigns to earn rewards.

Immutable Passport

Immutable Passport is Immutable's non-custodial wallet and authentication solution. It enables seamless access to games and marketplaces within the Immutable ecosystem by providing a unified login experience with single sign-on authentication. This reduces onboarding friction for players and acquisition costs for developers. By the end of Q4 2024, Immutable Passport had surpassed 3.3 million sign-ups within six months of its beta release.

Immutable Passport underwent several key developments during the quarter:

• Embedded Passport: In November 2024, Immutable partnered with Sequence to integrate its Embedded Wallet into Immutable Passport, creating an “Embedded Passport” solution. This offers an alternative method for games to onboard users, allowing them to start playing immediately and upgrade to Immutable Passport later for enhanced functionality. Through the Immutable Builder portal, developers building with Embedded Passport can manage wallet integrations and add features like marketplaces into games using low-code tools. Additionally, the portal provides usage analytics for developers to optimize user experiences and enhance monetization strategies.
• Blockaid Integration: In October 2024, Immutable Passport integrated Blockaid’s security infrastructure to enhance user protection against malicious transactions and account compromises in the Immutable ecosystem. This integration enables real-time transaction monitoring, checks smart contract interactions against a threat database, and provides security alerts to mitigate risks for users.
• Pre-Approved Transactions: In December 2024, Immutable added “Pre-Approved Transactions” within Immutable Passport. This feature improves the user experience by enabling players to complete transactions directly inside games without prompting additional wallet confirmation pop-ups. It also allows developers to create in-game marketplaces and trading systems that enhance gameplay and drive user engagement.
• Telegram Integration: In November 2024, support for Immutable Passport integrations with Telegram Mini Apps was enabled. This allows developers to expand their game ecosystems and leverage pre-approved transactions for in-game actions like minting, crafting, and asset transfers. Notably, only pre-approved transactions are supported within Telegram Mini Apps due to Telegram browser limitations.

Elderym Decentralised Studio

Elderym Decentralised launched in November 2024. The new gaming studio united the intellectual property of Guild of Guardians and Gods Unchained, expanding opportunities for cross-game collaboration and interconnected gameplay.

GAM3 Awards

GAM3 Awards is an annual award ceremony hosted by GAM3S.GG, designed to showcase the top titles in Web3 gaming. The event took place in December 2024, and the Immutable ecosystem had the most games nominated for awards. Notably, RavenQuest – an MMORPG built on Immutable zkEVM – won the award for best adventure game.

Several other games in the Immutable ecosystem received finalist nominations, including BadMad Robots, Illuvium, The Bornless, Blast Royale, Blade of God, Treeverse, Engines of Fury, and Immortal Rising 2. Additional non-finalist nominations were The Bornless, Blocklords, Shardbound, Cross the Ages, Gods Unchained, and The Mystery Society. To drive future ecosystem expansion, Immutable committed ~1.5 million IMX tokens toward onboarding other finalist nominees and winners into its ecosystem.

Partnerships

The following ecosystem partnerships were announced in Q4 2024:

• Blockaid: On Oct. 25, 2024, Immutable announced that Blockaid’s security infrastructure had been integrated into Immutable Passport. The integration strengthens security across the Immutable ecosystem by providing protection against malicious transactions and account compromises. It achieves this through real-time transaction monitoring, checking smart contract interactions against a threat database, and providing security alerts to mitigate risks for users.
• Gamer Arena: On Nov. 7, 2024, Immutable announced a partnership with Gamer Arena, an emerging gaming platform. This collaboration aims to expand the Gamer Arena ecosystem by releasing games on Immutable zkEVM, although additional information on the partnership has not yet been published.
• BitSport: On Nov. 11, 2024, Web3 gaming ecosystem BitSport announced that it had partnered with Immutable to enhance its BitPool game. Through this collaboration, BitPool integrated AI Agent NFTs to enhance gameplay and has begun distributing IMX tokens received through an Immutable grant as user rewards.
• Yield Guild Games: On Nov. 18, 2024, Immutable announced a partnership with Yield Guild Games (YGG), a Web3 guild protocol and decentralized autonomous organization. As part of this collaboration, Immutable and YGG have committed $1 million to player rewards through questing incentives. Additionally, YGG integrated with Immutable Passport to streamline onboarding for its community, while Immutable sponsored the YGG Play Summit and side events like YGG Hangout and GAM3 Awards.
• Altura: On Nov. 26, 2024, Immutable announced a partnership with Web3 game-development platform Altura. This collaboration integrates Immutable Passport and Checkout into Altura’s marketplace solution, providing developers with enhanced authentication and payment tools. As part of this initiative, games built on Altura can now participate in the Main Quest program, and Altura is contributing up to $5 million to expand the rewards pool.
• Sequence: On Nov. 27, 2024, Immutable announced the partnership with Sequence to introduce "Embedded Passport" into the Immutable ecosystem.

Wells Notice

On Nov. 1, 2024, Immutable shared that it had received a Wells notice from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), indicating a potential enforcement action regarding its 2021 IMX token sales. Immutable argued that the notice had been issued with little prior communication, provided minimal details, and had been delivered within hours of their first direct interaction with the SEC. Additionally, Immutable suggests the timing – just before the U.S. election – reflects a broader pattern of politically motivated enforcement against the crypto industry.

Closing Summary

Q4 2024 marked a period of ecosystem expansion and technological advancement for Immutable. Immutable Passport surpassed 3.3 million sign-ups, and the ecosystem grew to over 460 gaming titles. Although daily NFT buyers and sellers declined QoQ, total NFT sales volume surged 55.3% to $79.5 million. Immutable zkEVM’s share of total NFT sales volume increased from 56.8% in Q3 to over 97.0% in Q4, largely driven by Guild of Guardians NFT demand. However, network activity declined, with daily transactions falling 21.1% on Immutable zkEVM and 71.6% on Immutable X.

While Immutable saw notable ecosystem growth during the quarter, IMX’s price dropped 21.55% QoQ and Immutable received a Wells notice from the SEC regarding its 2021 IMX token sales. Immutable secured several key partnerships, such as Sequence, Altura, and Blockaid that expanded Immutable Passport's functionality and features. Looking ahead, the introduction of Main Quest perpetual rewards and permissionless deployment on Immutable zkEVM aim to position Immutable for continued ecosystem growth and user engagement in future quarters.