Filipino rice feeder turns to Axie Infinity, doubles income during pandemic

Before the pandemic, many Filipinos in rural Nueva Ecija relied on agriculture, such as selling rice feed to poultry farmers, for their livelihood; strict COVID-19 lockdowns halted farming activities, leaving workers without income and uncertain about feeding their families.

Through friends or online forums, workers discovered Axie Infinity, a blockchain-based play-to-earn game where battling and breeding digital creatures yields cryptocurrency tokens that can be converted to local currency; with an initial investment of a few hundred dollars, they began playing daily and soon earned tokens worth about $2,000 per month.

The higher earnings enabled participants like RK Secretario to support relatives, pay bills, and even fund scholarship programs that onboarded new players, illustrating how a shift to play-to-earn can transform individual livelihoods during economic crises.

Workers earned about double their prior income, roughly $2,000 a month, enough to support families and pay essential bills.

Lockdowns eliminated traditional farm income, creating an urgent need for alternative sources of cash.

Axie Infinity offered a low‑barrier entry to earn cryptocurrency through gameplay, accessible via smartphone and internet.

Early success stories showed that players could earn more than local wages, encouraging others to join and scale their earnings.

Play-to-earn games can provide viable livelihoods in regions with few jobs, but sustainability hinges on stable token economics, trust, and diversified income beyond the game.

After joining Axie Infinity, many Filipino workers reported steady monthly earnings that exceeded their previous agricultural income, allowing them to support extended families and invest in additional Axie teams or small businesses; the growth of scholarship guilds like Yield Guild Games expanded access, while some players later diversified into other play-to-earn projects as the Axie token market fluctuated.