I was scrolling recently and came across this wave of games to earn cryptocurrencies on Telegram that is exploding. The truth is that 2024 and 2025 were wild years for this—millions of people playing things that seem simple but end up giving you profits on the blockchain. So I decided to investigate a bit what’s really behind these crypto-earning games.

Notcoin was one of the first to make noise. The game is basically tapping the screen to accumulate virtual coins, which then convert into real NOT tokens on The Open Network. When the token launched in May 2024, several major exchanges listed it almost immediately. The initial price was 0,01 dollars, and it later reached a market cap of 1.100 million. Not bad for a clicker game, right? Notcoin then expanded its ecosystem with collaborations and added Web3 features to make it more useful.

Then there’s Hamster Kombat, which grew even faster. It amassed more than 300 million players since launch. The mechanics are similar—you manage a virtual exchange with hamsters and accumulate HMSTR tokens. The developers have expansion plans, new features, and possible collaborations within the TON ecosystem. It’s interesting to see how these crypto-earning games are evolving beyond the simple clicker.

Catizen is another one that really took off—34 million players raising and merging virtual cats. The game is integrated with Telegram’s blockchain and TON, which makes it accessible directly from the app. The CATI token is trading at around 0,07 dollars. What I find interesting is how these games are using Telegram as an entry point to Web3 for users who might never have touched blockchain before.

X Empire is more recent—it launched in July 2024 and already has 35 million players. The idea is to build virtual empires while earning cryptocurrencies. The X token was expected to launch in Q4 2024, and they used an NFT coupon system for early access, similar to what Notcoin did. Some of these coupons sold for quite a lot on the secondary market.

Rocky Rabbit is another one that grew quite a bit—30 million players training virtual rabbits for battles and missions. The RBTC token launched with distribution based on performance in the game. Every activity you do generates rewards that convert into real tokens.

And then there’s Major, which is newer but also reached 30 million users. This one has an interesting element of solving daily puzzles, including the “Durov Puzzle.” The MAJOR token was selected through a community vote, and it was expected to trade between 0,001 and 0,005 dollars when it launched.

The reality is that these crypto-earning games represent a shift in how people access Web3. It’s no longer just for hardcore traders—now a casual user can play something on Telegram and end up with real tokens. But you need to be cautious. These airdrop launches come with risks, volatility is high, and not all projects will succeed. Before getting into any of these, do thorough research, understand the risks, and don’t put in money you can’t afford to lose. The space evolves fast, and what’s trending today could be history tomorrow.