Comparing Axie Infinity (AXS) and The Sandbox (SAND): Which One Is a Better Investment?

Blockchain play-to-earn (P2E) games allow users to increase the value of their crypto or NFT investments by completing game-like activities. Such a way to get profit from the crypto niche is becoming more popular during the last few years. 

There are around 400 active blockchain games available to play at the beginning of 2022. Among them, Axie Infinity (AXS) and The Sandbox (SAND) are considered the most popular ecosystems. One day the number of their users will probably compete with the count of traders exchanging BNB to MATIC and other crypto pairs. 

Understanding Axie Infinity (AXS)

Axie Infinity ecosystem was launched in March 2018 by a Vietnamese gaming studio. Since then, it has received several updates. The newest one is “Origin,” introduced to the audience on April 7, 2022. 

AXS is a turn-based card game. It offers players to raise Axie creatures and battle with the computer and other gamer-controlled enemies. Afterward, you can trade your characters on the Axie Infinity marketplace.

Players can earn two types of tokens, namely Smooth Love Potions (SLP) and Axie Infinity Shards (AXS). Both of them can be traded on exchange platforms. 

Axie Infinity’s initial concept is to enable gamers from low-wage communities to earn money in order to support weaker economies. The ecosystem is based on the Ethereum blockchain technology.

Understanding The Sandbox (SAND)

Another popular ecosystem running on the Ethereum blockchain is The Sandbox. The game was launched in 2011 as a result of a collaboration between Pixowl and Onimatrix game studios. It is basically a metaverse or a virtual world where you can earn SAND tokens in multiple ways. Here are the two of them:

• Renting and selling your land.

The metaverse offers to purchase a piece of land, i.e., a virtual space where you can build voxel constructions in the Minecraft-like method. There is a digital map that shows all the changes in real-time, and some companies use their lands to show off the brand logo. There are only 166,464 LANDS available for sale, rent, and trade.

• Monetize voxel assets.

The ecosystem allows digital artists to create voxel assets using the VoxEdit art program. Such creations can be sold similarly to NFTs. 

SAND tokens can be exchanged on multiple exchange platforms.

AXS vs SAND Comparison

Both these tokens are valuable cryptos, so let’s learn more specific info on both of them: 

1.  Market value

The price of AXS is roughly $20 per token, and its market capitalization equals $1.2 billion as of May 2022. At the same time, SAND is traded at about $1.3, and its market cap is about $1.5 billion level. Both tokens have a limited circulating supply, which equals 270 million for AXS and 3 billion for SAND.

2. Nature of the project

The Sandbox is metaverse offering users unique opportunities for creating and trading assets. The SAND token is a tool that facilitates transactions on the platform. It is more of a commercial project for artists and business owners. In its turn, Axie Infinity is a game that enables players to obtain AXS tokens for selling Axie creatures. It is better suited for young individuals who seek entertainment and easy earnings. 

3. Technology

From a technical point of view, SAND is an ERC-20 utility token that employs a proof-of-stake consensus protocol. Axie Infinity token is much similar to SAND. However, AXS is secured by the proof-of-work mechanism. 

Both tokens are fairly popular on the market, and the AXS vs SAND crypto pair is available on multiple exchange platforms. 

Axie Infinity vs Sandbox: Which One Is a Better Investment?

AXS and SAND are almost identical tokens sharing comparable properties. Also, they have quite a similar market capitalization, and their circulating supplies are limited. Both are suitable investment opportunities, but they are perfect fits for different types of buyers.

If you want to get involved in trading, SAND would be better because of its higher volatility and lower price. Short-term traders can purchase a significant amount of tokens and benefit from a rapid surge at any time. For long-term investors, the more reasonable choice is AXS since it is less prone to price fluctuations, and its token limit will be reached fairly soon (in 2026), promising a rise in its price per token. 

Still, you are not obligated to select one of those tokens, as you can go with both at once and diversify your investment portfolio.