Cryptocurrency
GTA owner joins Web3, Bitcoin casino, Sunflower Land review: Web3 Gamer

Grand Theft Auto owner enters Web3 via mobile gaming arm
Fun fact: mobile gaming giant Zynga is owned by Take-Two Interactive, the same company that also owns Rockstar Games, which is behind ultra-popular video game series like Grand Theft Auto, Red Dead Redemption and NBA 2K.
Now Zynga is making its Web3 debut with a new franchise.
Best known for its FarmVille series, Zynga has created an offshoot studio called Zynga Web3 (or ZW3) and announced Sugartown. It’s a cross-media world that will be more like a Web3 gaming platform than a single title. The cute cartoonish animals featured in the teaser video give clues that there might be more than video games in the works.
It looks like a scene from a new Netflix series, so I won’t be surprised to see a cartoon featuring the Sugartown characters.
For now, though, the only thing that’s confirmed is that Sugartown will launch an NFT collection called Oras, and they will be required to participate in upcoming games within the universe. ZW3 said the franchise is working with different communities to allocate allowlists for the NFTs.
If this platform becomes successful, perhaps it could give the green light for some of those big titles from the same company to jump into Web3?
More play needed in Play-to-Earn — Istanbul Blockchain Week
Why aren’t Web3 games adopted as much as traditional games? That was one of the subjects talked about during a Web3 gaming panel at Istanbul Blockchain Week 2023. The panel mainly focused on Web3 gaming adoption, the problems of Web3 gaming and the developer side of things.
Curator Studios co-founder Uluç Yuca’s answer stood out in particular as I sincerely believe it expressed the thoughts of many traditional gamers – including myself – toward the big problem with Web3 gaming.
He started his speech by asking the audience how many Web3 gamers there were. There were a few hands raised. “And this is a blockchain event!” he commented, then asked how many traditional gamers there were. There was a significant increase in the number of hands raised. He pointed out there are 3 billion traditional gamers in the world and only 15 million Web3 gamers.
15 million was not the (number of) active users in Roblox back in 2015. So what we have right now is just a little private party. That means we did something wrong.”
Here’s what we did wrong, according to Yuca: The Web3 community is always talking about features like third-party trading, ownership, making money and interoperability. But these features have existed since games were around, including in-game items in World of Warcraft, rare items in Dota, auctions in Diablo and those occasions RuneScape’s in-game currency was used as the local market currency when Venezuela’s money was depreciating.
So, we focused on features that already exist in various forms and combined them with games that aren’t fun:
We talk about all these value propositions and monetization models. Play-to-Earn, Play-and-Earn, Play-and-Own, Play-and-Have-Coffee, Play-and-Get-Married. It doesn’t really matter because there is no play. There is no product.”
He stressed that he has yet to see a game like Minecraft, or one that does “What Angry Birds did to mobile gaming back in the day.”
Despite the potential brought by Web3 elements, the real question was, “Do we have a game like Roblox (in Web3)?” Unfortunately, we do not.
Bitcoin casino works exactly like what you’d expect
Not many people know this but Satoshi Nakamoto may have been a poker player, with the original 0.1.0 Bitcoin code in 2008 containing scraps of code for an online poker game.
Read also
With the introduction of Ordinals, it looks like we might be headed back in that direction. Ordinals has enabled the Bitcoin base layer to become home to numerous images, videos and even some basic games, and also laid the groundwork for “DeFi on Bitcoin” protocols such as Trustless Computer (TC) and the related New Bitcoin City (NBC).
Launched in early August, the gaming platform utilizes TC and transitions gameplay to NOS, a layer-2 on Bitcoin, according to core member Punk3700, who says it enhances speed and efficiency, ensuring complex interactions occur off the Bitcoin mainnet.
NOS brings an Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) to the Bitcoin network, allowing smart contract functionality without taking space on the main Bitcoin chain. Hence, data from games won’t crowd the valuable Bitcoin blockchain real estate.”
As for the gaming platform itself, don’t expect a 3D metaverse with high-fidelity graphics. The website is designed as a pixelated amusement park, with each tent representing a game offering very basic casino games like jackpot and slot.
There’s also a graffiti tent where everyone can chip in to add a pixel and then get royalty if someone buys the finished canvas.
The overall experience felt like what I had with my online poker adventures back in the early 2000s, but that’s apparently not the focus of the devs. “Bitcoin is expanding beyond just a currency and getting a lot of attention,” explained Punk3700, adding: “We want to make Bitcoin as generalized as possible — usable for far more than just a currency.”
Read also
The league is said to promote the win-to-earn trend where gamers earn based on their skills (and maybe luck, considering it’s a casino), and developers promise more to come, with an upcoming “Mega Whales” expected to launch on Sept. 26.
Hot Take: Sunflower Land
Sunflower Land is an online farming game built on Polygon and played via a browser. Gamers are welcomed with some strict rules: one account per player, no bots or automation. It also makes clear that Sunflower Land is a game, not a financial product — although only time will tell which one will be prioritized by players
The core gameplay sees users plant seeds, wait for them to grow, harvest the plants, buy more seeds and so on – similar to old Facebook games such as FarmVille and CityVille. All in-game resources, such as seeds, cooked food and equipment, are NFTs that can be transferred and traded on OpenSea.
Seeds and plants have different in-game values corresponding with the time it takes for them to grow. For example, sunflower seeds grow in 30 seconds and can be sold for 125 coins (equal to 7,500 for 30 minutes), while pumpkin seeds grow in 30 minutes and can be sold for 25,000 coins.
Sunflower Land features a skill tree that allows the player to work faster and get more yields from each produce as they level up. As the player levels up, the waiting time gets longer (up to 36 hours for a single seed), but they also get more space to plant their seeds. The game currently offers two minigames if you’d like to do something in-game while you wait. They are called Greedy Goblin, a minigame where you catch falling gold coins while avoiding the skulls as a goblin, and Chicken Fight, a two-player fighting game where you control chickens.
Sunflower Land launched its new season called Witches Eve on Aug. 1, which introduced a massive multiplayer online (MMO) world for players to socialize called Pumpkin Plaza. The game also welcomed the addition of Community Islands – where players are provided with tools to build their own games inside Sunflower Land – with the ambition of “becoming the Roblox of Web3 gaming.”
The game works smoothly without any problems – a rare quality for Web3 games these days. The graphics look pretty, though the background music sounded really cheap. I don’t know if it’s going to become the Roblox of Web3, but Sunflower Land definitely has potential with its addictive gameplay loop. I’ll surely be coming back to check my island every once in a while.
More from Web3 gaming space:
– Turn-based RPG Champions Arena has launched on Gala Games.
– Zillion Whales’ mobile RTS game Wild Forest has been announced for Ronin blockchain.
– Mobile NFT game NFL Rivals has launched an in-game marketplace.
– French DJ Agoria and The Sandbox are collaborating to launch an avatar collection.
– Netmarble’s Marblex partnered with Aptos to expand its multichain gaming universe.
– Nexon’s MapleStory Universe tapped Chainlink as its Web3 infrastructure provider.
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Cryptocurrency
Ripple (XRP) News Today July 30th

The last few weeks have been quite turbulent for XRP and the company behind it. In this article, we will check the latest updates involving the two and analyze the token’s price dynamics.
Has the Ripple/SEC Battle Concluded?
The major developments in the legal battle between Ripple and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), more specifically, the company’s court wins, have left some with the expectation that the tussle is over.
Just recently, the American lawyer Bill Morgan said the regulator has not withdrawn its appeal yet. He emphasized that the Commission faces no formal deadline to do so, though it is required to submit a status update to the appeal court by August 15.
The legal contest refers to a court decision in 2023. Back then, Judge Analisa Torres ruled that Ripple’s sales of XRP tokens on secondary markets are not securities. The SEC appealed the ruling, while the company filed a cross-appeal, which was later withdrawn.
Earlier this year, the two parties jointly requested that the appeals be paused to allow time for a potential settlement. The court respected their wish but required the regulator to file a status report by mid-August. Many believe that if the SEC agrees to withdraw its appeal, it could mark the final resolution of the case.
To the uninitiated, it all started in December 2020 when the Commission filed a lawsuit against Ripple, accusing it of conducting an unregistered securities offering by selling XRP tokens. Initially, it sought a whopping fine of $2 billion, while years later, Judge Torres ruled a penalty of $125 million. Moreover, the SEC and Ripple shook hands on an even smaller sum of $50 million.
RLUSD Keeps Progressing
One trending asset within Ripple’s ecosystem is the USD-pegged stablecoin, RLUSD. The product, which officially debuted in December of last year, recently saw its market capitalization soar past $500 million and caught the eye of some major financial players.
As CryptoPotato reported, the asset was recognized by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) as a crypto token within the Dubai International Financial Center (DIFC), while the oldest US bank, BNY Mellon, agreed to serve as a custodian for RLUSD.
Meanwhile, the stablecoin’s market cap continued to grow in the following weeks and currently stands at approximately $577.6 million.
Spot XRP ETF Incoming?
Several XRP exchange-traded funds have popped up in the United States over the past several months. However, all of them are futures-based, and you can check the details here.
The XRP army has been eagerly awaiting the launch of a spot XRP ETF, which is expected to have a more significant impact on the price of the underlying token.
Some of the well-known firms willing to launch such a product include Bitwise, Grayscale, Franklin Templeton, WisdomTree, and more. According to Polymarket, the approval odds before the end of the year stand at around 87%.
XRP Price Outlook
Ripple’s native token exploded to a new all-time high of $3.65 in mid-July, but since then, it has been on a downtrend, currently trading at around $3.08 (per CoinGecko’s data).
However, some important factors suggest this could be a temporary correction, followed by another rally. Large investors, for instance, have acquired 60 million XRP tokens in the last 24 hours. This shows strong confidence in the asset and could encourage other smaller players to jump on the bandwagon, too.
The amount of tokens stored on exchanges has been declining lately, suggesting that holders might have moved their funds into cold storage. This, in turn, reduces the immediate selling pressure.
Last but not least, the number of XRP wallets keeps growing, hinting at solid user engagement and rising interest in the network. The figure reached a peak of 7.2 million on July 21 and is currently inching towards 7.3 million.
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Cryptocurrency
Solana (SOL) Plunges by 10% Weekly, But This Market Signal Says ‘Buy the Dip’

TL;DR
- Analysts point to certain indicators that suggest SOL could be poised for a rally in the near future. Some of the biggest optimists believe the price could soar to a new all-time high of $400.
- SOL’s RSI hovers just above 30, signaling oversold conditions. Combined with increased token withdrawals from crypto exchanges, this could reduce sell pressure and hint at a possible short-term recovery.
Buying Opportunity?
Solana’s SOL has declined by over 10% in the past week, currently valued at around $177 (according to CoinGecko’s data). However, the X user, Ali Martinez, estimated that the TD Sequential indicator has flashed a buy signal.
Buy the Solana $SOL dip, says the Tom DeMark Sequential indicator! pic.twitter.com/cyE5MR45DY
— Ali (@ali_charts) July 30, 2025
The analyst isn’t the only one with a bullish stance following the price drop. One X user claimed SOL “is setting the pace,” predicting a pump to as high as $400.
“Ignore the noise. This isn’t hype, it’s a shift in momentum. Smart money isn’t chasing later – it’s positioning now. Solana season is real,” they added.
BitBull thinks SOL’s current price performance resembles that of 2023, which was followed by a major breakout. The analyst argued that the activity in the Solana network is still strong, while institutional inflows “are coming.”
“All it needs now is a weekly close above $230, and SOL parabolic run will start,” the X user suggested.
AlejandroBTC stands in the opposite corner, claiming there’s no real momentum, while exit liquidity is “getting thinner by the day.” The analyst forecasted that SOL’s price could continue to plunge, warning investors that the altcoins are not in a bull market.
Observing Other Metrics
Over the past several months, the shift of SOL tokens from crypto exchanges toward self-custody methods has been more than evident. This results in reduced immediate selling pressure.
Solana’s Relative Strength Index is the next technical analysis tool we will touch upon. It tracks the speed and magnitude of recent price changes and helps traders identify overbought or oversold conditions. The metric varies from 0 to 100, and ratios around or below 30 suggest SOL could be headed for a rebound, while anything above 70 is considered bearish territory. Currently, the RSI stands at just over 30.
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Cryptocurrency
Ethereum ETF Inflows Soar in July, Outpacing Last 11 Months Combined

Ethereum’s 10th anniversary is proving to be more than symbolic. As the network celebrates a decade since mining its genesis block on July 30, data shows a record-breaking surge in institutional demand.
Spot Ethereum ETFs recorded $5.41 billion in net inflows in July alone, surpassing the combined capital entries of the previous 11 months, which stood at $4.21 billion as of June 2025.
Institutional Investment Pushes ETH Into a New Phase
Data from SoSoValue shows that ETH ETFs have had $9.62 billion in cumulative fund deposits since their launch in July 2024. However, the inflows haven’t been consistent.
After a rocky start, with $483 million in outflows in their first month, the ETFs saw steady growth. They hit 10 figures for the first time in November 2024, when $1.05 billion came into the funds, followed by an even more impressive $2.08 billion the following month.
The first quarter of 2025 was more muted. January and February saw a combined $161.23 million in new capital before a poor showing in March led to more than $403 million flowing out of the ETFs.
Since then, the products have been on a tear, with investment activity growing exponentially month after month, to finally hit $5.41 billion in July. The explosion suggests a shift from institutional caution to aggressive accumulation, with ETH emerging as the clear beneficiary of this sentiment shift.
Data from SoSoValue shows that BlackRock’s ETHA alone now holds $11.39 billion in assets, while Grayscale’s ETHE remains in recovery after $4.31 billion in cumulative withdrawals. Together, these movements have pushed Ethereum ETF assets to $21.61 billion, which is about 4.75% of ETH’s market cap.
Price Momentum Builds as ETH Nears $4K
The price of ETH has also seen a fair amount of growth recently. At the time of writing, it was trading at $3,786, up 3.1% over the past week and 19.6% in the last fortnight despite a 2.4% dip in the previous 24 hours amid profit-taking.
It has also climbed 53.3% across 30 days, moving from around $2,470 to approach the $3,900 range, even briefly touching $3,933 before retracing.
QCP Capital has cautioned that derivatives positioning and overheated funding rates may create near-term resistance around $4,000, yet the structural tailwinds from ETF demand remain intact. If these fund flows persist, Ethereum could not only challenge its November 2021 all-time high of $4,878 but also cement itself as the centerpiece of a potential altcoin-led market cycle.
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