Video gaming is a US$100 billion industry and likely to be one of the first major industries to see significant integration of blockchain technologies. As such, there are dozens of coins and teams working every day as they strive to contribute to this adoption. Here are five of the most promising or significant projects focused on video games.
5. CryptoKitties
The latest craze in the cryptocurrency community is Ethereum gaming, a smart contract-driven approach to providing social gaming directly on the Ethereum blockchain. CryptoKitties kicked off the trend, as it gained the attention of everyone following headlines about the DApp clogging the network due to such high activity and people collectively spending over US$1 million on these virtual kitties.
As influential as the kitty breeding game has been, its substance is relatively miniscule. Gameplay is confined to breeding and trading cats that differ in appearance only. Regardless, it sparked the creation of increasingly more complex games on Ethereum, such as CryptoCelebrities and CryptoCities.
4. Spells of Genesis
Spells of Genesis is one of the first full-fledged games to meaningfully incorporate cryptocurrency. Spells of Genesis is a role-playing collectible card game (RPCCG) that utilizes a cryptocurrency economy and tokenized cards. The currency in Spells of Genesis is BitCrystals (BCY), which has been traded and used in the game for several years. All the cards in the game are Counterparty (XCP) assets published and transacted on top of the Bitcoin blockchain.
An interesting feature of the SoG economy is a regular burn process. 50% of profits from card sales are used to burn BitCrystals. So far, over 58 million BCY have been burned, roughly 8.5% of the total supply. Rare cards have traded for thousands of dollars. As such, the game has been an interesting project for gamers and investors alike.
3. Worldwide Asset Exchange (WAX)
WAX is a decentralized virtual marketplace where anyone can trade virtual assets like game currencies, skins, and rare items in a trustless environment. WAX was created by the team behind OPSkins, the largest virtual marketplace in the world. The team is currently working to create a platform that can incorporate the over 400 million gamers who already trade virtual items.
WAX estimates that virtual sales is a US$50 billion industry. If the team can successfully create an intuitive platform that generates interest from a wider gaming audience, the implications will be massive. For investors, it’s likely the coin will appreciate in value by orders of magnitude. As for gamers, they will finally have a safe and efficient vehicle for virtual trading.
2. GNation
GNation encapsulates sister cryptocurrencies GameCredits (GAME) and MobileGO (MGO). GameCredits is the grandfather of game coins, and it also represents one of the first ICOs, predating even Ethereum (ETH). There are a number of applications currently being developed by GNation, and many are close to fruition. Of these, the most significant is integration with Unity SDK. With one click, developers using Unity can implement MGO and GAME into their virtual economies.
Additionally, GNation is working to release a mobile app store that rivals Apple’s and Google’s stores. For developers, it will offer 3 times lower fees and radically quicker payouts (think days versus months). For gamers, it will offer a network of games that will utilize GAME and MGO payments and economies.
1. Chimaera
Chimaera (CHI) is the first and only second-generation game coin. Unlike other gaming cryptocurrencies that primarily focus on asset registry and trade, Chimaera is creating an ecosystem in which games are built and played directly on the blockchain. For developers, this platform removes the costs of server upkeep and moderation, as both will be performed automatically on the blockchain. For gamers, Chimaera is a fully immersive gaming environment that offers real and transferable ownership of everything in the game – currencies, gear, characters, and more.
Chimaera addresses the issues affecting gaming with existing blockchain technology through a revolutionary development called game channels. Game channels essentially represent a gamified Lightning Network which can scale to incorporate any number of concurrent players and games in real-time, trustless gaming. Chimaera is currently in the crowdsale stage, with a public pre-sale beginning shortly. However, Chimaera is no new coin; this technology has been in development since 2013 with the prototype project, Huntercoin. It will be broadcasting a working product shortly after the crowdsale comes to a conclusion.
