We’ve written in the past about the various blockchain games that excite us and the impact that NFTs will have on gaming, but we haven’t yet contrasted blockchain games with the conventional games that the majority of people are accustomed to.
Therefore, we aim to compare blockchain gaming to regular gaming nowadays.
We hope that this introduction will help you understand blockchain games and why we at Decentraland are so enthusiastic about them, whether you’re a player yourself or a developer wishing to get into blockchain gaming.
It started with bitcoin
We are all aware of Bitcoin as the first application of blockchain technology to receive wide-spread, mainstream attention. Bitcoin is a safe, transparent, and finite cryptocurrency.
Shortly after the creation of Bitcoin, Ethereum was created as a means of decentralising software through the use of smart contracts: scripts and programmes that may be launched without the need to have faith in a third party or centralised server.
The ERC20 standard, which was created on top of Ethereum and standardised fungible tokens, was the next development. Then came CryptoPunks, a cryptocurrency collectable marketplace that let people buy various “punk” caricatures represented by things like ERC20 tokens.
One of the first uses of blockchain technology in entertainment was in the show CryptoPunks, which also gave rise to a huge market for crypto-collectibles. Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are used to represent modern collectibles like CryptoKitties, making each cat individual, rare, and probably so thanks to a public registry created on top of the Ethereum blockchain.
The way we perceive and value digital material has completely changed thanks to crypto-collectibles and the idea of digital economic scarcity, opening up new opportunities for online gaming.
What are games built on blockchains?
Any game that is even partially constructed on top of a public blockchain that enables each participant to own and control their own data is, to put it simply, a blockchain game. This means that before adding a new record to a player’s database, the game creator or whoever is hosting and managing the game must get that player’s consent.
The player records maintained on the Ethereum Game Development are also accessible to any developer from anywhere as blockchains are essentially huge, open databases.
Due to the ease with which content and data saved on a blockchain may be exchanged between other platforms and services, this lends a certain aspect of extensibility to blockchain games.
Introduce a marketplace where players may buy NFT skins for their avatars in a single game from a separate app. Players may be sure their new skins are distinctive and theirs (or even completely unique).
This stands in stark contrast to conventional online games, where player and item data is kept on private, centralised servers.
These conventional games eliminate the possibility of integrating truly rare, digitally exclusive in-game objects while also giving the creators complete control over user data.
Now, how do blockchain games appear?
We’ve already made an attempt to explain what a game can do using the blockchain, but what are some concrete examples?
Imagine using one of your CryptoKitties (or Etheremons or CryptoBeasties) to compete against other gamers’ kitties and monsters.
Consider translating CryptoKitty’s “cattributes” to a racing game, where your racecar’s skills symbolise them. Manoeuvre may improve handling and hotrod top speed.
Imagine if your MMO guild’s administration and resources were registered, preserved, and administered by a blockchain, without the need to transfer that ability to any one member.
These decentralised autonomous organisations (DAOs) are already being used for some very exciting and admirable purposes, giving real democracies more strength and scalability.
Online gaming is one use for DAOs.
By using a DAO to govern gaming guilds, you can eliminate trust issues, maintain player accountability, and store titles, responsibilities, and standards securely.
Imagine not needing to create a new user name and avatar each time, but instead using a single pseudo-anonymous game ID.
But don’t worry, you can always make a new avatar whenever you like.
Imagine checking a player’s blockchain history for similar games to minimise “time-to-fun.”
This is another fascinating way that blockchains are being applied to gaming in the form of education and tutorials.
You can give the player more experience points or skip a tutorial if you presume they understand the game’s basics.
Imagine a player’s usual gaming achievement as an NFT they can keep forever. Achievements, medals, and trophies are popular in gaming because they showcase players’ accomplishments.
Imagine building a “team trophy case” that includes a digital replica of the Stanley Cup. A game-changer is having your name etched on a digital trophy that will always remain.
Winners from each season can have their achievements displayed forever, unrestricted by a gaming company’s central database.
What distinguishes blockchain games from classic games?
Classical Games
- The game developer is the owner and manager of the assets.
- There is no interactivity between game assets.
- It is challenging to monitor and communicate player history between games.
Blockchain Games
- The player is the owner of and in charge of the assets.
- Blockchain gaming assets are compatible with different games.
- The creation of tailored content is made possible by a persistent record of player and data history.
This is just the start
As we learn more about developing blockchain games, we are discovering an enormous amount of new use-cases and limitations. Suffescom Solutions Inc., one of the leading Blockchain Consulting Firms, asserts that adopting blockchain to create player ownership of in-game assets and login information will increase security and transparency in the gaming sector. Nevertheless, we hope that this gives you a general idea of what we believe is feasible.
