The Status Quo of Decentralized Gaming

Blockchain gaming is a market almost as old as the technology itself. With the aim of creating a new generation of video games, various companies have developed technologies and approaches that pursue different philosophies over the years. But even at the beginning of the new decade, there are hardly any blockchain-based video games that have made it out of the beta phase.

Most blockchain DApps and games today are based on the Ethereum blockchain. However, mostly not with the ERC-20 token standard, since this poses a fundamental problem for this type of application: ERC-20 tokens of one type are interchangeable (fungible). An example from the world of fiat: No matter what $1 bill it is and it will always be worth $1.

That may still work for video games for your own currency. However, the ERC-20 standard is by no means suitable for collectible objects based on blockchain. The token standard ERC-721, which was created for non-fungible tokens, i.e. digital unique items, is intended to remedy this. A well-known example of the application of this standard is the decentralized app (DApp) Cryptokitties. Each virtual cat is unique here, represented by a separate ERC-721 token. Since a new ERC-721 is created for every cat in the Ethereum network, network problems of a certain size cannot be avoided. As a result, in December 2017 — the preliminary high point of the crypto hype, the network with the virtual cats got clogged.

An approach that could change everything

So a video game needs both fungible and non-fungible tokens. Enjin wanted to combine both in one standard. And that’s exactly what they did with the ERC-1155 standard, which was recognized as the official Ethereum standard on June 17 last year. The core feature is to manage several different types of tokens with a single smart contract. This also benefits the developers of games because less standards have to be used in development.

However, Enjin is not only responsible for the ERC-1155 standard. The so-called “blockchain gaming universe” was also launched by Enjin. It is an association of various blockchain developer studios that link their games together. Items from different games can be used in other participating games. The object does not always have to fulfill the same function. For example, a character from game A can embody a weapon in game B. Enjin has already designed objects and characters for this that can be freely incorporated into future blockchain games.

Weaknesses in blockchain technology cloud the good basic idea

Since cryptocurrencies are used in almost all blockchain-based video games, you obviously need a corresponding wallet. Even if any Ethereum wallet would do it here, Metamask has established itself as the standard — at least for browser games. In order to use Metamask, the wallet must be filled with ether. Once this is done, the virtual pleasure can begin. If the game requires a transaction, Metamask opens automatically and the player only needs to confirm.

Unfortunately, the selection of really good and innovative blockchain games is currently still limited. Although Cryptokitties offers a vivid example of the use case of non-fungible tokens, it is not more than a collection of tokens. The game Taurion takes a different approach, Here, movements, vehicles and resources are tracked on a blockchain. However, the gaming experience is clouded by the slow transaction time. These can be verified within around 30 seconds in order to carry out the desired action. For an MMO (Massive Multiplayer Online) that wants to have the most real-time scope for action possible for its gameplay, this is not very beneficial. One can expect to see an improvement in the future both on a technical level and in terms of game design.

Author: Marko Vidrih

Featured image credit: Pixabay