KittyCash ‒ the fabulous mocktail between kittens and crypto

Curiosity killed the cat. But blockchain technology brought it back.

The Skycoin team kept themselves really busy lately and the results are quite impressive. Their latest technical report shows all the improvements made recently to the Skycoin ecosystem. Among other things, the relaunch of the KittyCash website. Now, I’m not saying one click and you’re hooked, but… one click, and you’re hooked. If you’re not hypnotized by the robocat to the right, or the slightly skeptical one in the top left, then the minigame will definitely get you. I don’t know what the highest score is, but I feel I’m in the lead. Press “Play”, I dare you.

The question on everyone’s mind at this point is most likely: can I pet the kitties? Gather round, people, we’re going to discuss this.

Blockchain games

Not long ago, I came across an useful infographic on blockchain technology. You can find it here and even if it is taken from an older article, it still paints a clear, simple picture of what exactly blockchain is.

With the rapid expansion and high adoption rate of this technology, it was inevitable that it would reach a lot of various business branches. One of them: the gaming industry. Sure, it’s obvious that blockchain games are still very young, most of them being casual games built on the idea of cryptocollectibles. But the future possibilities are exciting, and they might involve improvements for all kinds of game specifics, such as an increase in individuality. Exciting!

Fiber ‒ an ecosystem’s breath of fresh air

What defines an ecosystem is not each component in particular, but the connection that forms between them. If you look at Skycoin’s ecosystem, you’ll notice that all the elements are interconnected, each sustaining the other ones. It’s one big, happy family, where each member makes itself as useful as possible. Fiber is actually giving everyone the opportunity to build their own projects on blockchain, to create their own ecosystems, their own families.

But enough with the metaphors, let’s bring some solid information to the table:

By using this enterprise solution, companies have access to the benefits of Skycoin technology ‒ low energy consumption, near-instant transaction times, no transaction fees. The whitepaper mentions Spaco and MyDailyLife (MDL) Talent Hub as the early adopters.

KittyCash ‒ the furriest, most adorable virtual pets since Tamagotchis

It seemed necessary to briefly explain Fiber, because it’s what fuels KittyCash. In the freshest issue of their whitepaper, the Skycoin team calls KittyCash “an ambitious successor to the wildly popular CryptoKitties game”. While that one got the Ethereum blockchain all jammed and overcrowded, the Skycoin project’s version is safe from that ever happening, since it runs on the foundation of “cryptocurrency 3.0”.

Cash Kitty, blockchain kitty, Purring in a node, Cartoon kitty, icon kitty, Code, code, code.

KittyCash is a blockchain-based game, in which players can breed, feed and trade their virtual pets. Their ownership and DNA is entirely kept on Fiber ‒ the parallel peer-chain architecture of the Skycoin platform. It seems the team put their heart and soul into it, leaving no stone unturned in their quest to provide “better crypto-collectable with extensive gaming possibilities”. They had to redesign the entire breeding algorithm, to avoid any complications or mutations that could have appeared later.

The cats’ genes are made up of panels of SNPs (single nucleotide polymorphisms), which get hashed into a “genetic code” (a unique ID). Each gene can be neutral, negative or positive, being randomly passed to the pets’ offspring. The devs are taking into consideration adding cloning later on in the game, albeit at an expensive price.

To start playing, you’ll have to download the Kittery (the equivalent of a wallet) and either buy a kitty, win one or earn one. If you decide to buy one, you can do so using Skycoin or Bitcoin; however, keep in mind that in-game purchases can only be made with Skycoin. If you want to win one, I’d recommend keeping an eye on their Bounty Hunt program (best way to do this is by joining their community ‒ either on Telegram, Twitter or whichever you prefer, you can find them all on the website).

In regards to the economical aspects of the game, the team answered in the FAQ to the most burning question: can one make money with KittyCash? Well, the answer is both yes and no. You might or you might not. There’s no guarantee. Playing the game should not be considered an investment, and the value of the Kitties can fluctuate a great deal.

KittyCash is a Proof-of-Concept for games on Skycoin’s Fiber blockchain platform. Other mini-games, where players can win accessories or food are slowly but surely on the way. The roadmap places them at the end of Q4 of this year.

The Skycoin team promised to reinvent the internet. And seeing how much work they do constantly, they seem very keen on keeping that promise.