The gaming industry has made great strides in the last decade or so. New technologies are improving how people interact with their favourite games, compete with others and choose from the available games. One of the revolutionary advances that is making a big impact in the industry is the blockchain technology.
A blockchain is a distributed and decentralised digital ledger that enables an organisation to have secure transactions and maintain records. It has been used in various aspects of gaming, from making payments to the development of NFTs.
Characteristics of the Gaming Industry that Make the Use of Blockchain Possible
There are several characteristics that make the gaming industry ripe for use with blockchain technology. Here are a few:
- Players need real money to play games on gambling platforms. While they can play for free or use digital cash offered by casinos, the only way to make cash is by depositing some. They can use it to buy assets and spin.
- Game developers and entrepreneurs need a secure environment for developing and launching games and a way to monetise them.
- Players would like to buy and sell in-game currency. There are safe platforms to enable them to do this
- Players would like to play various games and create profiles in many. They would like to make the games interoperable across various games.
- Intangible assets online can now project value, based on the amount of cash that is being pumped into buying and maintaining them.
There has to be a way that this value can be measured and stored.
Here’s How Blockchain is Revolutionizing Gaming
It Makes In-Game Purchases Easier
Cryptocurrencies enable players to make in-platform payments with ease and purchase assets they need to play their favourite games. In-game purchases require speedy payments and players do not need to wait for fiat currency providers to process payments. It is easier with e-currency.
It is Increasing Security in the Gaming Market
The blockchain’s decentralisation and security make it too expensive to hack and alter information. This aspect provides a secure environment where players, gambling platforms and developers can interact. It is a win-win situation for everyone as they are able to take care of their interests.
The technology works with other security systems, including VPNs. Users of technology can access sites securely and make payments privately and safely. A blockchain VPN adds a security layer to make your transactions secure. Learn more about gambling with VPN and its applications in the gaming industry.
Increase the Ownership of In-game Assets
In-game assets are intellectual properties that are owned online. However, owning it is not as easy as picking it up. The use of blockchain technology helps players exchange the scarce assets with others and ensure that there is a profit.
The blockchain helps in facilitating transactions via smart contracts. These smart contracts are pre-programmed and irreversible. It means that once a transaction is completed, the user cannot lose ownership of the asset. Besides, when a player launches a game that is based on blockchain, all the assets that they purchase via smart contracts are transferred to the player’s public address.
In addition, smart contracts can be operated without having a central authority or exchange that manages the transfer of cash. There is no individual that may change the public address where the in-game assets are stored. Besides, the assets cannot be replaced with others by the platform. They remain the property of the said player, who owns them.
Enhance the Value Projection of the Assets
Players are investing in intangible assets in addition to playing blockchain games. For example, after Crypto Kitties were released to the market in 2017, players are said to have invested a whopping $6.7 million in buying the assets. Many players are willing to spend real money when constructing blockchain games.
Cryptocurrency helps players place real value on intangible assets. Buying the same using fiat currency would mean that everyone would need to get the same currency. Some assets may lose value in this way. Blockchain technology makes it easy to make cash from NFTs and any other assets you have in video games and improve their value.
Improving the Payment Methods
Cryptocurrencies make use of blockchain technology to provide secure but private payments. In the recent past, there have been several incidents of major fiat currency methods being bleached and players losing their cash. Others have had their information released and sold to the black market for marketing and theft purposes.
The few cases of theft that have been witnessed in cryptocurrency do not result from attacks on the blockchain, but rather from the theft of addresses and malice at the crypto exchange. Otherwise, any money stored on the blockchain cannot be stolen.
Before the entry of cryptocurrencies, most of the players transacted using methods like credit cards and e-wallets. Unfortunately, most of the methods transmit the username and other information that identifies the user. Smart hackers can use the information to determine the real identity of the person that sent the cash. This has been the reason why many players are unwilling to share their information on gaming sites.
However, cryptocurrency has helped customers make anonymous payments to their respective sites. The casino or gaming sites do not see the banking information of the user or any other data that can be used against them.
It is also easy for crypto users to store cash in their wallets and use the same for transactions beyond gaming. There are thousands of online and brick-and-mortar sellers that accept cryptocurrency as a mode of payment. Therefore, the profit that one makes from gaming activities can be put to great use.
Blockchain technology is likely to provide the future of war. It offers security, a better experience and convenience to all players. Expect more blockchain games in the future.
