💬 In Plain English
To the average player, it’s exactly the same as every game you’ve ever played; the only difference is you get to (actually) own the items in the game.
Behind the scenes, the game statistics aren’t stored on a central server. Points, levels, wins or losses are stored permanently on the blockchain.
💎 Why It Matters
For gamers, items earned in one game could be easily transferable to a totally different game. Think catching Pikachu in Pokemon Go and then playing him as a character in Grand Theft Auto.
For game developers, games can only last as long as their servers are maintained (which requires money). Games could last forever, so long as any one person is willing to maintain the blockchain.
📘 Key Takeaways
Still in it’s infancy; most projects are either clones of popular games or used for big brand marketing tie-ins.
Huge growth potential for new game mechanics, monetisation opportunities and collaborations.
Most games are running on the Ethereum blockchain, although newer games are moving to faster ledgers like Binance Smart Chain.
🔗 Who’s Doing This?
F1 Delta Time - Compete by building and trading car parts and drivers.
NBA Top Shot - Traditional trading card game built on the blockchain.
Axie Infinity - Blockchain Pokemon.
Decentraland - Blockchain MineCraft.
Enjin - Developer platform for building Blockchain games.
🔮 What Should I Do With This Info?
If you’re gamer, try out Axie Infinity. It has become so popular that you can now earn money while playing (which has become a career of its own in the Philippines).
If you’re a developer, learn how to develop your own dApp (decentralised app) by building a crypto-collectibles game here.
If you’re an investor, research Enjin Coin (ENJ). Over the last 6 months, the price peaked at $3.45 from a low of $0.15 and now hovers at $1.18. Enjin Coin (ENJ) is still up 5% compared to Ethereum (ETH).