Cryptocurrency And Gaming

Sometimes things just go together like they were made for each other.

With cryptocurrency, it appears the ideal counterpart is the gaming industry. This was one of the fastest growing sectors over the last couple decades meaning that integration into that industry could really catapult cryptocurrency forward.

Gamers are already accustomed to dealing in virtual currencies. As gaming moved from cartridge based to online, the features that were included kept expanding. Part of gaming's appeal is growing in stature as a player, which often means amassing a chest full of in-game tokens or assets.

Thus, for decades, gamers were doing what people in the cryptocurrency world are doing presently. They were ahead of the curve.

Ironic that gaming still have not come around to embrace cryptocurrency. What looks like a marriage made in heaven is likely a major threat to the existing gaming companies.

This industry is no different from any other one. At the core is power and control. That is what all companies seek and those like EA Sports follow suit. Adding cryptocurrency to their existing games could result in the loss of some of the control.

The value to in-game assets, from the company perspective, is they reside in game only. While there are a few of the more successful games that saw secondary markets, all transactions happen within the confines of the game they assets are associated with. Cryptocurrency completely obliterates this model.

Instead of being relegated to in game, the assets can be swapped on open markets. This means that the assets reside outside the game in some type of wallet controlled by the gamer. From that point, assets can be moved at the option of the owner for whatever assets he or she is willing to take.

This results in a tremendous loss of control. In fact, at that point, it would be possible for other gaming developers to allow the entry of those assets into their games. Or, at a minimum, they could enable a swapping of those assets for something that is applicable to the feature-sets in their games.

Obviously, the first gaming company is not going to sign up for this. Why would they want their assets to be used in other games? The way it is now, they would not want that.

Ultimately, the large gaming companies might not have a choice. It could be a situation where they have to adapt or face extinction. Like the newspaper and record industries before them, new technology caused a massive shift within the industry. While a few were able to adapt, many went out of business due to their inability to transition.

Could we see the same thing in the world of gaming?

Blockchain based games are on the rise. While none have even come close to mass adoption, it is only a matter of time before the concept starts to penetrate the psyche of gamers. Why are they spending all their time on games that do not financially benefit them? The greater the amount of success one has in a game, the more it means nothing. In the end, the financial value is equivalent to the worst player. All payouts mean nothing (tournaments with prized aside).

Obviously, on Hive, we see one of the more successful blockchain games in @splinterlands. This is a game that keeps growing in stature and is setting the pace for this transition. However, it is still miniscule on the scale of the entire gaming community.

Here is where the potential resides. There are an estimated 2 billion online gamers around the world. That breaks down to more than 1 in 4 people. If cryptocurrency wants a fast track to adoption, that would certainly be a venue. The gamers are ardent about what they like and will invest not only hours, but money into their pastimes.

When it comes to establishing a massive network effect, gaming is the ticket. The numbers are simply too great to overlook. As we progress towards the Metaverse, the line between gaming and the rest of the world will blur. This puts those people in ideal position to leverage this for future financial gain.

After all, they were dealing with digital assets two decades ago. It is the rest of the world that is now catching up to them.

Article by @taskmaster4450le.

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