Five Blockchain Games You Should Try
A taste of what blockchain can offer to the gaming industry
Blockchain has important implications for the future of finance. However, it also has implications for the future of entertainment.
At the dinner table during the holidays, you might be able to sell some of the attendees on blockchain with the promise of border-less, decentralized money, but there are plenty of audiences, young and old, that don’t find those concepts enticing enough to be sucked in.
This is where blockchain games come into the mix.
Games are a great way to hook someone on a new technology. Just look at virtual reality. That shit is gettin’ cray.
If you’re in blockchain, you can’t ignore the potential of blockchain games. Here are five of my favorites:
1. Dark Forest (xDai // Ethereum)
As a universe-exploring, planet-capturing, real-time-strategy game, some call Dark Forest the Eve Online of blockchain. What’s your playstyle? Casual explorer, or aggressive space pirate?
Dark Forest isn’t focused on next-gen graphics, and has quite the opposite, but the right attitude and a decent imagination allow for some of the most exciting PVP experiences that a blockchain game has ever afforded.
A mix of unique blockchain mechanics is folded in, including the use of zkSnark technology to create a fog-of-war mechanic, and CPU mining to incrementally lift that fog for each player.
2. Axie Infinity (Ethereum)
One of the longest-standing and most popular games on Ethereum, Axie Infinity is a world where you collect creatures, raise them, breed them, and battle them.
With cute graphics inspired by Pokémon, this game answers the question “What would CryptoKitties be like if you could do more than just breed kitties?”
Axie Infinity isn’t a ground-breaking use of blockchain, but it’s the best at what it does and is an accessible entry-level game that I’d recommend to anyone. Axie Infinity’s community would welcome you with open arms.
3. Decentraland (Ethereum)
Launched in early 2020, Decentraland is a decentralized virtual world with much to offer, including unique avatars, events, custom buildings and items, and seasonal quests!
Everything within the game is player-owned, from the clothes that you create and wear to the very land that you walk on.
The game runs in your browser but there are plans to integrate it into actual VR. So, unfortunately, you can’t play it with your VR headset just yet, but you can still easily escape reality from your browser.
4. Gods Unchained (Ethereum)
Arguably the most-hyped game to have launched on a blockchain, Gods Unchained has gone on to cement itself as THE dominant blockchain trading card game.
With quality graphics, Hearthstone-esque gameplay mechanics, and a very active trading community, you can play the card game or you can play the trading game!
If you want to try without spending money, you’ll be given a free collection of cards to play with. To experience the full breadth of the game, you should spend a few bucks on card packs.
5. Minko — Monero Plinko (Monero)
Plinko is already a perfect game that doesn’t need new mechanics added to it, so why is Monero Plinko on this list? Because of how it’s executed.
Initiate a game of Minko by sending Monero to your unique game address, and then the magic happens: Like any good casino game, you’re entranced by the interface, the graphics, and the accompanying soundbites. The results will display before your eyes and you’ll soon see if you’ve won or lost — the game is provably fair, and the house edge is “smaller than 1.76%.”
I’m not a fan of blockchain casino games in general because they’re a dime a dozen and most are low-quality, but Minko gets a spot on this list for having a quality interface that could rival Peggle (and for being the only Monero game I’ve played).
Honorable Mention: The entirety of DeFi
DeFi is the biggest game of them all, but it’s also the most dangerous game (aside from The Most Dangerous Game).
Many DeFi projects are built over the course of multiple days (Not weeks or months. Days.) With their cutesy, emoji-based branding, and the promises of wildly high yields, you’re sure to be enticed to drop all your money into one of these projects… and then lose it all from a bug, exploit, or rug pull.
Be safe out there.
