CryptoKitties: An Early Application of the Blockchain That Led to Digital Cats Worth $100k+
The blockchain has promised us incredible new opportunities as a society. A decentralized banking system. Traceable food production for sustainability purposes. Digital cats that you can sell for over $100,000.
That last one actually isn’t a promise anymore — the blockchain community brought it to digital devices all across the U.S. back in 2017.
What are CryptoKitties?
In the company’s own words:
Collect and trade CryptoKitties in one of the world’s first blockchain games. Breed your rarest cats to create the purrfect furry friend. The future is meow!
When I first heard about CryptoKitties, my mind was completely blown. To be honest I thought it was absurd until I found out that a single CryptoKitty had sold for roughly $170,000, at which point I still thought it was absurd but the feeling was overtaken by wishing that I had bred that rare digital cat.
The game works such that users own unique CryptoKitties, and are able to breed their own digital cats together. The attributes of each cat are combined through what I can only assume is a decently complex algorithm behind the scenes, to create a new unique CryptoKitty. Based on the type of cat, the…
