Esports 3.0 — Getting Started in Crypto
How to safely navigate the crypto world as a newcomer.
The world of crypto can seem complex and constantly evolving, particularly for newcomers. Luckily, us gamers have the advantage of being able to pick up new tech very quickly, as well as an in-depth familiarity with the digital world and in-game currencies.
There is a new wave of gaming just beginning to take hold, and a generational convergence of two colossal and fast-evolving industries: gaming and cryptocurrency. This new industry is called Esports 3.0. If you are a gamer in the traditional Esports scene, starting your transition into Esports 3.0 could catapult you to the next level, give you an opportunity to truly take ownership of the fruits of your labour, and turn your passion into your occupation and retirement plan, and if done right a ticket to some serious potential wealth.
Overview
What is Esports 3.0? Why is it important?
Esports 3.0 is the next generation of Esports, one where you retain full control of your in-game assets and hard-earned wealth and reputation by use of Blockchain technology. It is an amalgamation of Esports and crypto GameFi. Imagine being able to transfer your in-game currency from one game to another, being able to sell any asset for real cash, leverage your accomplishments to earn more cash, rent out your tanking or healing abilities, and so much more. Esports 3.0 balances the scales for fans and players alike, empowering players by giving them full control of their assets, reputations, items, currencies and more while incentivizing participants.
The importance and impact of this innovation on traditional gaming cannot be overstated. This will change the power structure away from corporate sponsorship and venture capital, and place the control back in hands of players , fans and individual investors. In this new iteration of gaming and its confluence with cryptocurrency, players and fans are truly able to retain the lion’s share of their earnings, and build reputation and wealth much as we would in our daily work lives.
What is cryptocurrency and blockchain?
In simple terms, blockchain is the technology that allows individuals to retain full control of their wealth without a trusted third party, permissionlessly, and in a transparent manner. Stay tuned in a later article for a more in-depth explanation of how blockchain works.
Suffice to say that blockchain empowers you as an owner/gamer, but with that control comes full responsibility. You alone control your wallet, you alone must be safe and secure while using it, and you alone benefit or face the consequences in the event you are not careful and are hacked, scammed or make a mistake.
Cryptocurrency is the currency used to transfer wealth and secure the blockchain itself. As an example, Ethereum is the main smart contract blockchain (more on that in subsequent articles), and Ether (ETH) is the cryptocurrency that powers that blockchain. Many other blockchains exist, but at the time of writing there are perhaps a dozen main chains where the majority of gaming activity occurs, and the lion’s share of that will be found on chains like Ethereum, Polygon, Solana, BNB and Immutable X.
How do I start my transition from traditional Esports to Esports 3.0?
As a gamer, the various steps will not seem overly complicated. The key word to keep in mind at all times is SAFETY! Crypto is a very new and fast-evolving industry, and scammers are like bandits in the wild west, and they come in many forms. Use the following initial steps to get a safe start on your exciting new adventure!
Step 1: Setting up a crypto Wallet
The first step is creating a crypto wallet to store your assets. If done carefully and properly, this step will set you up for a profitable and enjoyable Esports and crypto journey. If done sloppily, you will open yourself up to all kinds of scammers. Keep the following in mind at ALL times when setting off on your crypto adventure: “NEVER show anyone your seed phrase or private keys”. This will make more sense in a moment.
- Install a desktop wallet called Metamask by clicking here. Be very careful about where you download this form, as there are all kinds of spoof accounts imitating Metamask.
2. Click download extension, and then “create new wallet”
3. Create a password and write it down for safekeeping.
4. Now the most important part; your 12 word seed phrase. Do not reveal this to anyone, do not create it in a public space or on a public WiFi, do not have any cameras that can see it, do not screen shot it or save it in any digital form. Write down your seed phrase on paper and store it safely. Make sure to triple check it. This is what gives you access to your crypto assets, and it can be used to restore the wallet anywhere with only those 12 words. If someone gains access to it, they have full access to all your crypto.
5. Voila! Your wallet is created. From here on out you need only your password to unlock it and make transactions. Your seed phrase will be for recovery in the event you lose your computer or it breaks down.
Step 2: Get some crypto
Now that your wallet is ready, you will need some crypto to start interacting with the blockchain. Your goals and the games you play will dictate what specific cryptocurrency you will want to buy, and where to buy it.
There are a myriad of ways to buy crypto. The most popular and cost-effective ways are via an exchange like Binance or Swissborg. Here you would set up an account much like you would at any brokerage or bank, provide some identification and info, and deposit cash via credit card or bank account. This is a pretty intuitive process and easy to follow. If you go this route, you’ll want to send the crypto you buy to your personal Metamask wallet that we setup above.
To do this, open your Metamask browser extension with the icon in the top right of our browser and copy your wallet address. This address will apply to all the various blockchains that you add to your Metamask, as they are all what is called EVM compatible.
The copied address is YOUR address, and you will need to send TO it FROM your exchange account. In the example above, you would buy ETH, send it to your own account via ERC-20 network, and receive it typically within a few minutes. If you are using smaller amounts, you will want to use a network like Polygon or Binance Smart Chain (BNB), as the fees to transact on those networks is substantially cheaper. In this case, you would also need to add the network to your Metamask and ensure when you send the respective cryptocurrencies you are doing so on the correct network.
A simpler approach if you want to avoid the hassle of setting up an exchange account is to purchase directly through Metamask with a credit card. This will also require some basic identification and info, but is a quicker and simpler approach in which the crypto will be sent directly to your wallet. You will want to use either the Transak or Moonpay options.
Step 3: Understanding Transactions
Once you have received your ETH, MATIC, BNB or other crypto of choice you will need to understand the basics of the wallet and what a transaction and signature are.
Every time you want to send, trade, mint, stake, or otherwise use your crypto you will need to interact with the blockchain via your wallet, and pay a fee called a gas fee. This transaction will inevitably involve a few parts. The most crucial part is the signature, as this is effectively you spending your crypto in one way or another, and once done cannot be undone.
A — Sending Crypto:
Click on the “send” button on the main Metamask screen (see above graphic in Step 2). You will need the address of the recipient, which will look similar in format to the address you used to receive crypto in the previous step. You will enter the send address, the amount of crypto and then click “next” and “confirm”. You can check the status under the activity tab. There is very little risk in a send transaction, apart from sending it to the wrong place. Make sure you have the native crypto (ETH for example) to pay the gas fee. The fee will be automatically deducted from your wallet.
B — Interacting with a smart contract (staking, approvals, NFT minting, and lots more)
This is where you need to be very careful. First off, never interact with a smart contract you do not understand or trust. Even if you do trust it, make sure you are signing the right transaction. In most circumstances, you will be asked to connect to a site. This is a harmless connection, and not an actual transaction. Once connected, you can interact with what are called “dApps” (decentralized apps). These require signatures, and often more than one on the first interaction.
There is a lot to digest and learn on this topic, so let this be only a primer to start your journey. The most crucial part to understand from a safety perspective is an “approval” transaction. Lets use a simple example of minting or buying an NFT, and lets assume for this example the cost of the NFT will be paid in USDC. You will first connect to the site in question. Then when you click “mint” or “buy”, you will be prompted with an approval transaction.
Here you are giving the dApp in question the permission to spend your crypto, in this case USDC. If it was a malicious dApp, it could steal your crypto without you even knowing. Only allow approvals for dApps you trust, and even then it often pays to revoke the approval later. You can check these previous two articles for basic and advanced wallets tips and tricks.
Once you have signed the approval, you will be prompted to complete the transaction (eg. the mint, swap or purchase). This involves a gas fee (paid in the native token automatically once signed), and once complete your wallet will be debited for the token spent, and credited the new NFT or Token depending on your transaction.
C — Receiving Crypto
Receiving is as simple as providing the sender your wallet address the same way you did when sending from an exchange, and telling them what network (chain) you are using. Your wallet will automatically “receive” the crypto, there is no additional action needed on your part. Occasionally you may need to take extra steps to display your crypto if it is an obscure token of some sort, but have no fear, if you provided the correct address the crypto is there.
D — General Notes
Metamask is great for compatibility and functionality, but lacks convenience and tracking features. For this, you should use a free service like Zerion. You can connect your Metamask and track your crypto, NFTs and more. It is a phenomenal convenience tool, and will help in avoiding some of the potential attack vectors out there. It also has built-in bridges and swap features. There are also many alternatives to Metamask, such as Trustwallet and many more, than offer similar experiences to Metamask. Metamask is your best bet for getting started, as it is the most compatible of all Web3 wallets.
Step 4: Play a game and earn some crypto!
Now the fun part. There are quite a few crypto-integrated games, and they are growing in number and quality at a rapid pace. Step 5 below (Joining the XBorg community) will be an invaluable resource to finding games with cash tournaments and large followings and really delving into your favourite genre, as well as investing in these games before they get released. There are also loads of resources for really diving into the crypto gaming world, often referred to as GameFi, and turning into a career in addition to a hobby.
For the purposes of getting started and connecting your wallet to a game, we will use one of the OG games in the space called Gods Unchained. This is a high strategy deck-builder game where you can earn $GODS tokens, which can then be exchanged for ETH or other cryptocurrency, or used in-game. You can also earn card packs, and the cards themselves can be bought and sold on marketplaces and turned into cash as well. Like most crypto games, the “play and earn” component is linked to the project’s tokens and NFT’s, and less frequently coins like ETH or stablecoins (USD/Fiat backed coins). These allow you to have full ownership of your assets, and the be able to buy, sell and hold them at your discretion.
Visit Gods Unchained website and download the game. Once installed, create an account and then connect it to your Metamask wallet by clicking the logo on the top right, “manage wallets”, and then “metamask” (see below)
There will be a multitude of signatures and connections for this particular game (about 6). As long as you are on the correct URL, don’t be alarmed, this is legit and part of a more complex discussion about layer 2 blockchains for another day. Once connected, you will then be able to hold, trade and forge new cards (as NFTs — non fungible tokens), as well as earn $Gods tokens. Most games are even simpler to connect.
The rest is as easy as any well made video game. You can mint your cards, earn new card packs as you level up, build better decks and acquire new cards. Visit marketplaces like Token Trove to browse what is available and what they are worth. Every game is different, and each has different earning potential, but it is entirely possible to replace your average full time income with GameFi, and that trend will only continue and strengthen over the coming few years.
Step 5: Join an Esports 3.0 community like XBorg.
XBorg is a community of gamers and crypto enthusiasts looking to change the Esports 3.0 landscape, and bring crypto and gaming together into a new era of Esports that puts players, investors and fans all on equal footing.
A great place to start is their discord channel, which is very active and can help you with resources and navigating your new crypto journey. They also host gaming tournaments with huge prizes (check out the upcoming Extreme Championship Series) and are always on the hunt for gamers of all levels from professional to casual. When you get deeper down the rabbit hole, they also have a membership NFT (totally optional) that comes with a lot of perks and provides opportunities to invest in venture capital style crypto gaming projects.
Once you have familiarized yourself with the burgeoning world of GameFi, you can also leverage XBorg’s investments and access to really build a portfolio. They currently provide access to seed and private round token sales via their Launchpad (check out this article for more detailed info on Launchpads), and exclusive access is granted via their Prometheus NFT. They will also be rolling out some really innovative investment products including ITOs (Initial Team Offerings), where you can invest in professional Esports Teams, as well as in-game asset management via their soon to be released GameFi fund. It is well worth a closer look.
Conclusion:
Cryptocurrency is a revolutionary technology that will change the way world functions. The ability to have full permissionless and trustless control of your wealth is becoming increasingly important, and as the gaming and Esports realms continue their parabolic growth trajectories, the role of cryptocurrency within Esports world will become more and more vital.
We are at an early stage of adoption in crypto, where the the evolution of Esports 2.0 and traditional finance are merging to form what will one day become a the new world of Esports 3.0. There is no better time than now to make the transition from both the traditional financial world of banks and fiat($) and the traditional Esports scene, to the revolutionary Esports 3.0 world of self custody and player and fan empowerment.
Good luck on your Crypto and Esports 3.0 adventure!
See you on the next one,
Sovereign Crypto (a.k.a Rickky Bobby on discord)
XBorg Content Council
