Online Gamers Want In-Game Cryptocurrencies. Game Developers, Not So Much
March 12 2018 - 12:43PM
InvestorsHub NewsWire
Bitcoin Global News (BGN)
March 12, 2018 -- ADVFN Crypto NewsWire -- The popularity of online
gaming and esports has created a pent up demand for a
cryptocurrency that players feel could enhance their video gaming
experience. The creation of in-game cryptocurrencies could be a
valuable addition to the economies of popular online games such as
World of Warcraft.
According to a February 2018 survey study by WAX of 1,000 US
gamers ("Worldwide Asset Exchange" https://wax.io), 75% want a
gaming-specific cryptocurrency with which they could buy virtual
goods and buy and sell like arcade tokens or casino chips.
WAX CEO William Quigley said upon the survey's release, “The
widespread usage of cryptocurrency in online video gaming is
imminent. Video gamers are tech-savvy members of a global community
with the desire to make frequent, small transactions across
borders. The results of the study could not be clearer: video
gamers want to be able to use cryptocurrency to make low-cost
gaming-related transactions.”
Around 5% of millennials own cryptocurrency at present, while
55% of the online gaming millennials surveyed own some bitcoin or
another cryptocurrency, indicating a large crossover between the
online gaming community and bitcoin community.
The esports industry enables players and viewers to wager on
themselves and other gamers, creating a ‘bounty’ to be won. But the
in-game items market has high transaction fees and exchanges rates,
and slow transaction speeds. These problems would presumably be
mitigated or even resolved by eliminating the middleman and
integrating in-game use of, for example, Stellar Lumens, Dogecoin,
or Dash. Perhaps even better would be a new cryptocurrency
dedicated to the most popular online games that would run on its
own blockchain, enabling low-cost/high-speed in-game
microtransactions.
For game developers, the use case for in-game cryptocurrency
integration is not as clear. Firstly, in-game crypto holders would
presumably be more apt to cash out their coins rather holding their
money on the game platform, weakening the game’s economy. Secondly,
cryptocoin price spikes and collapses would inject uncertainty into
the earnings stream that game developers rely on to pay their
bills. Creation of gaming-specific stablecoin that is pegged
against the USD or a basket of fiat currencies would help mitigate
that volatility.
Game-developer acceptance of the benefits of in-game
cryptocurrency integration outweighing the downsides (players and
esports fans regular cashing out and price volatility) is the
biggest challenge for the creation and adoption of gaming-specific
coins.
Every gaming environment is a lively separate world with its own
rules and its own black market. Blockchain technology would allow
online gaming platforms to offer services that were previously
available only on the black market, letting players earn currency
that can be exchanged for real money or in-game items, and making
the game's economy healthier and more attractive to outside
investors, and, potentially, if implemented in just the right way,
less risky and more profitable for game developers instead of the
opposite.
The era of cryptocurrency and blockchain opens vast new
opportunities for game publishers and developers. Cryptos will
eventually, in one way or another, have a major, positive impact on
the online gaming industry. Time will tell exactly when and
how.
By: BGN Editorial Staff
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