How Has Cryptocurrency Altered the Online Gaming Industry?

When blockchain burst on the scene, tech gurus predicted a transformation in the financial community. Blockchain refers to the open-source code that powers Bitcoin and more than 6,000 other cryptocurrencies. Many other industries since then leveraged the power of blockchain technology to improve their business processes, shore up their security, and provide added value to their clients. The gaming industry offers one surprising area in which blockchain tech created positive changes.

Enhanced Security for Both Sides

Because blockchains create an immutable record of transactions, both gamers and game hosts, such as casinos, benefit. Neither the game nor the gamer can cheat the system, so the blockchain creates a safer gaming environment. The added safety builds trust that enables games to offer more immediate payments.

Faster Payouts

Enhanced security and trust have led to faster payments. Online games and casinos that pay in fiat or cryptocurrency often offer faster payouts because they inherently know the genuineness of the customer’s claimed cash out. This benefits gamers by providing more immediate income for their participation. According to Think with Google, more than 50% of consumers research products before making a purchase, which can elevate games that offer fast payments.

New Methods of Payout

Casinos and online games using blockchain tech typically offer payments in cryptocurrency, whereas they initially offered only fiat currency. While fiat currency holds relatively steady value, cryptocurrency can fluctuate. By paying in tokens that hold steady value or using stablecoins, game hosts offer enhanced payouts because the crypto won today could hold a higher value tomorrow.

Many games now offer non-fungible tokens (NFTs) as a part of gameplay. Whether they take the form of equipment or prizes, these NFTs can increase in value, providing the winner with an option to sell the token on the fair market. Markets, such as Open Sea, offer an online auction-style format for NFT owners to buy, sell, and trade.

Increased Sense of Ownership

Awarding NFTs as equipment representatives or prizes increases the sense of ownership for the gamers. Instead of purchasing an item described merely as words on a screen, the gamer receives a tangible digital item that they can keep or sell because their ownership of it became part of the legal record when written to the blockchain.

Forming New Currencies

Some games use existing coins or tokens, such as Litecoin, OMG, or Cardano, to pay their participants. Many games have turned toward minting a unique token though, providing an added level of safety through the use of utility tokens. These less volatile tokens can offer gamers a way to keep a portion of their winnings in the game for easy use in purchasing in-game equipment or services without incurring gas fees.

As each game or casino develops its token, the business adds to the overall development of blockchain technology. Taken together, the multitude of use cases helps blockchain developers discover what works and what doesn’t. Game developers design custom wallets, transfer mechanisms, and service options that other industries can modify and implement.

Improving Online Gaming through Blockchain Technology

Blockchain gaming can speed up gameplay, reducing transaction time and costs by contributing to the betterment of the latest chain designs. As it develops, blockchain technology continues to move from using methods that create a heavy carbon footprint to those that utilize renewable energy. Its newest proofing methods speedily confirm transactions while charging little to no gas fees, reducing the costs of development and hosting, while making gameplay more fun.

Consult with a blockchain developer or game developer to learn more about how you can use blockchain tech to transform and improve your game or casino. Attract new players by offering safer, faster gameplay in an incentivized environment. Consider blockchains with lightning-quick response times and existing tokens that cost little to use. More than half of Internet users – 58.4% – buy something online every week; use blockchain tech to make your game one of their purchases.