Reminiscent of Tamagotchi and Pokémon, the wildly popular digital pets and creatures of the 1990s, CryptoKitties is a blockchain-based game where players can collect, trade and breed digital virtual cats. CryptoKitties was the first Ethereum-based game, and its popularity underscored many of the network’s scaling issues.
This digital cat-breeding blockchain game caused quite a bit of congestion on the Ethereum blockchain, peaking in 2020. However, the game’s creators were able to address these issues.
What is CryptoKitties?
Launched in 2017, CryptoKitties was built by Dapper Labs, the company that uses blockchain technology to bring nonfungible tokens (NFTs) and new forms of digital engagement to fans around the world. CryptoKitties is also considered one of the world’s first-ever blockchain games.
In the game, each one of the digital collectible cats possesses a unique genome that determines its physical traits. Cats can be bred to create new virtual kittens and unlock rare “cattributes” or in-game cat features.
Is CryptoKitties an NFT game? Yes, CryptoKitties are unique, one-of-a-kind assets backed by NFTs, making them rare and valuable. They were built on Ethereum using the ERC-721 token standard, which allowed for the creation of unique NFTs.
CryptoKitties can be sold and traded, and cats with rare traits can fetch high prices. The rarest CryptoKitty of all time is the genesis cat, aptly named “Genesis” because it was the very first CryptoKitty hatched by the game’s creators. Genesis was sold in 2017 for 246.926 Ether (ETH), or around $119,328 at the time of selling. Ether has since appreciated, and so has the genesis cat.
How does CryptoKitties work?
Blockchain technology remains at the core of this game, but the unique CryptoKitties gameplay can be credited to its Genetic Algorithm (GA). The GA aims to mimic real genetic principles by structuring the smart contract code of each kitten like the DNA of actual living creatures.
Each kitty possesses its own digital genetic pattern, which in turn…
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