FAQ
GM! Let's talk about why we're here.
Why on-chain games on the Internet Computer?
We've devoted over two years to building games on the Internet Computer. We've explored, experimented, researched, discussed and debated every corner and crevice of blockchain gaming.
Throughout our journey, one thing remained our guiding compass - the Internet Computer combined with fully on-chain games presents the greatest opportunity for humanity to change how we interact and create value for each other.
Affordable on-chain storage (1GB ~= $5) allows a game server, database, assets (sprites, 3D models etc), game client etc. to be stored and served entirely on-chain.
By leveraging the power of the IC, we can build digital realms encapsulated entirely in canisters on an infinite, transparent, and governable World Computer. Nothing like this has been attempted before.
Does everything need to be on-chain?
Technically no.
But if you aren't building fully on-chain, you're missing the powerful network effects of smart contracts.
Would NFTs have grown to a billion-dollar industry if they were fragmented across Amazon Web Services or Google Cloud?
The power of smart contracts lies in their ability to socially coordinate billions of humans to participate in unified value creation on the internet.
Don't ask if everything needs to be on-chain, ask what's possible when everything is on-chain. New possibilities emerge when smart contracts can coordinate billions of people to create digital worlds together. Unique use cases emerge when worlds are 100% on-chain.
If you'd like to dig deeper into the concept of on-chain games and autonomous worlds, we recommend reading these materials below:
VC Article About the Potential of On-Chain Games
Gubsheep - The Strongest Crypto Gaming Thesis
Lattice - MUD: An engine for Autonomous Worlds
Overview of On-Chain Games Ecosystem
Twitter Thread About Autonomous Worlds
Does a game need NFTs and Tokens?
Technically no.
Although we believe that NFTs and Tokens can be a powerful way to align incentives for gamers, creators, and developers in ways that aren't possible without smart contracts. Designing a game economy that sustainably acquires users, rewards value creation, pays developers, prevents ponzi-nomics and is inherently fun to play, is a monumental task that no game studio has solved yet.
NFTs and Tokens aren't going anywhere. We believe that there will be an economy that can attract and reward players and creators in a sustainable way. We've built the developer tools so that you can test NFTs and Tokens, but it's up to you to discover the game economy that sustains your digital world.
How do we onboard Web2 gamers?
Over the last two years, billions of dollars in venture capital have been raised to solve this very issue.
Has it been solved yet? The short answer is no.
Everyone has an opinion on why it hasn't been solved:
UX is bad
Wallet login is complicated
Gamers hate NFTs
Games should only be about fun
Web3 games aren't high-quality
Players don't want to deal with tokens
Players shouldn't know they're using crypto
Web3 games are all ponzis
Blockchains are too slow
What if I told you that those statements are true, but they're viewing the problem from the wrong perspective.
All these opinions are analyzing Web3 games through the lens of Web2 games.
As Henry Ford (the inventor of the modern car) famously said:
“If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses.”
In the same way, if you ask a gamer what they want, they want a Call of Duty with better graphics or a League of Legends with faster networking.
Instead, let's think from first principles.
A first principle is a basic proposition or assumption that cannot be deduced from any other proposition or assumption
First, we should identify what our experience has taught us about games.
Then, throw all that game experience into the trash. Erase it.
Start from scratch.
Think about what games could be if all logic and data was entirely in smart contracts. What new use cases does this open up? What new game genres can be invented?
Stop trying to build things for the people who want faster horses.
Why do we need on-chain gaming infrastructure?
Because building games on-chain is hard. Video games are some of the most complex applications in the world. Cutting edge technologies were invented by game developers just trying to get their game idea to work.
Blockchain adds additional complexity on top of an already complicated tech stack. Game development timelines take 2-3 years, and now there's additional work to write blockchain smart contracts and design on-chain economies.
BOOM DAO set out to fix this problem and supercharge the development of fully on-chain games. BOOM DAO gaming infrastructure was designed to be simple enough for a 14 year old to build a fully on-chain game in a matter of days.
Why should I integrate the World Protocol into my game?
When we began designing BOOM DAO gaming infrastructure, we realized there was a massive opportunity to create network effects across all games on the Internet Computer. This began with our concept of Worlds.
In traditional gaming, if your game is multiplayer and/or online then a game server is required. This game server enforces that players can't cheat and supervises fair interactions between players in a single digital space. When a player takes an action, this game server talks to a database to verify the newly changed player data.
In on-chain gaming, this game server is replaced by a World canister. A World canister acts similar to a game server, but its logic runs through blockchain consensus to prevent cheating and its logic can be governed by a DAO. Additionally, instead of a database on a centralized cloud provider, a World stores its data in canisters in the World Protocol - a composable and standardized on-chain game database that can be accessed and leveraged by any World.
The World Protocol interconnects the data of every game on the Internet Computer with composable data standards and access control. It governs the economic and social interactions between games, empowering Worlds to alter each other's data through the protocol.
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