🧵/(part of
Roadmap Analysis 10: A game, or, most likely "A PtE game". Also: quests and other minigames.
Alright.
*cracks knuckles*
https://twitter.com/swombat/status/1463577582826397701)
Roadmap Analysis 10: A game, or, most likely "A PtE game". Also: quests and other minigames.
Alright.
*cracks knuckles*
2/There are definitely contexts where a game makes sense. For example, for an artist launchpad like @robotosNFT, adding fun little games that people can play to engage more with the artistic universe of Robotos makes a lot of sense. w/ artist launchpads, fun is part of the value.
3/And gamifying various aspects of the community can be pretty cool too. #LazyLions's recent "referral app" is a fun little trading card game on top of the referral mechanism. It's clever and enjoyable for a little while. It's not "a game" though - the meat is the referrals.
4/Many projects, including, to my dismay, the Lions, have some kind of game listed as the ultimate destination of their roadmap. Usually it's a PtE game, which imho makes it even worse.
5/Galactic Apes has "missions" that you can send your apes on, which result in <other benefits>. And of course the Wolf game ponzi is entirely "a game".
I've made my opinion of PtE games clear before: they're basically gambling.
I've made my opinion of PtE games clear before: they're basically gambling.
https://twitter.com/swombat/status/1457372386785910786
6/Since writing that I've iterated to a more neutral term: they are just redistributive processes.
A PtE game just redistributes funds among the players. If the players are the investors in the project, the PtE game just shuffles money around between them and creates no value.
A PtE game just redistributes funds among the players. If the players are the investors in the project, the PtE game just shuffles money around between them and creates no value.
7/The only way that a purely redistributive mechanism like that can *appear*, temporarily, to create value, is by bringing in more investors. In other words, a PtE game can grow by being a ponzi.
8/At the same time, having "a game" on the roadmap seems insanely popular in the NFT space. So many projects have that as their ultimate destination. I'm not sure why. It doesn't seem sensible to me.
9/The very first app I touched on a computer was a game. I've been an avid gamer since I was 8 years old. I love games.
And let me tell you: the vast majority of games are trash. Building a good game is Really Hard (tm).
And let me tell you: the vast majority of games are trash. Building a good game is Really Hard (tm).
10/So even if the project is genuinely trying to build a game... well, unless that is in fact the whole purpose of the project, to fund development of a game, why would they stick that in there?
11/It's like if you funded a project to design and build a car, and as the last step of the project, they had "become a brain surgeon".
Wat?
Wat?
12/Building successful NFT projects is already pretty hard. Building successful games is even harder. Building PtE games is just more internal redistribution.
So, when I see a game on the roadmap?
So, when I see a game on the roadmap?
13/If it's an artist launchpad: maybe a green flag (if not PtE).
If it's a game mechanic around something else (e.g. whitelists): ignore it, and look at what is wrapped inside.
If it's a PtE game: amber to red flag depending on how central it is to the project.
Next.
If it's a game mechanic around something else (e.g. whitelists): ignore it, and look at what is wrapped inside.
If it's a PtE game: amber to red flag depending on how central it is to the project.
Next.
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