A few years ago, my family had several investments in the world of gaming. We owned shares of Apple, of course, the premier mobile platform for gaming (the most important platform there is right now). And we had a couple of investments on the software side, ActivisionBlizzard and Ubisoft. So when Christmas 2020 came around, I decided to ask for a Sony Playstation, two Ubisoft games, and an ActivisionBlizzard game. You know, for stock research.
Okay, here's my confession: I never took them out of the box. That very nice hardware and software stayed under a table for a year, with the box unopened. Finally I gave it away. Why did I not even try to play my cool games on the Sony Playstation? Because I was having so much fun playing free games on my iPhone, and a free game on the blockchain called Splinterlands (SPS).
Free games are the best
On my iPhone, I spend a lot of time playing this free game, I think it's from Korea, called "Galaxiga," which reminds me of the fun games of my youth. Sometimes I spend money to upgrade one of my four battleships so I can blow up those stupid aliens who keep attacking me. I also play "Clue" and "Jeopardy" and other games that do not hurt my brain or my wallet too much.
Back in 2019, when I was trying to research and understand crypto, I discovered a cool online game called Splinterlands. So, in the name of stock research, I started playing this free game that was on the blockchain. It's a card-based battle game with aliens, vampires, robots, dragons, a giant eyeball -- it has it all.
Splinterlands is incredibly addictive and fun. People around the world play it. I am "Saint Croix" -- so if you see "Saint Croix," you are playing me, and I will vanquish you. I have seen at least one "Jester Investor," and he or she is getting pretty good at it.
So for me, I am a mobile gamer and a crypto gamer. Recently I have decided to spend less money in Galaxiga and to start spending more money in Splinterlands. So my "free" game spending habits are starting to morph. Why is that?
Making money is even better than free
I played Splinterlands for free for several months. What happened was, I kept running into these strange aliens who were out of my league. I basically got to a level where if I wanted to go any higher, I was going to have to fork over $10. So one day I did that.
What happens when you pay the $10? The entire game opens up, and all the alien monsters are available to you. And you start winning (and owning) non-fungible tokens (NFTs) that can be traded for crypto on third-party sites.
At first I did not appreciate what a huge deal this was, as all the cards were valued for pennies. After playing for a year, I had amassed $2,000 worth of assets in the game. Later that year, as crypto prices spiked higher, the value of my battle cards also jumped. They went from $5,000 to $12,000 to $17,000 in a matter of months. (You can see why the kids are interested in crypto.)
This year, crypto has crashed, and the value of my NFT playing cards has crashed along with it. Now they are down to $5,000 again. I haven't cashed out, because the game is still addictive and fun, and more people are discovering it all the time.
It's early days
I'm keeping my eye out for other free games on the blockchain. One of the ones I hear a lot about is a game called Axie Infinity. I don't think I'm the target market for this game. These are some very childish graphics. And then when I click "Battle," it says "Coming Soon."
Another one is called Alien Worlds. It sounds kind of like Dune and/or Star Trek. But when I click "Play," it says, "You must log in to Wax Cloud Wallet first." I don't have a Wax Cloud Wallet. Star Atlas looks super-cool, and people are buying the NFTs, but the actual game doesn't exist yet.
Right now, Apple has nothing to fear from crypto gaming. Nonetheless, I have noticed a trend in my own spending habits. The amount of coin I send to Apple is shrinking. And I've started spending a little money in Splinterlands.
I play games for fun. But I have to say, wealth-creation is an added bonus. So I think ultimately, these crypto gamers have the right idea. The future of gaming will be on the blockchain, with cool graphics and free games that make you money.
