It looks like crypto and gaming are kings and queens in Vietnam. Now a household name in crypto, Kyber Network emerged from a country that is now the second biggest user of cryptocurrency in the world. Setting a national record, Kyber Network became the most successful startup in Vietnam’s history when it raised $52 million in 2017.
As for gaming, Vietnam reportedly has the highest number of adult gamers in the world. According to a report from Statista, 94% of Vietnamese said they gamed on occasion and 20% said they game frequently, with 85% reporting that their smartphones were the gaming rig of choice.
It seems like Vietnam is charging the ranks as pro gaming becomes an elite sport worldwide. The country ranks 26th out of the 100 top countries for earnings in pro gaming, and they’re not only playing like champs in Vietnam. Vietnamese teams are cranking out quality games like yummy bowls of pho served at little plastic tables on Saigon’s crowded streets.
Bringing Together Crypto and Gaming
With a nation stacked full of crypto degens and gamers, it’s no wonder that half the names behind Moon Knight Labs are Vietnamese. The team responsible for the NFT-based RPG game Faraland is led by CEO Nguyen Tuan Hung, Director of Product Strategy Phan Thanh Tung, Creative Director Nguyen Ha Viet Anh, and an advisory board that includes PolkaFoundry Co-Founder and Kyber Network’s Product Manager Thi Truong.
Moon Knight Labs’ Faraland combines crypto and gaming in a way that offers something for both speculators and gamers, rather than using each other for a gimmick. NFTs have taken off in popularity ever since a $69 million work of digital art by Beeple sold at Christie’s this March, and riding high on this momentum comes a NFT game that looks worth playing for more reasons than just collecting non-fungible tokens.
NFTs, an Internet of Things, and RPG Games
Marbles and pogs, Pokemon and Magic the Gathering cards, each of these games have had real world consequences for winning and losing. In some versions of each of these games, the winner can go home with more than what they came with, the loser less. With the addition of NFTs to gaming, this dynamic has returned, making every move twice as exciting.
For years, gamers have been able to buy upgrades for their equipment in online games. Users on Second Life can purchase t-shirts for their avatars to wear, but the value of that shirt never really leaves the game, and the same goes for every other game up until now.
Dueling in Faraland Has Real World Consequences
So, once you’ve leveled up your character’s strength and agility, and once you’ve upgraded their armor and weapons, what’s next but to take them for a fight against other characters suited up for battle. Come December, Faraland users will be able to do just that.
From the heroes’ release this May until December, Faraland gamers can spend their time and money getting heroes ready for battle and adventure across a massive map that will eventually include the BSC, Ethereum, and Polkadot chains. In December, the Hero Duel Arena opens up, and the system will randomly pair heroes for battles users can either accept or reject depending on how they feel about the situation.
If you win your duel, your hero’s value increases by 1%, and if you lose, your hero’s value goes down by 1%. That’s not just some percentage of internet points based on internet money (well, some grandmothers might describe it as internet money); this is real life crypto value being won or lost on the blockchain. You can sell your hero for crypto, and you can use your crypto to buy a Starbucks coffee, and that means losing a battle could set you back quite a few lattes.
