1– Introduction
2– Problem definition
2.1 – Problems Developers Face
2.2 – Problems Gamers Face
3– Xaya
3.1 – What is Xaya?
3.2 – Chimaera and rebranding to Xaya
3.3 – Huntercoin proof of concept
3.4 - CHI
3.5 – Xaya transaction process
3.6 – Xaya and scalability
3.7 – Xaya’s upcoming games (Soccer Manager & Treat Fighter)
3.8 – Xaya and Virtual Reality.
4– Xaya Solutions to defined problems
4.1- Solution to Developers
4.2- Solution to Gamers
5– Application and Use Cases
5.1 – Application and Use in Collectable Card Games
5.2 – Application and Use in Turn Based Games
5.3 – Application and Use for Monetisation
6 – My video on Xaya
7 – Conclusion
1 - INTRODUCTION
The moment the word “evolution” is mentioned, the first picture that comes to mind is the Charles Darwin’s evolution theory. The correctness of this evolution theory has been the subject of so many debates, but the importance of the concept “evolution” has not been given as much focus.
The numerous advancements and developments we have experienced in science, technology, finance, and so on, have been a product of evolution from one form to another.
We might not come to a consensus on the validity of Darwin’s evolution theory, but the fact that the game industry has experienced series of evolution can’t be disputed, beginning from simple board games of the 1950s, to 1970s computer based games such as Moon landing, and then to the 1990s 3D video games.
This evolution has continued through the 20th century and into the 21st century, with the internet being the major vehicle upon which these changes have occurred.
However, as the gaming industry continues to evolve, the quest for higher quality games is further increasing. Gamers are having an increasing hunger for games that respond faster, with higher graphics, and mimic reality as much as possible. Unfortunately, these high quality games require higher processing power and higher memory storage to build. These requirements are offered by cloud computing services, but at a high cost. This means that only developers with deep pockets can have access to these services and the market, hence leading to monopoly of the game development industry.
To solve this problem, there is therefore need for a secure game development and deployment platform that will return the gaming industry to its democratic state, where every developer is given the opportunity and platform to express their ideas through game development.
2.0 - PROBLEM DEFINITION
The gaming industry has experienced series of evolution in its operation, leading to better gaming experiences for gamers. But this has come with a price. These high quality games are developed and deployed on cloud based servers which are expensive and also time consuming to set up.
This time consuming and costly nature of game development and deployment has led to some problems in the gaming industry. These problems can be defined under two categories:
- Problems Developers Face
- Problems Gamers Face
2.1 – Problems Developers Face
Majority of developers build and deploy their games through cloud computing servers. These service providers charge developers a fee to access their computing power and storage. But because of the increasing demand for higher quality games, there is need for higher processing power and storage which obviously cost more money to access. Majority of new and independent developers can’t afford the fees for such computing power, and hence are hindered from participating in the market.
2.2 – Problems Gamers Face
As an avid gamer, I have played numerous amounts of games and benefitted tremendously from them. Whenever I feel depressed, they have helped lift up my mood, producing great levels of excitements in me, in addition to the fact that they have been a really great companion to me.
While playing these games, I have achieved so many trophies and artefacts, but never really got to do much with them outside being used in the games themselves. Most of the time I finish these games still having a portfolio load of these artefacts while I move to the next game.
What if there was a way for me to benefit real world value from these artefacts, rather than just pilling them up in my portfolio?
Also, in some other asset trading platforms where virtual assets can be traded for real life value, their method of asset acquisition have been manipulated. This means that the developers of these platforms monitor and control the rate at which gamers can acquire virtual assets in their games.
There is therefore a need for a platform that not just gives gamers real life value for their virtual assets, but also does this in a transparent and trustworthy manner, where gamers get exactly what they deserve.
From the problem definitions stated above, we can see that there is need for a platform that will provide solutions to these challenges – a platform that gives developers the opportunity to take their ideas from concept to market, by eliminating the high cost and setup time associated with cloud based service providers.
3 – XAYA
3.1 – What is Xaya?
In general terms, Xaya is a revolutionary platform whose purpose is to help developers build games at a low cost, while giving gamers the opportunity to earn real world value for the virtual assets they acquire while playing those games.
More specifically, Xaya is a blockchain-based platform that reduces the cost and time required for developers to build multiplayer decentralized autonomous universes where gamers can earn virtual items that are tradable for real world value. Xaya achieves this by building games on the blockchain rather than on servers.
Many developers have huge dreams and ideas formed within them, for which they are skillfully and mentally ready to birth, but because of the stumbling blocks of high setup time and high fees charged by cloud computing service providers, they have been forced to keep these ideas buried, in the hope that things will change in the future.
With the help of Xaya, these developers can now be empowered to have their hopes restored and their dreams fulfilled, through the wide-range of tools and modern infrastructure available on the Xaya platform. Through these tools and high tech, developers are able to effectively maximize their skills and technical know-how. They can now rapidly build 100% uptime blockchain based games at a low cost.
From the Xaya whitepaper, the benefits the Xaya platform provides are shown in the image below.
3.2 – Chimaera and rebranding to Xaya
There is no way we can talk about Xaya without bringing up the topic of Chimaera. Because of the big vision, dreams and hardwork of the Xaya team, they foresaw the rapid and broad expansion of the Chimaera project into other areas that had companies with names similar to Chimaera.
As a future minded company, the Xaya team decided to change the brand name from Chimera to Xaya, so as to avoid confusion and legal issues in the future.
Also, with the company’s main focus being the gaming industry, it would be ideal to have a brand name that depicts speed, pacesetter, and efficiency – qualities truly possessed by the Xaya platform.
3.3 – Huntercoin proof of concept
In science, a hypothesis is a concept that has no evidence to back it, while a theory is a concept that has been tested and trusted, solidly backed by an evidence. Xaya is not just a concept that has no evidence, rather it has been tested and trusted, with its evidence being the Huntercoin.
In 2013, to test the Xaya concept, the Xaya team developed and deployed the Huntercoin.Source. Huntercoin is a massive multiplayer online (MMO) game run solely on the blockchain. It rewards gamers for the effort and time they put into playing the game, efforts like reasoning, strategy, and dedication. To get these Huntercoins, gamers have to control the Hunters to harvest the coins. After harvesting the coins(HUC), the hunters then store them up virtually by returning to a spawn area. These Huntercoins (HUC) could then be exchanged for real world financial value like Bitcoin.Source
According to the whitepaper , Huntercoin achieved some world firsts, which include:
The world’s first decentralised massively multiplayer game.
The world’s first game world built entirely on the blockchain.
The world’s first human mining permissible cryptocurrency.
Within just a few months of launch achieved over 35,000 simultaneously controlled characters.
It achieved a market capitalisation close to $1 million within just a few weeks and peaked to around $6.3 million in 20174.
Having proved through Huntercoin that gamers could earn real world value from virtual assets, the Xaya team now have a strong backing of both knowledge and experience to actualize their vision.
The vision of the Xaya team is Decentralized Autonomous Universes(DAU). Decentralized Autonomous Universes(DAU) are blockchain secured virtual environments where gamers can acquire virtual assets. Using the Huntercoin example shown above, the Huntercoin game was the virtual environment run solely on the blockchain, while the Huntercoin(HUC) was the virtual asset acquired by the gamer.
Hence, we can confidently state that the Xaya team are well equipped and positioned to achieve their vision.
3.4 – CHI
CHI is the reserve currency that the Xaya ecosystem will run on. The “chi” is the pronunciation for “X” in the old Greek alphabet.Source
When a seller has his product sold on the Xaya trading platform, he gets paid in CHI, and can then exchange his CHI for other real world value like bitcoin.
When developers create games on the Xaya platform, they can also create their own in-game currencies, which gamers can earn while playing those games. These in-game currencies can be exchanged for CHI which can be used to purchase Xaya assets or exchange for cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.
The Chi coin will be use to fuel all transactions on the platform. According to the white paper , these transactions include:
Account creation
Account transactions
Purchasing/renting game assets/accounts
Game transactions
CHI powered crowdsales
Coin transactions
And much more...
The CHI coin will be distributed as shown image below:
3.5 – Xaya transaction process
When conducting a transaction between two parties that have no physical contact with each other, there is need for a trustless mechanism to be in place to protect both the buyer and seller from being cheated. To achieve this, Xaya implements a technology similar to the Coloured coins technology.
Instead of making payments for items in one transaction, and then receiving the sold item in another transaction, this technology carries out these two actions simultaneously in the same transaction. Both signatures of the seller and buyer are needed for the transaction to be completed.
To illustrate further, using the image shown above, a seller lists a virtual asset for sale on the Xaya trading platform. A buyer browses the Xaya trading platform and sees the asset listed by the seller. If the buyer is interested, he makes payment for the asset using CHI, hence partly signing the transaction. The seller sees the payment made by the buyer and accepts it, hence completing the signature of the transaction.
The seller then sends the transaction to the Xaya blockchain, where the buyer checks to verify the assets sent. If both parties are satisfied, the blockchain releases the virtual assets to the buyer, and the CHI to the seller. A micro transaction fee then goes to the Xaya trading platform.
3.6 – Xaya and scalability
Xaya, in a quest to provide developers with a highly efficient and reliable blockchain gaming platform, solved the scalability problem by inventing a technology in 2015. That technology was called game channels
In the simplest form, game channels allow two players to perform a turn-based game in a trustless way without recording every move persistently on the main blockchain.Source
To illustrate this, the Game channel technology is similar to the use of RAM in a computer. When a computer is on, data currently in use are stored on the RAM (a small and quick access memory) rather than storing them in the ROM. This gives the user quick access to data currently in use.
Game channel technology scales the Xaya blockchain process by recording as much game moves as possible on a private side chain, rather than on the public blockchain. Because this is the only information stored on the private chain there is no delay in accessing them. When another game session is to take place, it is stored on its own private chain too.
Someone might ask; So how are these data on the side chain protected from manipulation? Through the use of digital signatures and hash-chain structures, these data are protected from being re-written or changed.
Someone else might ask; So what is the use of the public block chain? If peradventure there is a dispute between the parties involved in the side chain transaction, this dispute will be solved according to the rules stored on the public blockchain. The information on the side chain will be analyzed by the public blockchain, from which decision will be made as shown in the image above.
3.7 – Xaya’s upcoming games (Soccer Manager & Treat Fighter)
There is a saying that “seeing is believing”. To get the Xaya platform to receive large public appeal, the populace need a tangible illustration of what the Xaya platform can offer. To show this, Xaya has two upcoming games that will be run on its blockchain platform. These games are Soccer Manager & Treat Fighter.
Soccer Manager
Soccer is one of the most widely played games in the world. The Soccer Manager brand is an established brand in the gaming industry.
Prior to Xaya, the Soccer Manager game was run on centralized servers, with the franchise boasting of over 25 million downloadsSource
In other to become more efficient and take advantage of the blockchain technology, the Soccer Manager team have collaborated with Xaya on a project called Soccer Manager Crypto.
The Soccer Manager Crypto will have its own in-game currency called SMC. Through Soccer Manager Crypto, gamers can trade their achieved virtual assets like SMC, players, stadiums and so on, for other virtual assets or sold for real world value like cryptocurrencies.
With the potential of 25 million customer base, we can confidently forecast that the possibility of Xaya going mainstream has been tremendously increased.
Treat Fighter
While I was younger, I remember imagining my food getting off my plate as a living character. Treat Fighter brings that imagination into reality, but virtual reality.
Treat Fighter gives gamers the platform to form fighting characters using treats like candies and other recipes. Gamers then send these fighters into battle to earn virtual assets which can be bought and sold.
3.8 – Xaya and Virtual Reality.
Because of the high quality and developments required to build VR games, developing and deploying them is usually costly and demands a lot of time. This automatically means that only developers with deep pockets can partake in them.
Through Xaya, independent developers can have the opportunity to rapidly build these VR games at a much lesser cost. Because of the scalability of the Xaya blockchain, VR games built on the platform will perform at high speeds.
Also, because Xaya is blockchain based, it will provide a highly secure and decentralized environment for VR games to be built and deployed.
Finally, Xaya being a platform that brings the virtual to reality, it will enable VR gamers to earn real world value from the virtual assets that they earn while playing.
4 – XAYA SOLUTIONS TO DEFINED PROBLEMS
4.1 – Solution to Developers
The solutions that Xaya provides to developers are as follows:
Fully, partially-, or non-decentralized game development : The Xaya ecosystem possesses cutting-edge tools that enable developers rapidly build decentralized apps as well as non-decentralised apps at a low cost and in a highly secure blockchain-based environment.
Supporting scalable massively multiplayer game development: Because of its “game channel” technology, the Xaya blockchain is a highly scalable system, hence scaling up blockchain games built developers
Virtual currencies and asset creation: Xaya enables Developers to create virtual assets and in-game currencies for their games. When gamers play these games, they are awarded with these virtual currencies and assets, which can be traded for CHI and other real world values.
Ability to build gamer loyalty: Xaya enables developers to build games whose users will be loyal. The gamers will be loyal to games built by developers since they get to earn real world values from playing those games.
Broad game engine compatibility (e.g. Unity, Unreal, etc.) The Xaya platform enables developers build games that have broad engine compatibility. Since virtual assets will be swapped across games, these platforms have to have be engines that are compactible.
Exportable game engine templates (e.g. support for Unity assets and Unreal blueprints): Xaya enables developers build games that have game engines that are exportable
Pre-built libraries: The Xaya platform library consist of tools and functions that facilitate the game building process of developers.
Accepting and managing gamer payments simply, securely, and affordably: Because of the blockchain technology upon which the Xaya platform is built, developers have access to the simple and secure payment management system of blockchain for their payment transactions.
4.2 – Solution to Gamers
The solutions that Xaya provides to gamers are as follows:
Provably fair gameplay: In some other asset trading platforms where virtual assets can be traded for real life value, their method of asset acquisition have been manipulated by the developers of those platforms. That is, the developers of these platforms monitor and control the rate at which gamers can acquire virtual assets in their games.
Xaya ensures that gamers get what is due them through the provably fair game, where gamers can investigate the process taken in the allocation of virtual assets.Reliability and stability (i.e. 24/7 uptime) Because the Xaya platform is built on the blockchain rather than on servers, it guarantees 24/7 game uptime since the blockchain is always running, as opposed to servers which experience down times.
Secure virtual asset ownership: Developers on the Xaya platform build Decentralized Autonomous Universes where gamers can acquire and store virtual assets. The decentralized nature makes the virtual assets highly secure.
Rapid and easy trade and/or sharing of virtual assets and conversion to real world value: Xaya has a highly scalable blockchain system, hence making the platform process games rapidly. This in-turn makes the gaming experience a pleasurable one.
Secure social networking: Through the Xaya platform, gamers can send encrypted messages to each other.
Easy to use game app launcher: The Xaya platform has an easy to use game app launcher that gamers can use to launch apps.
Human readable wallet accounts and “addresses”: Xaya provides gamers with wallets where they can store their in-game currencies on the platform
5 - APPLICATION AND USE CASES
5.1 – Application and Use in Collectable card games
Application
Collectible card games are games which reward users with cards when they complete certain tasks. Because of Xaya’s implementation of the provably fair technology, gamers will be attracted to collectible card games built by developers on the Xaya platform. Gamers can be rest assured of a trustworthy acquisition and trade of cards.
.
Use case
Anna is a developer. She spends a lot of money developing games on cloud based servers. She hears about Xaya, and immediately begins building games on the platform at a cheaper and faster rate than on servers. Because of the provably fair technology implemented by Xaya, Anna’s game gets a lot of Gamer traffic. These gamers become loyal to Anna’s games.
5.2 – Application and Use in Turn Based Games
Application
An example of a turn-based game is UFO Enemy Unknown. These games are games that can be played by numerous players at the same time.
Xaya’s game channel technology can enable these games to be run seamlessly on the Xaya blockchain. The moves in the game are stored on the private side chain, hence enabling the blockchain to scale, irrespective of the amount of people playing the game per time. Also, the in-game currencies obtained while playing can be exchanged for CHI or other real world assets.
Use case
John is a programmer who develops turn-based games. His games have large public appeal, but his gamers have been complaining of server down time while playing.
John hears about Xaya and its ability to enable developers create 24/7 uptime games. He starts to use the system and begins to build turn-based games. He noticed that despite the amount of players using the system per time, the system was still operating efficiently.
Also, his gamers never complained of server downtime anymore. They invited their friends to try John’s improved games, and John’s subscriber base increased.
5.3 – Application and Use for Monetisation
Application
When gamers achieve milestones in a game, they are rewarded with virtual assets/artefacts. Prior to Xaya, these assets only existed within the confines of that game, and had no real world value for the gamers.
Xaya on the other hand gives gamers and developers the opportunity to monetize these virtual assets. Gamers can trade their acquired virtual assets for CHI and other real world values, while developers can trade their in-game currencies and assets in exchange for CHI. In-game assets that can traded include: Powerups, Health, Ammunition, and boost.
Use Case
Carl is a gamer that loves to play Football Manager games. Despite all his achievements and assets acquired in the game, he has never gotten any real world value for them.
He hears about Soccer Manager Crypto, and the possibility of earning real world value for the virtual assets he acquires. He immediately switches to Soccer Manager Crypto, and finds that in addition to earning real world value, Soccer Manager Crypto was faster and of a better gaming experience than Football Manager.
6 – MY VIDEO ON XAYA
7 – CONCLUSION
The gaming industry is one that is continuously evolving for the better. As years go by, the demand for higher quality games with rapid response increases. Building these high quality games require high processing power, hence higher fees to be paid by developers to Cloud computing service providers.
However, these high server setup time and fees have inhibited the entrance of new and independent developers into the gaming market.
Xaya is the blockchain-based gaming platform that gives developers the environment and tools to rapidly develop games at a low cost. Through Xaya, the gaming industry can be democratized again – a level playing ground for all.
Below is an illustration of how funds will be allocated by Xaya.
Pre-sale and Main Token Sale: The main token sale is divided into Public pre-sale and Maintenance sale
The public presence sale took place from March 23-May 18 2018.
The main sale is already taking place. It began on August 29 and will end on October 10 2018. The details are shown below
CHI tokens available: ~119,500,000
Contributable cryptocurrencies: BTC, BCH, ETH, QASH
Duration: 6 weeks
Despite all the strides achieved by the Xaya team, the roadmap above shows the plans Xaya has for the future, like developing more advanced tools and breaking into the mobile game industry, creating mobile games that have broad appeal.
The Xaya team is headed by Andrew Colosimo, who has an experience of over 20 years in IT, computers, and computer gaming. He is the founder of the Huntercoin game, which was a successful proof of the Xaya concept. For full details of the Xaya team, consult the images above.
Xaya has a team of advisors that are highly qualified in their fields of study. These includes professors, PhD holders, and so on. With this class of advisors, Xaya has a backing that empowers them to break new bounds.
If you need further clarification on any issue with regards to Beam, just do well to drop your questions in the comment section, and I will promptly attend to it.
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