Hamster Kombat: Gambling or Web3 Pioneer?

Bittime – The crypto world is once again filled with presence Hamster Kombat, a casual game that exploded on Telegram. This game is built on the TON network (The Open Network) and attracts attention because of its hundreds of millions of users. This article discusses whether Hamster Kombat is gambling and how Telegram succeeded in creating a Web3 gaming giant.

Hamster Kombat: From a Simple Game to a National Issue

Two months ago, the Hamster Kombat game was in the spotlight after the President of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi, died in a helicopter crash. The election of a replacement president was disrupted because, according to senior Iranian military officials, citizens were too busy with the game. Millions of Iranians are reportedly enjoying playing this game on their cellphones.

This game appeared suddenly. Launched in March 2024 on TON, a Web3 ecosystem built on Telegram, Hamster Kombat now has a huge user base. In fact, Iran's Deputy Military Chief, Vice Admiral Habibollah Sayyari, accused the game of being part of the West's "soft war" against the Iranian government.

Hamster Kombat Flood of Users and Fantastic Growth

Although the founders of Hamster Kombat are anonymous, they claim to have over 200 million users, 11 million followers on Twitter/X, and 31 million subscribers on YouTube. This is just one of several "GameFi" projects on TON that are experiencing fantastic growth.

Some other Web3 games on TON that are also popular are "Catizen" (GameFi theme sponsor CoinDesk) with 23 million users and "Notcoin" (TON's first big success story) with 40 million users.

Overall, according to the TON Foundation, the TON network currently has 500 million users. With a market capitalization of $19.4 billion, Toncoin surged to become the eighth largest project in all of crypto, surpassing incumbents like Polkadot, Cardano, and NEAR.

Driving Factors for TON's Success

One of the reasons for the explosion in TON users is Telegram's own global reach, especially in Europe and Asia. Telegram has more than 900 million users. However, according to Kardan from the TON Foundation, by December 2023, only 1% of users will use Telegram to play games.

Entrepreneurs see this opportunity. "We looked at Telegram and TON, and we thought this was a vacant lot," said Tim Wong, Chairman of the Catizen Foundation. Games like Catizen, Notcoin, Yescoin, and Tapswap are quickly filling the void, in part because they are easy to play.

TONs of User Experience

DeFi analysts consider TON's easy and pleasant user interface (UX) to be its own advantage. TON is considered to have solved the problem of complicated crypto interfaces and protocols for many years.

This ease of use makes TON attractive to new users who are not yet familiar with the world of crypto. "This is not just about 'degenerates' (long-term crypto users)," Kardan said. “It's about ordinary people trying something with blockchain for the first time.”

Organic Growth and TON Skepticism

Even though they seem suddenly popular, many TON games have actually been in development for years. One example is Catizen, which was initiated in 2021.

Meanwhile, crypto analyst David Zimmerman is skeptical of the reported number of users because users can have multiple crypto wallets.

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Additionally, Zimmerman questions the sustainability of the “Play-to-Airdrop” model that dominates TON games today. He argues that a successful network requires applications that actually generate profits.

Hamster Kombat vs Axie Infinity

The question arises whether TON games like Hamster Kombat can suffer the same fate as Axie Infinity, a crypto game that was once booming but is now considered a cautionary tale. The main difference lies in the entry fees. Axie Infinity has a high entry fee, while a TON of games are free to play.

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Some Parties Concern About Hamster Kombat Gambling 

Some parties, including the Iranian government, accuse TON games such as Hamster Kombat of being a form of gambling because of the "Play-to-Airdrop" model that offers cash prizes.

However, the TON game developers argue that their game is different from traditional gambling because players do not need to spend money to start the game and rewards are earned through participation and in-game activities.

The Future of Web3 Games on Telegram

The growth of TON gaming, regardless of its sustainability, cannot be ignored. The presence of these games is proof that users want games that are integrated with their social interactions and have real value in the real world.

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