DeathRoad: The Next Generation Racing Game Bridging the NFT and Metaverse Gap – The internet’s latest obsession has made eyes roll at the millions of dollars people are willing to throw at non-fungible tokens. The term itself is more confusing to onlookers who have a hard time figuring out what the frenzy is all about.
Simply put, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are the equivalent of cryptocurrencies on the Blockchain. The main difference is that each NFT is programmed to be unique, distinguishable, and indivisible. Unlike a crypto token, you cannot exchange one NFT for any other of its kind. This quality makes them suitable representations of any uniquely rare collectible.
In addition to the growing popularity of NFTs, metaverses are also having a moment in the gaming world. In its simplest definition, a metaverse is a network of virtual environments that are always connected to the internet and allow multiple users to interact with one another simultaneously.
These two ideas (NFTs and Metaverses) are nearly becoming inescapable, especially for anyone familiar with gaming-related headlines or cryptocurrencies. On one hand, you have headlines of giant social media and video gaming companies looking to transition into metaverses, while on the other, every crypto and blockchain-related article is all the rage about NFTs and their use case.
However, one of the world’s first companies to combine these two concepts practically and excitingly is DeathRoad. With a product that boasts of being the pioneer racing game metaverse with integrated NFTs, DeathRoad brings gaming to the Blockchain with a comprehensive approach.
What is DeathRoad?
DeathRoad is a car racing game built on the Blockchain for the next generation of gamers. It features a metaverse type of environment designed in the setting of a virtual city where DeathRoad racers can interact with one another as well as with their virtual environment.
Therefore, the virtual city comes equipped with a city hall, a battle mode stadium, a car rental service, a marketplace, real-estate property, and even a showroom. Each section of the city features a particular function in the game.
For instance, the showroom is where players go to buy in-game items such as cars and weapons that help them battle against other players or participate in races held within the game.
Players can buy property in the form of virtual land and sell it to other players in the platform’s marketplace. Racers can visit the Battle Mode section to test out their racing and battling skills against other players.
What’s more the city hall functions as the governance structure of the entire platform where players can vote on updates and developments to the platform.
More than a Game
Every in-game item in the DeathRoad metaverse is built as an NFT, thus giving platform users absolute control and ownership. This also makes DeathRoad more of a play-to-earn platform than the average video game. Players in the game can be equipped with NFT-based weapons and cars by simply participating in the various challenges on the platform.
Built on the Binance Smart Chain (BSC) which is an Ethereum competitor known for scalability and low transaction fees, DeathRoad features a native token called $DRACE.
This token is used to make payments on the platform. Therefore, players use it in the NFT marketplace or in the showroom to buy in-game NFTs. They can also earn $DRACE by completing several challenges in the game.
DeathRoad is designed to facilitate a self-sustaining economy of gamers. Racers on the platform with at least 5 NFT virtual cars can buy property in the form of virtual land or launch a garage within the game.
Once the player has a garage full of cars, they can open a car rental service and earn $DRACE from renting those NFT-based cars to other players. The entire ecosystem is designed such that players without a garage can either buy virtual cars in the marketplace or rent from those who own garages.
Also, there is a governance incentive for players who expand their NFT-car collection as the weight of votes in the city hall is determined by the number of cars a user owns.
The Future of Gaming and The Metaverse
To date, DeathRoad has already made significant steps towards establishing a gaming metaverse that incorporates non-fungible tokens.
So far, the company has amassed several partnerships under its belt and even closed an oversubscribed private round of funding that saw the participation of giant venture capitalists firms such as Raptor Capital.
Going forward, DeathRoad plans to add more maps, weapons, and obstacles, not to mention improvements to the user experience of the game in an effort to further improve the utility of NFTs and the metaverse.
Although there is widespread talk about how NFTs are the key to unlocking mainstream adoption of the metaverse, few practical examples exist. Granted, the video game industry is enjoying massive growth with an estimated value of over $162 billion.
However, as NFTs go from a subject matter that triggers mainstream curiosity to practical implementation, as seen with DeathRoad, their next explosive uptake will be in the gaming world through the metaverse.