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Unity Gaming Engine to Integrate Kin Cryptocurrency

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KIN

There is a tremendous amount of cross-over between avid gamers and cryptocurrency enthusiasts. Both are highly technical hobbies that involve knowledge of hardware and software. The recent announcement of a partnership between gaming engine Unity and Kik’s Kinship Foundation is unexpected, but not surprising. The agreement is mutually beneficial, and not just for Unity and Kik. The integration of cryptocurrency in gaming is a logical progression for the industry.

Unity is one of the most prolific game engines in the industry. They offer the tools necessary to make almost any type of game – and provide the backbone to many of the most popular games available. Their development kit is accessible to newcomers, but with enough depth to appeal to even Triple-A publishers.

Meanwhile, Kik operates one of the world’s most prolific messaging apps. Their recent creation of the Kinship Foundation brought them into the realm of cryptocurrency through the KIN token. The Kinship Foundation exists to further the aims of the Kin Reward Engine – monetizing digital applications in a way that preserves value for the user as well as the producer.

A Partnership that could Change Gaming

The partnership between Unity and the Kinship Foundation offers a new way for video game start-ups to monetize their games. The gaming industry is going through a change, much as movies and media have done before. The prior method of selling physical media at a brick-and-mortar store has almost completely evaporated. Digital distribution means are an increasing market share and cost substantially less. This cuts into the profit margin for gaming companies, and unfortunately makes indie games less viable.

The creation of the Kin Gaming SDK incorporates cryptocurrency monetization – something that creates a two-way road for gamers and developers. Developers can reward their players for engaging in the social media and promotional aspects of their games. They can provide KIN for impressive achievements or in-game events. Meanwhile, users can trade that KIN on open exchanges alongside other cryptocurrencies for real-world value. A unified digital currency allows KIN to be used inside any game that uses the SDK, a triumph of choice for the average gamer.

The Microtransaction Ecosystem

A controversial system since its inception, the microtransaction ecosystem for games has helped make up for shortfalls in gaming industry profits. Rather than simply buying a game at a one-time price, players have the option of buying in-game content at an additional price over time. Games that do this well, like Overwatch, restrict the purchased items to cosmetics. Players buy new skins for a nominal fee and can show these skins off to other players online.

The opposite side of the coin is industry giant Electronic Arts. Their egregious microtransaction systems created a social media firestorm that ultimately resulted in its complete abandonment. Part of this issue is a complete failure of comparison – something that the Kin Gaming SDK can fix. When there is a back and forth market for KIN that can be used in all games within the ecosystem, the choice becomes available. Games that attempt to fleece the players will find their bottom line impacted as gamers flock to other options.

The Immediate Result

It will take time for the Kin Gaming SDK to integrate into Unity’s system. In the short term, the Kinship Foundation will still benefit from this partnership through increased value to their currency. Unity will benefit from the intense public desire for blockchain integration. Companies like Kodak have found that simply announcing the integration of blockchain technology can cause a spike in stock value. Unity actually intends to use the technology as intended, which is a major bonus. For the cryptocurrency industry, this partnership represents another important step on the way towards public adoption.

We will be updating our subscribers as soon as we know more. For the latest on KIN, sign up below!

Disclaimer: This article should not be taken as, and is not intended to provide, investment advice. Global Coin Report and/or its affiliates, employees, writers, and subcontractors are cryptocurrency investors and from time to time may or may not have holdings in some of the coins or tokens they cover. Please conduct your own thorough research before investing in any cryptocurrency and read our full disclaimer.

Image courtesy of Chris Ainsworth via Flickr

Altcoins

XNO Token of Xeno NFT Hub listed on Bithumb Korea Exchange

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Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 25th January, 2021, // ChainWire //

Xeno Holdings Limited (xno.live ), a blockchain solutions company based in Hong Kong, has announced the listing of its ecosystem utility token XNO on the ‘Bithumb Korea’ cryptocurrency exchange on January 21st 2021.

Xeno NFT Hub (market.xno.live ), developed by Xeno Holdings, enables easy minting of digital items into NFTs while also providing a marketplace where anyone can securely trade NFTs.

The Xeno NFT Hub project team includes former members of the technology project Yosemite X based in San Francisco and professionals such as Gabby Dizon who is a games industry expert and NFT space influencer based in Southeast Asia.

NFT(Non-Fungible Token) technology has recently gained huge focus in the blockchain arena and beyond, making waves in the online gaming sector, the art world, and the digital copyrights industry in recent years. The strongest feature of NFTs is that “NFTs are unique digital assets that cannot be replaced or forged”. Unlike fungible tokens such as Bitcoin or Ether, NFTs are not interchangeable for other tokens of the same type but instead each NFT has a unique value and specific information that cannot be replaced. This fact makes NFTs the perfect solution to record and prove ownership of digital and real-world items like works of art, game items, limited-edition collectibles, and more. One of the ways to have a successful…

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Altcoins

Should Crypto Projects Devote Resources to Community Growth and Marketing?

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2020 has been an incredible year for crypto as investors have generated windfall profits and crypto projects have seen their businesses gain the spotlight they’ve been looking for.  While Bitcoin has received most of the attention after major institutional investors announced they were accumulating the increasingly scarce asset, many altcoins have also seen their fair share of glory.  When looking at all the big winners of the past year, the first project that probably comes to mind is Chainlink, having appreciated by more than 550% YTD and now valued at over $4.5 billion.  But, the actual biggest winner of the year is HEX with a YTD return of over 5,000%.

I mention both of the above projects as they have each taken slightly different paths to achieve greatness.  Chainlink has devoted resources toward building a fundamentally sound business with many strategic partnerships while HEX has spent vast sums of money on marketing and promotion.  Both approaches are valid, but one thing is certain, it is absolutely imperative for crypto projects to let the crypto community know what makes them special.  Of course, one of the reasons that makes crypto so valuable is the powerful blockchain technology that most projects are utilizing.

Cryptocurrency vs. Blockchain Technology

It’s important to make a distinction between blockchain technology and cryptocurrency.  Although they are often used interchangeably, they are different.  Blockchain technology and crypto were both created after the 2008 financial crisis, but cryptocurrency…

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Altcoins

XENO starts VIP NFT trading service and collaborates with contemporary artist Hiro Yamagata

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Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 24th December, 2020, // ChainWire //

The XENO NFT Hub (https://xno.live) will provide a crypto-powered digital items and collectables trading platform allowing users to create, buy, and sell NFTs. Additionally it will support auction based listings, governance and voting mechanisms, trade history tracking, user rating and other advanced features.

As a first step towards its fully comprehensive service, XENO NFT Hub launched a recent VIP service to select users and early adopters in December 2020 with plans for a full Public Beta to open in June 2021. 

“NFTs are extremely flexible in their usage, from digital event tickets to artwork, and while NFTs have a very wide spectrum of uses and categories XENO will initially focus its partnership efforts and its own item curation on three primary areas: gaming, sports & entertainment, and collectibles.”, said XENO NFT Hub president Anthony Di Franco.

He also added “This does not mean we will prohibit other types of NFTs from our ecosystem However, it simply means that XENO’s efforts as a company will be targeted into these verticals initially as a cohesive business approach.”

Development and Procurement Lead, Gabby Dizon explained, “Despite our initial focus, we found ourselves with a unique opportunity to host some of the works of Mr. Hiro Yamagata. We are collaborating with Japanese artist Hiro Yamagata to enshrine some of his artwork into NFTs.”

Mr. Yamagata has…

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