materialmatters

Community Effort Pushes KOGs Into the Special Slot

adrian@in10tion.com.au (Adrian Pante) — Wed, 30 Sep 2020 07:51:04 GMT

Welcome to RFOX Games! It’s fantastic to have you here with us at such an early stage in our long journey.

Our studio’s first creation, KOGs — short for K eys to O ther G ames — now sits atop the leaderboard at WAX NFT marketplace AtomicHub .

More importantly, this achievement is made possible only by the enduring support from a tight-knit community of avid collectors.

But things weren’t always so rosy. Yes, we’re very proud of how far we’ve come since August’s launch of KOGs 1st Edition NFTs.

That said, we owe our growth to you, all the collectors out there amassing sets of highly addictive non-fungible tokens.

You know what we mean if you’ve done it before. Once you crack open a pack of KOGs, you can’t wait to do it all over again! And with 3,414 different pieces in the 1st Edition , a complete set is an ultra-rare challenge.

Ready to take a look at how far we’ve come in just 6 short weeks? Let’s press play on a quick trip down Memory Lane …

August 18: Laying the Egg

When the day finally arrived, and the NFT enthusiasts had filled WAX Cloud Wallets as high as they could go, the 3-hour sales window jammed on its way open.

A small hiccup in the main sale’s pack-opening process proved to be a huge boon for collectors. You see, investors with massive stacks of $WAXP tokens attended the main sale, ready to scoop up pack after pack.

However, since a site glitch — resolved in about an hour — prevented anyone from opening packs, those large investors decided not to press the buy button more than a couple of times.

In the short-term, we missed out on some initial sales. But since the 3-hour sales window influenced the overall supply, the number of 1st Edtion KOGs minting to the WAX Blockchain will remain low.

Yes, sales figures were smaller than they could’ve been. But the tradeoff is a low-print 1st Edition collection. In other words, sales went down while rarity went up.

With a total of 6,622 Booster Packs (25 NFTs) and 6,183 Starter Packs (6 NFTs) sold or reserved for giveaways, only 202,648 1st Edition KOGs will ever exist .

Once KOGs appeared on secondary markets, purchases, trades, and marketplace listings have yet to slow down.

Late August — Early September: Cracking the Shell

In the beginning, Blockchain Heroes — a series with a 1-week head start on initial sales — was sitting comfortably in the #1 position on AtomicHub.

And at the series’ onset, KOGs prices were all over the map. But little by little, the market stabilized.

Ultra-Rare KOGs and Slammers became harder to acquire. Collectors began trading their asses off to complete Border Sets, Rainbow Sets, Series Sets, and unique to KOGs, the elusive Supersets .

Yes, we spell them differently than the other sets. After all, they’re in an elite class of their own!

September 19: Leading the Pack

Soon after launch, KOGs sales made 1M $WAXP tokens flow throughout AtomicHub — every week.

And on September 19, 2020, KOGs made NFT history by eclipsing every other series of WAX NFTs selling on AtomicHub .

Yes, there are other secondary markets for KOGs available. But the vast majority of WAX NFT transactions occur on AtomicHub, where you can still (as of today!) find 1st Edition packs up for grabs.

September 19, 2020

Since mid-September, trades and sales volume have both continued to grow. And, the sets that KOGs collectors are putting together are nothing short of amazing! You know who you are — well done!

Wrapping Up

KOGs are only the beginning step for RFOX Games’ foray into the exciting, rapidly expanding realm of non-fungible tokens.

KOGs collectors have proven themselves, time and time again, to be the series’ most significant asset. As collectors ourselves, we have a firsthand look at how challenging it is to complete a set.

And that’s 100x more true if you’re going for ultra-low mint numbers. Good luck out there, everyone!

Remember, KOGs is now the top-ranked WAX NFT series. But that’s withouta game attached. Once the game launches and the 2nd Edition becomes available, KOGs use cases will reach all-time highs.

Our fantastic group of collectors has shown us they’re thoroughly enjoying the series. Now it’s our turn to show our appreciation by forging an NFT-powered gaming ecosystem that‘s fun and inclusive.

Once again, thank you for helping make KOGs such a success!

The World’s Fastest-growing Mobile Games Market

adrian@in10tion.com.au (Adrian Pante) — Wed, 23 Sep 2020 00:27:44 GMT

Southeast Asia's 'Big Six' Gaming Cluster is Rapidly Leveling Up

With KOGs — an NFT-powered, blockchain mobile title — on the way, it’s imperative for us to stay current with gaming trends.

Ever since our project’s formation back in 2019, we knew why SEA has so many advantages over other regions. For starters, the area’s digital economy is enjoying record-shattering expansion. Plus, compared to previous generations, a young, growing population is becoming more affluent than ever.

But amid all the benefits that come with operating a tech startup in a tech-focused country, video games are the standout. Local appetite for mobile games is why we brought Arclegger onboard to co-found our gaming studio.

You see, the entire world loves to play mobile games. Gaming apps see the most downloads in comparison to any other category in existence. And here in SEA, once could argue that the residents may be bonafide gaming fanatics.

A report from market intelligence firm, Newzoo, reveals remarkable expansion within SEA’s mobile games market. So, just how much has the tide swollen? The simple answer: Massively. But before we talk about growth figures, we’ll first get into a little geography.

Gaming Hotbed

As an in-depth RedFOX gaming article explains, the countries of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Phillippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam are where the region’s gamers are concentrated.

Southeast Asia’s ‘Big Six’ gaming cluster holds over 124M gamers representing an impressive 61% of the online population.

It’s abundantly clear that Southeast Asians love their games. And because SEA is a mobile-first society — it’s no surprise that residents are increasingly turning to smartphones for their daily gaming fix.

Opportunities within Southeast Asia’s gaming market are created by a perfect storm: millions of tech-savvy citizens, thriving economies, and turbocharged demand for interactive digital entertainment.

And now that you’re aware of SEA’s borderline obsession with gaming, let’s delve into the region’s multi-billion dollar annual revenues.

Mobile Rules

SEA’s mobile penetration rate recently surpassed 100%. How is that even possible? Simple math. Owners of multiple SIM cards abound within the vast Internet-connected population.

All those mobile gadgets — containing game after game after game — last year generated over U.S. $3B in regional revenue.

Including console and PC, 2019 saw Southeast Asia’s gaming market draw in $4.3B across all devices. But as you can see in the above chart, mobile is the dominant player — accounting for 69% of total profits.

Year-over-year, SEA’s mobile gaming income spiked over 17%, which places the region atop the world’s mobile games market leaderboard.

Wrapping Up

As investments into local game publishers continue to pour in, SEA’s gaming market will further expand. Chinese and Korean companies are especially attracted to the region, displaying their enthusiasm via heavy promotion of gaming IP.

The number of smartphone users is on the rise in SEA. That rise also applies to the number of residents — and their disposable income — as well. Plus, because Internet connectivity is mobile-first, it’s only natural for mobile-focused publishers to control market share.

To say RedFOX Labs’ gaming studio is mobile-first is an understatement. It seems as though everyone carries a mobile device these days — so what better location for our upcoming blockchain game?

Although KOGS will be available for gamers worldwide, Southeast Asians have an affinity for local products. And since we’re operating from Vietnam, a significant component of the ‘Big Six,’ we couldn’t be more local if we tried.

The Fastest Method for Buying RFOX

adrian@in10tion.com.au (Adrian Pante) — Tue, 22 Sep 2020 05:25:11 GMT

Your Step-by-Step Walkthrough for Buying $RFOX on Liquid

To avoid any delays in processing your account, use this ref link for priority treatment.

Getting Started

Please note that we’re not dishing out any financial advice here. We’re not saying you should get yourself some RFOX, we’re explaining how to deposit our chain’s native cryptocurrency into a digital wallet. At the time of writing, U.S. citizens are unable to trade on Liqu id.

Now, before buying any cryptocurrencies, let’s get you up to speed on ways to prevent your funds from lining fraudsters’ pockets. Because as an owner of digital assets, safeguarding your crypto from shady villains is your #1 priority.

Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)

Setting this up is an absolute must, and all trustworthy exchanges will require it. Any time you create an account on a new exchange, immediately lock it down with 2FA protection. The same goes for your Gmail account!

Two-factor authentication is an excellent method for ensuring your account remains protected should a hacker guess your login credentials.

There are others like it, but Google Authenticator — available on Android and iOS — is a common 2FA app.

When you succeed in achieving a goal, be it a big one or a small one, make sure to pat yourself on the back.

The ability to activate and deactivate 2FA details resides within your exchange account dashboard. When initializing 2FA, the exchange provides a QR code for you to scan using your 2FA app.

Here’s an example of what the codes look like:

When setting up 2FA on an exchange account for the first time, save a screenshot of the QR code before proceeding.

Don’t skip ahead in the setup process until you’ve made a backup of your code!

Should something happen to your phone, you’ll need these screenshot backups to re-activate your 2FA settings within your exchange accounts.

Every 30 seconds, your 2FA app will automatically generate a set of six numbers — even if the phone is offline. After inputting your email and password, entering that six-digit code grants entry to your exchange account.

Okay, now that you have a 2FA app, let’s get trading!

Step 1: Open a Liquid Account

New users on Liquid must pass KYC — Know Your Customer — verification before becoming eligible to trade.

And if you use this link, Liquid will hasten the KYC process for you: Liquid KYC FastPass.

Step 2: Buy RFOX

Liquid facilitates easy swaps through your Visa card. After passing KYC, visit the Quick Exchange page to make the trade.

Simply choose the amount, select the currency you want to trade for, and click the ‘Buy’ button.

Step 2a (optional): Trading RFOX

The Quick Exchange feature is excellent for those looking to purchase on the spot. But if you have a bit more patience and are hoping for a price drop, you can use spot trading.

In a nutshell, you buy bitcoin or ethereum and trade them against RFOX. That way, you can set your own order prices. But the trade-off is waiting for buyers willing to pay the price at which you’re willing to sell.

Liquid has a more in-depth explanation of how to use their spot trading service here: Liquid Spot Trading

And now that you have some RFOX coins, let’s get them off the exchange.

Step 4: Withdraw Your RFOX

If you’re using a centralized exchange like Liquid, you were never given a set of 12 or 24 words acting as your all-important private keys.

Since the exchange holds onto your keys, your account balance technically belongs to them. The saying goes, “not your keys, not your crypto.”

It’s never a good idea to keep significant sums of cryptocurrencies on centralized exchanges.

The sad reality is that hackers hack exchanges very regularly. Now, you don’t want to deal with the hassle and potential loss of funds resulting from a hacked exchange.

When it comes to protecting your RFOX, the best place to keep them is in a personal wallet: Verus Desktop Wallet

Be sure to make several copies of the 24 words that act as your wallet backup! And don’t store your private keys anywhere online. In other words, don’t Gmail them to yourself or anyone else.

Use the ‘Receive’ feature from inside the wallet, copy the address, and use Liquid’s ‘Withdraw’ feature to transfer coins from one wallet to another.

Wrapping Up

Thanks to quick-swap technology, trading one cryptocurrency for another is no longer a complicated procedure.

But remember, no matter if you’re using Liquid’s Quick Exchange or spot trading to put RFOX in your account, don’t leave them on any exchange longer than needed. That said, special promotions or trading opportunities may lead you to hold coins on an exchange temporarily.

And in those instances, Liquid sets a high bar by using cold (offline) storage for cryptoassets—the industry’s gold standard of security.

Happy trading!

Wrapping Up

How Blockchain Tech Takes Video Games to the Next Level

adrian@in10tion.com.au (Adrian Pante) — Tue, 22 Sep 2020 05:25:11 GMT

NFTs are the Gaming Industry’s Next Killer App

Blockchain tech is one of modern society’s most useful applications.

And technology, at its digital core, exists for the sole purpose of enhancing our lives. We build robots to clean our floors and clothes and dishes. Our autos are intelligent enough to know when they’re too close to the car ahead, responding by smoothly applying the brakes.

If we can dream it, we can create it — eventually. And one of the most profound uses cases of blockchain tech is bitcoin, the world’s first cryptocurrency.

Bitcoin’s underlying technology — blockchain — is a creation borne of self-sovereignty. However, the notorious Nakamoto (assumptively) didn’t foresee the positive additions blockchain tech could offer the entertainment industry — Satoshi had his sights locked on centralized finance.

We no longer have to deal with the swindling bottom dwellers inhabiting any sector. Available today are permanent, distributed, publicly-verifiable records of various datasets. Blockchain shakes fraudsters right out of business because there’s nowhere for them to hide.

Now, you can name almost any industry and chances are high that blockchain can make it better. Voting, health care, ID verification (KYC), loans, land ownership, the list goes on. And one of the industries that’s more than ready for a blockchain upgrade is video games. Especially in the high-stakes realm of competitive esports.

You see, we’re not talking about Sudoku here. Casual games certainly have their time and place, but nobody’s coming out to watch people play them! Conversely, specific gaming tournaments draw enormous crowds.

For example, in South Korea, it’s not uncommon for pro StarCraft and League of Legends players to receive an ecstatic welcome from thousands of rabid, screaming fans. Celebrity gamers are whisked to tournaments in speedboats and helicopters, emerging to greet sold-out coliseums.

As you can imagine, with that caliber of hysteria and sensation comes huge salaries and oversized prize pools. And we all know that where you find large sums of money, you typically find crooks.

Nefarious gamers — as explained in this fan-made article on the rise of esports in Southeast Asia — go to great lengths to hack the system. From aimbots to falsified records, cheaters will try nearly anything to gain an ill-gotten competitive edge.

Lucky for us, blockchain tech prevents the problems that siphon the fun right out of our favorite video games. And as you’ll soon see, the advantages of blockchain gaming go far beyond defense from cheating.

Upside Down Tokenomics

The original relationship between games and tokens was a one-way street. You traded fiat for tokens then slid those circular pieces of metal into arcade cabinets. Without the token, there was no game.

But blockchain tech flips that concept on its head. Now, without the game, there is no token. Blockchain gaming means capturing a copy of gameplay within a digital container.

Every in-game event, item, and transaction is verified and recorded by blockchain tech. And by tokenizing gameplay, we unlock new potential for capturing value.

Blockchain levels up video games by automatically capturing gameplay in the form of non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

When game elements undergo tokenization, they’re easy to trade. And the ability to swap with fellow gamers can open the door to yet-unimagined marketplaces. In other words, we don’t yet know where the value of tokenized gameplay will take us in the long run.

But today, we’re well aware of several blockchain-powered benefits.

Validated ownership and scarcity of items are incredibly beneficial in games. But perhaps what gets us the most excited is the potential for cross-game asset transfers. Non-fungible tokens create the ability to use weapons and costumes throughout entire ecosystems of compatible games.

Designing and upgrading in-game characters are often a matter of personal preference. It’s often painstaking — yet still fun — to find the right combinations of speed and accuracy, stealth and power. And NFTs may preserve time well spent.

Capturing the essence of gamers’ digital personas and progress means some of their hard work needn’t go to waste when it’s time to play a fresh title.

Blockchain gaming is still considered an up-and-coming niche. And considering how we operate from Vietnam — one of Southeast Asia’s esports hotspots — RFOX Games is in the right place at the right time.

Truth be told, we may be a bit too early to the party. But we see that as a huge advantage — we have time to create infrastructure before other projects inevitably come rushing into the space.

Conclusion

Video games transform the mundane into the extraordinary. Because in games, anyone can be a superhero. And being a superhero taps into a universal desire to become more than an average human.

Do you know anyone who doesn’t wish they could fly by merely thrusting a fist into the air?

But when unscrupulous individuals invade our digital realms, they may spoil our attempts to become larger than life. There’s no room for cheating in games — competitive or not — and blockchain tech stifles foul play.

Plus, you may know what it’s like to spend hours on end immersed in your favorite title — building and scraping and experimenting — until your character’s abilities are ultra-powerful. If so, you know exactly how discouraging it can be to leave all that progress trapped within a singular video game.

Non-fungible tokens have the power to change all of that. NFTs are the gaming industry’s next killer app, and RFOX Games has big plans for bringing them to you!

Summing up, by applying blockchain tech to video games, we increase the value to gamers while firewalling those trying to game the system. And that potent combo makes gaming more enjoyable for all of the honest players across the globe.