Rock Paper Scissors

Sometimes, the blockchain can be as surprising as a new technology could get. For instance, who would’ve thought about putting a game as simple as Rock Paper Scissors on the blockchain, making it available to everybody at the push of a button. You could now play the popular childhood game with anybody wherever that person might be on Earth. Moreover, you can even earn some money, in the form of virtual currency, from doing so.

It all started from a Reddit user who’s also a master of blockchain technologies by the name of ikirch, who has first released a version of the game on the blockchain. The game requires players to have a virtual wallet, some Ethereum and an interface tool called Metamask in order for them to be able to play. Get all of those things sorted and you can play Rock Paper Scissors online, on the blockchain.

Sure, if you’re a kid, it’s better to stick to playing the game as you’d normally do, with friends, at the park or during recess at school. The blockchain version of the game is strictly for those who want to throw away some virtual assets, as that’s what you’re going to do in most cases. There are now versions of the game that can be played with Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies besides the original Ether version.

How Rock Paper Scissors work

When entering a site that offers the game, you can enjoy Rock Paper Scissors in two possible ways. You can either enter an existing game created by someone, or you can start your own game and wait for another player to join. If you choose the latter, you will be joined by other players who have the app installed on their phones, or they can of course pick another game room and play there, leaving you waiting for the next adversary.

The game is more of a demonstration of what blockchain technologies can do, not just a way of spending some quality, entertaining free time. With every move that you make while you play the game, they get registered on the blockchain, which makes sure every session you play is as fair as possible. This is ensured by the provably fair algorithm, which has the purpose of doing just that. The records are immutable, meaning they can’t be mingled with and therefore the winner can be attested by the previous moves the game has registered, which are unique and random.

You might be thinking you’re playing Rock Paper Scissors, but in reality you’re betting on either the rock, the paper or the scissors every time you’re creating a new game and waiting for a new contestant. You place the amount of virtual money you want on the bet, which is also the amount the winner will take home if they win the bet.

The transparency of blockchain gambling

Even though we’re talking about a game as simple as Rock Paper Scissors, the blockchain usage here is proof of just how much these games of chance have transformed into much more transparent and fair over the years.

The most important claim blockchain developers are maintaining about their creations is that gambling and sports betting are becoming more and more transparent. The opportunities available for using blockchain are incredible in terms of immutability, transparency and security. Sure, some of these are just claims right now, but they’re evolving with each new product, even if it’s just something as mundane as Rock Paper Scissors.

Rock Paper Scissors is still a simple, fun game on the blockchain. It doesn’t get changed just because a developer moved its “headquarters” on a new platform. But it does show just how innovative and opportunistic the blockchain can be. It shows that, especially with gambling, there are no limits on what developers, and of course gamblers, can achieve by using this new technology.