Hamster Kombat, a crypto game launched on Telegram, has attracted 239 million users in just 81 days. Telegram CEO Pavel Durov has hailed the game as a transformative force in digital services, signaling a major shift in how blockchain technologies are integrated with mass-market applications.
Telegram’s Hamster Kombat Game Breaks Record Numbers
In detail mail On his personal Telegram channel, which has 2.7 million followers, Durov shared his excitement about the game’s rapid adoption and its role in ushering in a new era of digital interaction. “Hamster Kombat is the latest internet phenomenon that everyone is talking about,” Durov declared.
He highlighted the unprecedented speed of user acquisition, noting that “Hamster Combat took just 73 days to reach 100 million monthly users. Every day, 4.5 million new users join Hamster Combat, making it the fastest growing digital service in the world.”
Hamster Kombat is an idle game, but it stands out because of its unique premise and gameplay. Players start the game as a bald hamster who has just signed a contract to become the CEO of a cryptocurrency exchange.
The primary gameplay involves clicking on the hamster to generate in-game coins, with a secondary focus on purchasing upgrades to improve the efficiency and profitability of the exchange.
The social elements of the game are strong, including features that allow players to earn extra currency by referring friends, solving daily codes linked to Morse code from YouTube videos, or choosing specific daily upgrades that boost their performance. This combination of simple yet engaging mechanics has not only kept player retention high, but also facilitated a community-based approach to gameplay.
In the future, Hamster Kombat is set to expand its reach into the blockchain space. Durov revealed plans for the game to mint its own token on the Telegram Open Network (TON), a significant step that could democratize access to blockchain technologies.
“Soon, the Hamster team will mint its own cryptocurrency on TON, bringing the benefits of blockchain technology to hundreds of millions of people,” Durov said. The integration marks a strategic move by Telegram to leverage its massive user base and robust app platform to influence the thriving blockchain ecosystem.
While the exact launch date of the token remains unannounced, the game’s roadmap indicates that the basic infrastructure for in-game transactions via blockchain has already been established, with players able to link TON wallets to their game accounts as of June 2024.
Hamster Kombat’s cultural impact goes beyond gameplay. The game has a significant presence on social media, particularly YouTube, where it competes with some of the biggest content creators. The official Hamster Kombat YouTube channel quickly amassed 32 million subscribers, surpassing record-breaking channels like Mr Beast. This social media strategy not only drives player engagement through interactive content, but also serves as a platform for crypto education, in line with its broader goal of promoting blockchain understanding among its players.
The success of Hamster Kombat underscores the potential of Web3 games to offer more than just entertainment. Durov’s vision for the game includes its role as a potential mechanism for universal basic income (UBI), where players can convert time and engagement into tangible rewards. This model could provide insights into how blockchain-based applications can be structured to provide economic benefits beyond traditional gaming achievements.
At the time of publishing this report, TON was trading at $6.63.
Featured image by X @hamster_kombat, chart by TradingView.com