journalfront

Currencies

Why Your Game's In-Game Currency May Hold More Value Than a Buck

2024-12-04

Karl Polanyi once said, "Instead of economy being embedded in social relations, social relations are embedded in the economic system." This statement holds significant implications for our understanding of modern society. In a sense, many aspects of society are already gamified. The richest billionaires are ranked by Forbes, Warren Buffett has compared the stock market to a game, and people compare their vanity metrics on social media. Even politics, romance, social life, and communication are influenced by gamification. Ludwig Wittgenstein's theory of language posits that words and sentences derive their meaning from their use within specific contexts or "games." Over the years, many intellectuals have described aspects of modern human life in relation to games.

Is Life Just a Big Game?

Whether one answers yes or no to this question is not the main focus. Gaming has evolved from simple shoulder-to-shoulder, head-to-head competitions like Pong to an interactive ecosystem of digital value and wealth creation against a material world facilitated by fiat currency. For example, the NES sold about 34 million units worldwide in 1988. Today, there are an estimated 3.24 billion gamers worldwide due to the growing industry. People play on various devices such as PlayStations, PCs, and now mobile phones, enabling more people than ever to engage with video games. Gaming is now more of a social activity. Some people play simply to explore interactive worlds and build a second life. Social interactive game worlds like Second Life allow players to explore virtual environments, socialize, and even sell digital assets for Linden Dollars that can be exchanged for real currency. This is just one example of a social game, but there are many others where the focus is on exploration and experiencing the game rather than winning.

The Convergence of Digital Technologies

Open virtual gaming worlds are not new, but the combination of technologies like blockchain (which facilitates the buying and selling of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin), virtual reality, augmented reality, and artificial intelligence will make them even more widespread. Platforms like Decentraland, a decentralized gaming platform, allow users to join a virtual world, use virtual reality, and interact with real people in its metaverse. It also enables users to buy and sell NFTs and purchase and rent land using $MANA, the platform's cryptocurrency. This convergence is already happening and will shape the future of gaming.

The Future of Gaming

I believe the future of gaming will be a world of countless tokens across platforms that can be exchanged with one another. Games with compatible principles and interests will allow for such exchanges. Just like in the film "Ready Player One," players will be able to earn and use virtual reality, interact with other players, communicate with agents pretending to be human, and encounter agents interacting on behalf of human players who are AFK. This ecosystem of endless activity and transactions will attract big "whales" and investors who will inject money for their own reasons. Currently, most popular games do not use cryptocurrency or blockchain technology. They implement their own in-game currencies that can only be purchased with real currency. In this system, government-backed fiat currency is dominant as it is widely accepted. However, the new presidential administration is said to be advocating for wider adoption of Bitcoin. Even so, in the current system, developers create digital assets within games and lock them behind paywalls. These assets can only be unlocked by purchasing in-game tokens with no utility outside the game. This imbalance of value exchange is why cryptocurrency and blockchain technology are so appealing. What if in the near future, the tokens purchased in-game had exchange value and could be traded for other tokens or currencies? This would imply a wider network of activity across various platforms.We live in a world where there is more and more information, but less and less meaning. - Jean Baudrillard

Marvel Rivals is all set to make its grand entrance with the launch of its first Battle Pass as part of Season 0. This is an exciting development that has fans on the edge of their seats, eager to know what's in store. From brand new skins to virtual currencies and more, there's a lot to explore.

Uncover the Treasures of Marvel Rivals' Season 0 Battle Pass

Marvel Rivals Season 0 Battle Pass Dates

The Season 0 Battle Pass will become available as soon as Marvel Rivals goes live on December 6. While there is currently no specified end date, we do have a rough idea that it will be drawing to a close in "early January 2025" as it is a pre-season with a shorter duration compared to regular seasons.

NetEase has crafted Season 0, titled 'Doom's Rise', with its own bite-sized Battle Pass. This means players will have just a few weeks to grind their way through and earn all the rewards before it's gone and Season 1 takes center stage.

Do we know how much will the Season 0 Battle Pass cost?

As of now, there is no word on the exact cost of the Season 0 Battle Pass. However, we do know that it will be cheaper than a regular season's Battle Pass. Since Season 0 runs for a shorter duration, the Battle Pass only packs roughly "half" of the content from a full season. Therefore, the developers have assured that it will be priced accordingly, with a lower entry price than usual.

We will update you here as soon as we have an exact dollar amount for all Battle Pass bundle options in Marvel Rivals.

What's in the Season 0 Battle Pass?

Leaks have revealed the first batch of rewards, but as Marvel Rivals isn't officially live yet, the full contents of the first Battle Pass remain a mystery. Thanks to a pre-release streamer event on December 3, our first look was leaked live on Twitch.

Overwatch personality Necros opened the Battle Pass very briefly on stream, revealing Page 1 of seven. Although his facecam obscured some of the goodies, we have a solid idea of what to expect. First up is the Galactic Claw nameplate, which allows players to customize their profiles. This in itself reveals a new Black Panther skin that we've never seen before, likely one available further down the track in the Battle Pass.

The big draw is an exclusive skin for The Punisher, giving him a more advanced, red-styled costume to take on his next mission. Rounding it out is a spray, along with a handful of virtual currencies. One of these currencies is speculated to be a Battle Pass-specific currency, as we also know this is up for grabs through PlayStation Plus.

Exactly what remains in the last six pages is still anyone's guess for now, but fans can certainly expect a number of additional hero skins, along with plenty of emotes, nameplates, and more currencies too. Rest assured, we'll update you here with the full list of rewards in the Season 0 Battle Pass as soon as Marvel Rivals goes live.

The South Korean won has witnessed a remarkable rebound against the dollar following President Yoon Suk Yeol's decision to reverse his martial law declaration. This development has outperformed the generally stable index of emerging-market currencies. As of 10:50 a.m. in London, the won traded about 1% higher at 1,412.70 per dollar, erasing a significant portion of the slide that occurred on Tuesday due to Yoon's announcement. Meanwhile, Seoul's benchmark Kospi equity index closed 1.4% lower. Bank of Korea Governor Rhee Chang-yong has downplayed the impact on the economy and stated that the bank is unlikely to cut interest rates in response to the political chaos.

Expert Insights on the Won's Performance

Mark McCormick, the global head of FX and EM strategy at TD Securities in Toronto, believes that the won weakness is likely to subside as policymakers take measures to stem the selloff. This could be through verbal interventions or direct intervention. He added that the macro setup is not favorable for the won given its links to other emerging-market Asian currencies like the Chinese yuan. These currencies have been facing pressure due to the broader strength of the dollar.The MSCI's EM currency gauge initially gained 0.2% but later traded flat as the US dollar continued to edge higher for the third consecutive day. Bloomberg's greenback index has risen almost 5% since the start of October, putting pressure on assets across the developing world.The Czech koruna also made headlines by briefly strengthening to its strongest level against the euro since September. Central Bank Governor Ales Michl stated that authorities are likely to halt their policy-easing cycle in the near future and keep rates steady for some time. The currency initially rose about 0.2% but then gave up the gains and traded flat.On stock markets, MSCI's Index for emerging-market equities gained 0.2% to reach its highest level since Nov. 12, driven by Asian tech gains. The market was following a stronger close on Wall Street on Tuesday, where the S&P 500 notched its 55th record high of the year.In credit markets, Brazil's dollar bonds performed well among emerging-market peers. According to data compiled by Bloomberg, the South American economy grew more than expected in the third quarter.Bank of America Corp. is establishing itself as a repeat dealmaker in the debt-swap footprint. It is now helping Ecuador buy back old debt using new bonds, which will also cover the cost of a new loan.