CryptoKitties is a game build on Ethereum’s blockchain, currently using 5 percent of its total transaction space.
It was launched last week and has taken the internet by storm with players spending thousands of dollars worth of Ethereum’s currency called “ether.”
The catch lies in the visual characteristics or traits that each kitten possesses. Each time a virtual kitten is bred with another one a new trait emerges in the offspring, and the more rare the offspring the pricier it is to purchase.
So far about $1.3 million has been transacted, with multiple kittens selling for approximately 50 ETH, Techcrunch.com reported.
According to the publication, prices are rising and fluctuating fast. It currently costs about 0.03 ETH or $12 to buy the least expensive kitten in the game.
Similar games have already been made, but this one is different because it utilizes the Ethereum network, and once you buy your cat, it's written in Ethereum's blockchain. Unless you sell your kitten, it's yours forever.
“I’m so delighted to announce that after so many hours of personnel investigations and patience, I’m the proud owner of this lovely cryptokitty,” Julien Bouteloup was reported by Chaining.ru as saying.
Another user said that he told his wife about it and she immediately created a metamask account, asked for ether and is now sending transactions on the network.
“I’ve been trying to get her to setup a wallet for years and gotten almost no response. Seems like kitties might be the key to adoption,” the anonymous man was reported as saying by Chaining.ru.
On the official CryptoKitties site a statement reads that the “adorable creatures are one-of-a-kind and 100% owned by you; it cannot be replicated, taken away or destroyed.”
