The world’s love of cats doesn’t end with Nyan Cat, Grumpy Cat, and other countless memes. These furry critters are also on the blockchain.
You may be too young to become a “cat lady,” but you can still fulfill that life goal by collecting CryptoKitties, which are essentially virtual cats. On the surface, these kitties may look like stylized images of our feline friends. But given their tokenized nature, they actually hold some value.
If you’re looking for a new play-to-earn crypto game that won’t consume a huge chunk of your time, CryptoKitties makes an ideal option. The gameplay has a relaxed pace, and you may feel like you’re actually breeding and raising cats.
Is CryptoKitties worth it? How to make money from it? Check out the guide below to learn how to play CryptoKitties.
😸 What is CryptoKitties?
Founded in 2017 by the Canadian company Dapper Labs, CryptoKitties is considered one of the world’s first blockchain games. Here, you’ll collect and breed digital cats aptly named CryptoKitties. Each kitty possesses a unique genome that defines its appearance and characteristics. You can even breed your pets to create new kitties and unlock rare cat features or cattributes.[1]
It’s important to note that CryptoKitties isn’t crypto. All kitties are actually ERC-721 tokens or assets residing on the Ethereum blockchain. In other words, they’re non-fungible tokens or NFTs.
Since they’re NFTs, every CryptoKitty is one-of-a-kind and is 100% owned by the person who purchased it. The CryptoKitties creators stress that the virtual cats cannot be replicated, taken away, or destroyed.
😸 How to Get Started With CryptoKitties
Before you learn how to play CryptoKitties, you have to set some things up. Here are the steps that you need to take.
1. Create Your Own MetaMask Wallet
First, create a MetaMask wallet. Using this crypto wallet, you can buy, breed, and sell CryptoKitties. Access your MetaMask wallet easily by installing it as a browser extension.
2. Buy Some Ethereum
You can buy CryptoKitties using Ethereum. Purchase this coin on popular cryptocurrency exchanges, such as Coinbase, Binance, and PDAX. Once you have Ethereum, transfer it to your MetaMask wallet.
If you want to learn how to buy Ethereum, check out this guide.
3. Sign Up for a CryptoKitties Account
Once your MetaMask wallet is loaded with Ethereum, visit the official CryptoKitties website and create an account.[2] Follow the prompts to connect your MetaMask wallet to your CryptoKitties account.
4. Buy Your CryptoKitties
You're close to learning how to play CryptoKitties! After setting up your account, you can now buy CryptoKitties. Check out the Marketplace to find the digital furbabies that will tickle your fancy.[3]
You can also buy a CryptoKitty using the game’s Offers feature. Through this, you can make a bid in Ethereum for any kitty in the game. You can do this even if the said kitty isn’t up for sale. The owner of the kitty has the right to decline your offer. Just keep in mind that offers expire after three days.
Alternatively, you can buy CryptoKitties in secondary NFT marketplaces such as OpenSea.
Read more: Compare the Best Cryptocurrency Trading Platforms in the Philippines
😸 How Much are CryptoKitties?
The prices of CryptoKitties are determined by their category. There are four official types of kitties:
- Normal – These are the basic CryptoKitties. Their appearance is based on their genetic cattributes. Price starts around 0.002 Ethereum or ₱203.47 as of this writing.
- Fancy – Cats under this category have a unique style or art. They’re created by finding a specific genetic recipe. Fancy CryptoKitties' price starts at 0.0034 Ethereum, which is equivalent to ₱346 as of this writing.
- Special Edition – These CryptoKitties also have special artwork and are available in a limited quantity. While Special Edition CryptoKitties can be used to breed new regular kitties, some versions can only be bought and cannot be bred. Price starts at 0.239 Ethereum or ₱24,317 as of this writing.
- Exclusive – Kitties of this tier are similar to Fancy CryptoKitties, only rarer. They usually commemorate a specific event or serve a particular purpose. Remember that they cannot be bred. As of this writing, the price of an Exclusive CryptoKitties price starts at 0.99 Ethereum or ₱100,698.
Because playing CryptoKitties is generally an expensive pursuit, it’s not unusual to see kitties with hefty price tags. In the marketplace, the most expensive Exclusive CryptoKitty is priced at 1,000 Ethereum or ₱101,697,100!
Note: Exchange rates are subject to change. As such, the peso equivalent of the prices cited above may change without prior notice.
😸 How to Play and Earn Money from CryptoKitties
As mentioned, the CryptoKitties gameplay is rather relaxed. The learning curve won’t be steep. It may even remind you of Tamagotchi.
The main thrill of the game is found in collecting, breeding, and trading CryptoKitties. These activities come with opportunities to make money. Keep reading to learn more.
Collect Your Kitties
Collecting is at the heart of CryptoKitties. You can buy different cats in the Marketplace or make an offer with another player to buy their rare kitty. Once you have a collection of CryptoKitties with varying rarities or cattributes, you can choose to sell some of them or wait for another player to make you an offer.
Breed Some Kitties
You can be a geneticist in the CryptoKitties world by breeding different pairs of kitties. This will result in a unique CryptoKitty that you can eventually sell.
Breeding a kitty requires a Dame (mother) and a Sire (father). Remember that only the Dame can keep the baby kitty. So, if your Sire breeds another player’s Dame, you won’t be able to keep the baby kitty. Nevertheless, you can choose to breed two of your own kitties together. This costs 0.04 Ethereum or ₱4,071 plus a transaction fee.
Another way of making money here is letting other players use your Sire. You can charge a fee every time a player wants their Dame to have a baby with your Sire.
Read more: Meet Your Blockchain Pet: How to Earn in My DeFi Pet
Trade Your Kitties
As a trader, you can buy and sell the most in-demand kitties. You can use CryptoKitties’ Offers system to buy unique kitties from other players. The competition can be cutthroat, though, since other players can make a bigger bid.
Take note that placing an offer comes with a fee of 9% of the total offer value. The total of the offer plus the fee is collected right away. The offer is set to expire after three days if it isn’t accepted or canceled. If you cancel your own offer, you’ll still be charged the 9% fee. But if you wait for the offer to expire after three days, you will only pay 0.008 Ethereum or ₱815.
Chase Some Fancy Kittens
If you adore special artwork and styles, you can focus on collecting Fancy kittens. You can either breed or search for them, so you can sell them eventually.
Read more: Cute Monsters, Crypto, and Profit: How to Play and Earn from Axie Infinity
😸 CryptoKitties FAQs
Learning how to play CryptoKitties isn’t complicated, right? However, you may still have some questions that need answers. Here are a few items that you may find interesting.
1. Can I play CryptoKitties on mobile?
CryptoKitties developers say that you can play the game on mobile devices. Presumably, you can do it using a mobile browser. So, if you have an iPhone or an Android device, you can collect and trade kitties while you’re on the go. Rest assured, the team is building an app for a better gaming experience.
2. How do I determine the gender of my CryptoKitty?
If you’re wondering if your kitty is a Sire or a Dame, know that the creators have already eased up on labels. This means that every kitty can play the role of Sire or Dame. However, a kitty can only assume one role at a time. For example, your Dame cannot be a Sire while she’s pregnant and vice versa.
3. How often can I breed my CryptoKitties?
According to the CryptoKitties team, a kitty can’t breed if it’s expecting or recovering from Siring. This period is called a cooldown. The more a CryptoKitty breeds, the more time it needs to cool down.
While you’re at it, your CryptoKitty will never become sterile or unable to breed. You can now put your fears to rest.
4. Are there more ways to have fun with my CryptoKitties?
Since CryptoKitties is on the blockchain, players can come up with features for the game with or without the creators’ involvement. This encourages the expansion of the CryptoKitties world, which the creators call “KittyVerse.”
Here are some of the tools and platforms that community members have built for KittyVerse.
- Kitty.Family – This allows you to see your CryptoKitty’s family tree and genes
- Heaven.cat – This provides breeders with gene search tools.
- WrappedKitties – Unwanted kitties without no real value can be converted into a token called WrappedKitties. That way, trading kitties in bulk becomes easier.
- CatatonicClub – This is an automated breeding tool that breeders can use to save time.
Final Thoughts
Learning how to play CryptoKitties is rather straightforward, which means that you’ll get the hang of it in no time. The big pluses of the game include the simplicity of the platform and the large community. While the starter kitties are quite affordable, a lot of activities in the game require some fees.
If you’re serious about CryptoKitties, you must have a sizable budget and be willing to learn more tricks. More importantly, don’t bet all your money on it. Only use what you’re willing to lose.
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