Introduction: SwankyBets Blackjack
How interesting would it be to be able to earn tradable cryptocurrency tokens while playing a simple blackjack card game? Sounds exciting right, that is the same question I was asking myself a few months ago, a question that has led to this very moment where I can say that it is my utmost pleasure to introduce to you a new single player blackjack game built on Hive blockchain where users can log in and stake/bet Hive tokens on single hand blackjack games and earn more Hive when they win the dealer.
This game is now live and available to play at the link below, but before we dive deeper to talk about the game and how it all works, let me give you all a little backstory on the project.
Link to game:- SwankyBets Blackjack
SwankyBets Gaming Platform
A few months ago I and a good friend of mine teamed up to start the project @swankybets which is aimed to be a gaming/betting platform powered by blockchain technology.
As explained in the introduction post, the project was initially meant to be built on the Arbitrum network which is a layer 2 solution of Ethereum.
The reason for making the choice at that time was due to the low gas fees which is a prominent characteristic of the Arbitrum network and the popularity of Ethereum and its layer two solutions with games.
However, after further deliberation and strategizing we finally decided that Hive would be the most suitable blockchain to power our platform. One good reason that influenced this decision is the realization(for lack of a better word) that in stead of having low gas fees we could have absolutely zero gas fees which ultimately results in feeless transfers.
The idea of not having to pay any extra fees on transactions is definitely very enticing and would be a key driver in adoption of the platform by users.
Another key reason for this is the very effective security measures and features here on Hive, one that makes sure that bad actors are continually fished out and labelled, a feature of utmost importance for a project of this scope that is fundamentally based on transfer of funds between two or more parties. With Hive anyone can be rest assured that the integrity of the platform will be maintained.
That being said, let us pivot back to the main topic which our newly deployed game.
SwankyBets Blackjack on Hive: How Does it Work?
Our single player blackjack game is much like any other blackjack game, albeit not all blackjack features have been implemented the game is still missing spicy blackjack functions such as doubling down which essentially allows the player to double their stake within a game round so as to be able to win more rewards in the eventuality that they win that round.
Asides from the fact that other games will be added to the platform, more updates will be coming on for any existing game on the website including the currently deployed blackjack.
However, currently users can login to the game using Hive keychain and place bets with Hive tokens then receive their winnings directly in their Hive wallet at the end of each game round(typically under a minute).
User Authentication/Login and Basic Features of Swanky Blackjack
In order to login and play blackjack on the website, the user has to login with Hive Keychain extension because the platform is only accessible via the web at the moment. This might pose a challenge for anyone that wants to access the game via mobile, however there is a solution for that.
Anyone wanting to access the game on mobile can do so by downloading and installing Hive Keychain for Mobile either on Play Store or Apple Store. You can add your Hive account and then use the inbuilt browser in the mobile Keychain application to access the SwankyBets Website
Kiwi Browser(Android) is a mobile browser that allows users to install extensions and use them as they would on PC(e.g Metamask, users will be able to sign transactions using the same popup method just like it does on a computer). You can also use Kiwi browser to access the website on Mobile if you'd prefer though Hive Keychain for Mobile is more recommended.
In order to login, user has to click the Get Started button at the top of the page in the Homepage and this will take us to the Login Page.
On the Login page, enter Username in the appropriate field and click on Login With Keychain button to load Hive Keychain extension.
After logging in the user will be redirected to a page where they will choose from a list of available games, currently the only available game to play is Blackjack but in the nearest future there will be an extensive list of games that every user can choose from.
By choosing Blackjack, user will be redirected to the Blackjack game interface where they will be able to bet Hive tokens and play the blackjack game to earn more Hive.
As we can see in the image below, the use has played and won a round of blackjack as shown in the result, and by clicking on History in the page navigation every user can see a list of games they have played and the result of each game.
History page view
Other details that can be seen on the navigation includes the username of the currently logged in user, the user's Hive balance, the Logout link and the link Choose Game link which navigates back to the interface where the user can choose another game to play.
Since this is just an introduction post I will not be going into full details on the gameplay in this post, this post is already long enough, in my next post I will explain in full details how the game is played and how the integration with Hive works.
Till next time, thank you for reading, please kindly help share this post by reblogging to your followers, leave your comments if you have any inquiries or observations and you can also join the SwankyBets communities on Telegram and Discord or follow SwankyBets on Twitter through the links below. Thank you for reading through, cheers.