Learning Lightning - 001

Welcome to Learning Lightning. I’m Cat. You might find I’m something of a n00b in the Bitcoin/Lightning Network world. This probably includes a decent chunk of the technology world too. There’s not anything wrong with that. I’m here now and I’m falling down the rabbit hole. Wanna learn with me?

Hopping onto this podcast has been close to the fastest that I’ve ever started learning something. After the first month I can almost tell you what the Lightning Network is. That’s not even counting the audio skillz I’ve picked up. It might be cool of me to keep track of the things I’m learning, doing this will help me with my goal to help people learn how to even Lightning.

You should expect Cats Noob Corner to come out the third Monday of every month.

For this first go around, I’ve tasked myself with upping my Lightning gaming knowledge. My first stop down this so-called rabbit hole was a better definition of what Lightning gaming is. To summarize for my fellow noobz, Lightning gaming is referring to when a game integrates Lightning Network payments into the game. This can include for the withdrawal of sats collected in the game or can also include deposits for a game where you risk your sats. I’ll probably go into this more deeply in a future installment.

Bitcoin Bounce was the first Lightning game I tried. I found the game to be wonderful, if a bit addicting. You bounce along the blockchain collecting tickets and power ups. The controls are simple, only tap to jump. The graphics are clean and unobtrusive allowing you to focus on the core gameplay of bouncing. Completing certain actions in the game can win you different avatars to use.

The selling point of Bitcoin Bounce is the ticket system. For each ticket you collect in the game, it counts an entry to the daily prize sats draw. Prizes range from 10 sats all the way up to 5,000. During the last MintGox, the prizes started at 50 sats and went to 20,000. Honestly, a deal for playing a fun game. Even if you lose at the game you don’t lose at stacking those sats!

After you stack those sats, they can be easily withdrawn to any Lightning wallet you have on your phone. It automatically pops up with the Lightning wallets that you have on your device making this simple for us n00bz.

It’s important to note that Bitcoin Bounce isn’t the only ones doing this. Donnerlab have been working on Bitcoin Bounty Hunt. This is a first person shooter in which you  the world, taking down enemies and collecting their bounties. Bounties are then exchanged for satoshis.

Where do we go from here? The only direction I see is up. I know lightning is very young. As is the concept of integrating it into games. But I still see that bright and shiny future where my money is more easily spent in games.

Hooked on Lightning Gaming? Check out previous Lightning Junkies podcasts episodes:
https://sicksub.network/LNJ022
https://sicksub.network/LNJ024
https://sicksub.network/LNJ032

Other holes to fall down:
Lightningk0ala Games - Lightning Network powered games
SATOSHIS GAMES
ZEBEDEE - Bitcoin-powered Micropayments in your game
LIGHT⚡NITE - BATTLEROYALE
LN Hunt