As if Ethereum didn’t have enough on its plate trying to catch up with bitcoin… The second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap and the number one competitor to bitcoin has been recently been marred by the growing popularity of various Ponzi scheme games that have been built on its network.
Ethereum has not been subject to the same bull standards as bitcoin. The father of crypto – currently trading for over $8,100 – is at its highest point since April and has jumped by over $2,000 in just a matter of weeks, spiking from $5,800 in early July to its present figure. Many analysts predict that the bull run will continue, and that enthusiasts have a lot to look forward to in the coming days.
Ethereum, on the other hand, has been lagging behind. Though the currency did manage to strike the $500 mark early last week, Ethereum has been fairly stagnant ever since, falling to the low $450 range before spiking mildly to $470, where it presently sits. Despite its smart contract capabilities and faster transaction speeds, Ethereum is no match for bitcoin as of late.
FOMO 3D
Unfortunately, present developments regarding its network aren’t likely to assist the currency’s price. Ethereum has been marred in the past by Ponzi-like games, and the latest one comes in the form of FOMO 3D, which stands for “Fear of Missed Opportunity 3D.” The game offers to purchase a “key” or token for players – one in which the price is growing regularly. The purchased key then adds 30 seconds to a timer that’s limited to 24 hours, and if the timer goes to zero, the user with the last purchased key will receive a money jackpot.
At the time of writing, the reward exceeds 21,000 ether. Tokens cost approximately 0.005 ETH, but their prices are constantly growing, and the chances of winning are shrinking by the hour. Ultimately, the only real reason to purchase a key is for dividends, thus making it very much like a Ponzi scheme.
The cryptocurrency community showed vast concern over the latest development, with one Reddit user writing:
“I’m almost certain that all of these types of games will become exploited during a hard fork or some other network issue.”
FOMO 3D has generating roughly 25,000 transactions, meaning it’s in line to become the next “CryptoKitties” and spam the Ethereum network.
Those in Charge Suggest It’s No Big Deal
One of the strangest factors is how casual the developers are. The website for FOMO 3D is very open about what the game is trying to do, stating:
“Welcome to a psychological social experiment in greed. Come on, buy a key. All the cool kids are doing it, anyway.”
Developers further commented:
“FOMO 3D is putting every player in the terrifying and tempting position to exit scam everything and run away with massive, life-changing amounts of real Ethereum. You should take it… The game runs entirely on human greed, to the profit of everyone playing.”
At the same time, the developers are not acknowledging that the creation itself is potentially fraudulent, and instead blame any malicious activity that could occur on those who take part in the game:
“We recognize that a trustless smart contract managing value in this way simply was not possible before this point in computing history. There’s no scheming here at all – it’s upfront, honest and completely transparent.”
Some Are Saying “Stay Away”
Another game, known as PoWH3D – which stands for “Proof of Weak Hands 3D” – allows individuals to trade Ethereum for P3D tokens, and every P3D holder will receive a fee in Ethereum every time someone else trades a token. The fees are distributed depending on how many coins have been minted within a specific timeframe.
Both apps have led to a few raised eyebrows in the crypto space, and many have taken to social media to warn their fellow enthusiasts to steer clear.
While we wouldn’t recommend anyone to participate in dApps of this kind, they do go to show the power behind the idea of the Ethereum Network: Anyone is free to create and run their own app which will run on it’s own, in accordance to the smart contracts that have been setup in a trustless and decentralized fashion. Reminiscent of the mobile app stores, there will be high-quality and useful apps, spread among the lower quality offerings.
2 Comments
I gave up a drug habit to spend my money on a crypto habit.
It’s a lot healthier and if I am lucky enough to make money at it, I have already won with a longer life.
Everything is a trade-off and this one has saved my life.
Either way I’m a winner.
Good job Paul, undoubtedly Crypto is healthier than drugs 🙂