Breeding virtual cats is taking its toll on the Ethereum blockchain

A recently released game on the Ethereum blockchain called CryptoKitties has quickly become the most popular DApp. The game accounts for fifteen percent of all transactions and allows players to breed ‘little kittens’.

According to an app from developer Niel de la Rouviere, about 9,450 ether has now been spent on the virtual beasts, which amounts to about 3.7 million euros. The so-called Genesis kitten sold for almost 247 ether, if we are to believe the app. The information on the transaction share of fifteen percent comes from ETH Gas Station. Ethereum developer Nick Johnson tells Coindesk that the game is at least partly responsible for the recent congestion on the network and leads to full blocks on the blockchain.

CryptoKitties allows players’ virtual pets to produce progeny with unique genetic traits. Therefore, the minimum number of cats necessary seems to be two. They can only be bought with ether. The game is the work of the US and Canada based company AxiomZen. Which elevated recently introduced the birthing fees to find a solution to the congestion problems.

Despite its innocent appearance, the game sparks a lot of discussion, for example because it would not be an actual decentralized system. Others see the game as the first real test of Ethereum’s scalability and as example of the potential of the technology. The game is possible on the Ethereum blockchain, as it supports smart contracts. In short, these are addresses that hide executable code.