Ethernal is a rogue-like dungeon crawling game currently in development. When released, it will run on the Matic Network, a scalable Proof of Stake Ethereum sidechain.
The developer of Ethernal intends to release an alpha version of the game “soon.”
This article will explain what is known so far about Ethernal.
A Decentralized Game
Ethernal will be a completely decentralized game. While most “blockchain games” are really centralized games that use blockchain assets, Ethernal will depart from this norm by running entirely on the blockchain.
Procedurally generated
Ethernal’s dungeons will be generated randomly, according to rules set by the code. This means that each dungeon instance will be a unique experience.
Multiplayer
Ethernal is not the first rogue-like dungeon-crawler built for Ethereum. For example, Forgotten Artifacts is a similar type of game. But Ethernal will be different from its competitors because it will offer multiplayer support.
Players will be able to bring their friends into dungeons or even meet strangers in the dark depths of Ethernal caves.
Players will be able to help each other by trading items, equipment, and coins; or work against each other by racing to acquire loot.
If a player dies while in a dungeon, all of his loot will fall to the floor – and other players will be able to take it for themselves.
However, a player that makes it out of a dungeon alive will be able to keep his items forever.
Blockchain collectibles
As players explore a dungeon, they will loot monsters and earn blockchain collectibles. But in order to keep these items, the player will need to escape the dungeon and make it back to the surface.
On the other hand, the rarest and most valuable items will be on the upper floors. So players will need to take risks in order to gain the most valuable items.
Ethernal has already released a limited edition art piece as a way of raising funds for the project. This piece is called “The Entrance.” It is sold out, but can be purchased from other players via OpenSea.
Ethernal and Matic Network
In early tests, Ethernal was run on the Sokol xdai test network. But the developer has recently announced that it intends to publicly release on the Matic Network.
Matic is a Proof of Stake sidechain that connects to the Ethereum network. It allows Dapps to scale to thousands of transactions per second, while still providing for withdrawals to the Ethereum mainnet.
This means that players of Ethernal should be able to easily sell their collectibles and convert the proceeds to cash – without having to pay high gas fees for each individual trade.
For more information on the Matic Network, read our complete review of Matic.
How to sign up for the alpha
The alpha for Ethernal should be available soon. If you would like to playtest this new game, you can sign up for the developer’s newsletter at https://ethernal.substack.com/.
This newsletter will be used to send out keys to an initial round of playtesters.
Conclusion
It’s too early to tell whether Ethernal will be a fun game.
Will it have interesting classes and abilities? And will there be enough enemies to keep the player challenged?
We won’t know these answers until the alpha is released. But the multiplayer aspect could make Ethernal more fun than previous blockchain dungeon-crawlers.
We’ll keep an eye out for this game as it is developed. And as we learn new information, we’ll report on it here.
