Hamster Kombat is not just an ordinary game. It is a digital force fueled by endless clicks, a quest for profit and promises that exist only online. Since launching on Telegram in March 2024, Hamster Kombat has grown rapidly in popularity, attracting more than 200 million users.
The speed at which the game has attracted players is truly impressive. The Telegram-based game has attracted around 1.8 million daily players in the 77 days since its launch. The game’s mechanics have also helped its social media and YouTube channels break records.
Casual Games: Simple and Engaging
Hamster Kombat clearly represents the casual game genre—simple, accessible, and requiring no skill. These games are designed to pass the time easily. In Hamster Kombat, you can click on the Hamster avatar to mindlessly collect coins.
According to data from Hamster Kombat’s official Telegram channel in early June, user engagement in the game averaged more than 20 minutes per day, as measured by Google Analytics. This metric continues to increase.
If you multiply that 20-minute figure by 100 million users, that adds up to 2 billion minutes of playtime per day by early June 2024. Less than 30 days later, the game doubled its player base to 200 million users.
Game Mechanics: Click, Register and Invest
The game revolves around accumulating coins and increasing profits every hour, with three main methods to achieve this goal.
- Clicking: The simplest method is to click on the hamster. There are techniques to increase the income per click, but each click will drain the hamster’s energy. The more you grind, the faster you will be exhausted. This is like an office job, right?
- Subscriptions: Earn coins not only in-game but also through tasks like subscribing to channels and recruiting new players. It requires stepping out of your comfort zone, where new opportunities always exist—whether in life or outside the game.
- Investments and Daily Combos: Strategic players can participate in investments and “Daily Combos.” Think of it like navigating a digital stock market with hamsters. Who would have thought that your financial journey would begin with a virtual hamster?
Why do people play Hamster Kombat?
Easy money seems to be the main motivator for players. The creators of Hamster Kombat keep players engaged with the intriguing idea that these digital coins could become real money one day.
The game’s website loosely mentions the possibility of listing the token, encouraging users to link their Telegram wallets to the game bot. Developers appear to be preparing for a cryptocurrency airdrop and onchain functionality on the TON blockchain.
People have reason to believe that their hopes may be rewarded, as similar projects have brought profits to players this year. Let’s talk about Notcoin. Launched on Telegram in January 2024, Notcoin started out as a clicker game, perhaps more basic than Hamster Kombat.
The premise is simple: users click on the screen to earn in-game currency. In the spring of 2024, Notcoin held a listing event, allowing some players to convert virtual currency into real money.
Genius Marketing and Social Media
The people behind Hamster Kombat are marketing geniuses. They created a virtual currency that pays for social media signups, video viewing, and new player acquisition. The money is virtual, but the social media followers are real.
The result? 47.4 million subscribers on Telegram, 30 million on YouTube, and 10.8 million on Twitter in just over three months. Furthermore, Hamster Kombat’s YouTube channel was recognized as the fastest-growing channel globally and will be featured in the Guinness Book of Records.
Importantly, the game’s creators don’t ask players to invest money; all they want is the player’s time and participation in the activities. Therefore, it is difficult to accuse the game’s creators of fraud. Perhaps it is for this reason that people feel safe and immersed in the game.
On the other hand, is what they are doing really wrong? They took advantage of people who were already spending time on casual games and gave them the opportunity to do the same with the ability to earn extra money. It’s simple but extremely smart.
You could even argue that there is a social benefit here. Instead of wasting time needlessly or engaging in questionable activities, people are clicking a virtual mouse and potentially increasing their income. It’s a win-win situation.
UBI concept
But let’s take a step back from the game and consider the concept of exchanging people’s time for potential income.
In a recent interview with BBC Newsnight, Professor Geoffrey Hinton expressed concern about a future where “AI will replace many boring jobs.” He warns that although “AI will increase productivity and wealth, the money will go to the wealthy, not those who lose their jobs, and that will be very bad for society.”
His idea was to give everyone the right to a Universal Basic Income (UBI), a concept in which “the government pays a flat wage to all individuals regardless of their means.” However, many governments are simply not willing to implement a UBI system, and a UK government spokesman has stated that there are no “plans to introduce a universal basic income” due to costs. giant related.
But what if there was a way to make money without depending on the state budget? What if we could create a mechanism where businesses were willing to pay for the simplest actions? What if these clicker games are an alternative concept to UBI?
Virtual promises and real benefits
Let’s break it down. In just a few months, Hamster Kombat has attracted a huge audience with huge earning potential. The simplest methods include advertising and taking surveys.
If stakeholders are willing to pay, a listing could actually happen. With growing awareness of Hamster Kombat and its in-game coins, there is potential to repeat Notcoin’s success. Or perhaps we will see Hamster Kombat combined with AI in the future, creating a complete Hamster universe for users?
But let’s focus on the present. Game creators will definitely make money. What about the participants? That’s still unclear. However, if similar projects continue to emerge and demonstrate monetization potential, it may be worth taking a closer look at this mechanism.
Why do we play like a hamster?
Let’s put aside deep thoughts for a moment and appreciate the audacity of the game’s creators.
The growth of Hamster Kombat’s YouTube and social media channels can be attributed to marketing genius. However, the people behind Hamster Kombat are not just marketers; They had the bold idea of making a hamster the central character. Have you ever wondered why they chose a hamster?
Choosing a hamster as the central character in Hamster Kombat is more than just cute creatures running on wheels. It’s a clever nod to the “herd” behavior of the financial world.
Investopedia deciphers the financial term ‘lemming’, where investors make impulsive decisions due to ‘FOMO’ and the irrationality of certain market movements. Interestingly, lemmings and hamsters are distant relatives. Is this a coincidence?
In the game, players humorously begin by “hamster shaving,” a metaphorical ritual that introduces them to the harsh world of finance. In the financial world, “hamster shaving,” or “lemming,” refers to seasoned investors exploiting the herd mentality of newcomers—much like the creators of Hamster Kombat playfully tease their users.
Remember the GameStop incident?
Spin that mouse wheel a little harder. Maybe the creators of Hamster Kombat aren’t mocking their users; maybe they’re completely accepting and embracing them for who they are.
In 2021, retail investors on Reddit r/WallStreetBets joined forces, triggering a stock rally that took institutional investors by surprise. It was a classic case of amateurs outperforming professionals—a scenario where a large number of ‘hamsters’ can turn a financial fortune around.
This event highlights the irony in Hamster Kombat: perhaps the game wasn’t intended to exploit its users.
Maybe a million hamsters rebelling against the establishment would fail, but a billion hamsters are a powerful force. Maybe ‘hamster shaving’ is just a weird initiation ritual, acknowledging that the real power lies with these ‘hamsters’ and they will not be exploited.
Hamster CEO: Mr Goxx
The hamster CEO character in Hamster Kombat may also be inspired by Mr Goxx, the legendary cryptocurrency trading hamster of 2021.
Famous for navigating volatile cryptocurrency markets from a sophisticated cage and outmaneuvering human investors, Mr Goxx streams his trades on Twitch and uses the “wheel of thought” unique decision” to perform buying and selling actions.
His success suggests that in the cryptocurrency space, it’s not just about prestige; Sometimes, it’s the wheel of luck that’s on your side.
A simple explanation – the founders love hamsters?
The third hypothesis suggests a simple reason for the hamster CEO’s role in the game.
The creators reportedly had a pet hamster with the same name as the CEO, which they held in high regard. To honor their beloved companion, they immortalized it as the hamster CEO in the game.
To Be or Not To Be – a hamster
As we continue to explore the quirky universe of Hamster Kombat, where financial satire meets digital entertainment, one question still hangs in the air. To click or not to click?
In the context of 2024, this dilemma resonates with the immortal nature of Shakespeare’s question, reminding us that even in the world of games, the choices we make can reflect the profound uncertainties of life.
Thach Sanh
According to Cointelegraph
