'Rooster Wars' vs e-sabong (Sabong News)
Author
J. Albert Gamboa
Date
MARCH 11 2022
IN a rare unanimous decision, the Senate issued a resolution calling for the immediate suspension of online cockfighting operations or e-sabong throughout the country. This came after the chamber started its investigation on the curious case of 31 sabungeros (cockfighters) associated with the electronic gambling scheme who suddenly disappeared without a trace.
E-sabong flourished during the first two years of the pandemic and attracted thousands of bettors who stayed home amid the lockdowns. Malacañang has allowed legal e-sabong licensees to continue operating and instead directed the Philippine National Police, National Bureau of Investigation and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. to thoroughly investigate the mysterious disappearances within 30 days from March 8.
Meanwhile, Philippine-based company MetaDhana Studio is offering a non-gambling alternative to e-sabong called "Rooster Wars." Mikhail Jon Peñalosa, chief executive officer of MetaDhana, announced that the full-stack tech startup would be launching the play-to-earn game this month to provide online gamers the chance to try a new gaming experience.
"Rooster Wars" is a non-fungible token (NFT) fighting game inspired by classics like "Street Fighter" but with simpler mechanics. Built as a player-versus-player game, it is inclusive in terms of playability while remaining competitive. It also comes with a free-to-play option so that gamers can experience a "rock, paper, scissors" type of fighting game with added depth.
Unlike e-sabong, which uses live fighting cocks, "Rooster Wars" has animated roosters that are leveled up by finishing levels in an adventure mode, fielding them in a virtual battle arena and participating in team fights.
Since these roosters are merely cultural representations in animation format, no animals are harmed in this cruelty-free game and no players vanish inexplicably. As an NFT game, it features a unique self-sustaining circular economy using an ERC20 utility token called $GWIT with a limited supply and an off-chain, in-game currency to farm, breed, train, upgrade and revive the virtual roosters.
Peñalosa said, "We did extensive economic research and financial modeling in designing 'Rooster Wars' with the goal of creating a sustainable economy for the players. The economic design is a hybrid between the subscription model and the self-paying capabilities that decentralized finance offers." Last March 6, MetaDhana had a Twitter Space event for "Rooster Wars," followed by a Discord whitelist invite competition that will run for nine days until March 16. Whitelisted NFT collectors can mint discounted genesis eggs from March 17 to 18. The original price will return starting March 19 up to April 18.
Filipino gamers and esports enthusiasts will now have a locally developed game inspired by the "materia" system of the popular "Final Fantasy VII" video game. As the developer of "Rooster Wars," MetaDhana leverages artificial intelligence, game development, visual media production and blockchain technologies in its array of product offerings.
A study conducted by Australian research platform Finder.com has found that 32 percent of Filipino internet users currently own an NFT and the Philippines ranks first among 20 countries from four continents in terms of NFT adoption.
