Scaling Wars: An Overview of L2 Stack in On-Chain Gaming

Greetings, gamers!

While experiencing individual on-chain games is always fascinating, understanding the underlying complexity of their infrastructure is equally crucial. The infrastructure is pivotal for the success of on-chain games as it directly impacts game quality, user experience, and the overall success of the game. Robust infrastructure ensures fast, economical, and efficient transactions, supports intricate game logic, and aids in delivering a seamless gaming experience. All these are paramount in attracting and retaining players. Today, we will explore some of the Layer-2 frameworks specifically built to address these challenges, paving the way for the on-chain gaming revolution.

Issues with Current Infrastructure

A common explanation for the absence of “breakthrough on-chain games” is that the underlying infrastructure “is not yet ready.” As a result, many games remain in a proof-of-concept phase, characterized by simple gameplay mechanics, flawed client interfaces, limited player engagement, and minimal mod developer involvement. This is primarily due to significant constraints posed by the existing infrastructure and developer tools. In particular, the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) is slow and cumbersome, the current Solidity data model is not conducive to complex game development, and due to gas costs and limited scalability, no suitable L1 blockchains are available for game deployment. Interoperability and fragmentation also present significant challenges for on-chain games. While the diversity of tech stacks promotes innovation, it complicates interactions between games and across various blockchain networks. Addressing these challenges is crucial to unlock the full potential of blockchain-based games.

Solution: L2

As Vitalik stated in 2020, gaming projects should consider using Rollups as a scaling solution. Rollup is an L2 blockchain network designed to enhance the throughput and efficiency of L1 blockchains like Ethereum. Broadly, Rollup achieves this by aggregating and processing transactions off-chain and then posting a summary of these transactions on-chain. This approach reduces congestion on the L1 blockchain, allowing for faster and cheaper transactions for end users.

There are two main types of Rollups: Optimistic and Zero-Knowledge (zk), each having its design trade-offs such as security models and development speed.

Specifically, for on-chain games, Rollups offer several advantages, including:

1. Scalability: High transaction fees on blockchains like Ethereum have been a major barrier for many gamers. Rollups can significantly lower these costs by reducing transaction congestion, making it more affordable for potential players to engage in on-chain gaming.

2. Enhanced User Experience: With lower transaction fees and quicker confirmation times, players can enjoy a smoother, more responsive gaming experience. This is vital for real-time gaming where every millisecond counts.

3. Security: Rollups maintain a high level of security by anchoring data to L1 blockchains. This ensures the security of L1 extends to L2, making it a safe gaming environment.

Despite these advantages, general aggregators still fall short in hosting on-chain games. Traditional blockchain virtual machines are more suited for financial applications, while generic blockchain networks don’t have the throughput capacity needed for the above requirements. We need cutting-edge L2 blockchains specifically built for this task.

This is where Rollups optimized for on-chain gaming come into play.

Let’s take a look at the different stacks that are currently under development.

AltLayer

AltLayer Overview

One upcoming strategy to enhance on-chain scalability is horizontal scaling. Horizontal scaling involves the use of multiple “hidden” Rollups that operate the same application. The user interface of the application seamlessly guides the users to the appropriate Rollup to execute transactions based on factors such as capacity, location, or specific application preferences.

AltLayer is a renowned Rollup solution using this design.

At present, AltLayer offers tasks for on-chain games like “2048.” If you’ve had a chance to play them, you’d be using shard Rollups when you click your region without even realizing it.

Another benefit of AltLayer is that it creates localized fee markets where actions like minting or trading NFTs do not affect the fees related to other NFTs or games.

However, this solution does have its drawbacks, such as the lack of communication between Rollups, making it challenging to apply to all on-chain gaming models.

In July 2022, AltLayer raised $7.2 million in funding, led by Polychain Capital, Breyer Capital, and Jump Capital, with angel investors including Balaji Srinivasan and Kain Warwick.

Games built using AltLayer:

1. Ottie 2048 （https://altitude.altlayer.io/ ）
2. Cellula （https://www.cellula.live/ ）
3. Loot Royale （https://rolluproyale.netlify.app/game ）

World Engine

World Engine Macro Overview

Another solution with a structure similar to AltLayer’s is Argus Labs’ World Engine.

World Engine employs the Sharded Rollup SDK, allowing game developers to build their horizontally scalable blockchains while inheriting L1 blockchain security features.

It is an EVM-compatible solution, enabling developers to leverage Ethereum’s vast developer ecosystem. Due to this EVM compatibility, L2s based on World Engine can seamlessly integrate with all Ethereum wallets and tools.

Argus is not just building an on-chain gaming engine; the company operates in three segments:

their research lab

a game studio

a game publisher

They recently raised $10 million, led by Haun Ventures, with participation from Robot Ventures and various angel investors, including Balaji Srinivasan and Elad Gil.

Games built using World Engine:

1st party titles

Paima Engine

Paima Macro Design

Paima is an L2 framework designed for creating on-chain games and autonomous worlds.

With Paima, developers can quickly build their applications using familiar Web2 programming languages, like JavaScript. Additionally, given its application-specific nature, each Paima L2 does not require cross-chain bridges during operation.

Paima also supports other game-friendly features, such as Stateful NFTs, which are NFTs whose metadata updates automatically based on the user’s on-chain actions.

Paima recently announced a $1.4 million grant from Cardano to further develop the infrastructure for on-chain games and autonomous worlds.

Games built using Paima:

1. Tarochi （https://twitter.com/TarochiGame ）
2. Jungle Wars （https://paimastudios.com/junglewars/ ）
3. Tower Defense （https://paimastudios.com/tower-defense/ ）

Keystone

Warcraft: Keystone Edition

Another L2 framework optimized for on-chain games is Curio’s Keystone.

Keystone combines an OP Stack, EVM-compatible L2 with a high-frequency gaming engine.

This dynamic combo, combined with support for the Go programming language, ECS, and other features, allows developers to create high-performance on-chain games comparable to off-chain games.

In the future, expect Keystone to support data availability layers like Celestia. In February 2022, Curio raised $2.9 million in a funding round led by Bain Capital Crypto and TCG Crypto.

Games built using Keystone: Warcraft: Keystone Edition.

In Conclusion

Builders seem to have heeded Vitalik’s advice, as the momentum for L2-based on-chain gaming infrastructure is surging exponentially! While scalability challenges persist, L2 frameworks specifically tailored for optimizing on-chain games like AltLayer, World Engine, Paima, and Keystone are stepping in to offer solutions to many of these issues. Of course, there are also other complementary scaling techniques set to play a role in the future, such as Playmint’s client proofs, as well as general-purpose Rollups with a robust on-chain gaming ecosystem like Starknet and Arbitrum Nova. As we’ve seen, the scalability war is here, and it’s just getting started. What truly sets these L2 stacks apart is not just their technology, but the vibrant communities rallying behind them.

Disclaimer: This article does not constitute investment advice. Readers should consider whether any opinions, viewpoints, or conclusions in this article align with their specific circumstances and comply with the relevant laws and regulations in their country or region.

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