Fun & Creative Ways To Use The Internet Computer Ecosystem: dSquad
Many newcomers who have Googled blockchain, cryptocurrencies, and Web3 find the topics confusing, too aspirational, too complicated, and sometimes annoying because of the insane levels of hype created on the Internet (crypto Twitter in particular).
Especially when it comes to blockchains, the first thing people think is, “this is boring.” So the question industry should strive to answer is, “how can blockchain, crypto, and Web3 be more welcoming, easier to onboard, and fun/attractive for newcomers so they actually have a good experience?”
Trading cryptocurrencies is just the tip of the iceberg. On top of finance there are many other activities in the Web3 space such as games, metaverse experiences, work, app creation, and community governance. It really depends on what your hobbies are and what you like.
Being frank, simply buying a blockchain’s native cryptocurrency isn’t doing much for yourself, the particular ecosystem, nor the industry-at-large moving forward. In order to truly learn about Web3 you have to get your hands dirty by getting familiar with NFTs, GameFi, metaverse, and transacting on the blockchain.
For example, many artists, collectors, and creators really love NFTs — and many traditional Xbox, Playstation, and PC gamers really love GameFi and decentralized/blockchain gaming. Luckily, the Internet Computer has all of these applications in its ecosystem, and one interesting NFT and interactive experience that you should try is dSquad.
What Is dSquad?
dSquad is the first Engage-to-Earn NFT game that rewards participants with NFTs and tokens for engaging with Internet Computer DApps.
dSquad’s NFT project is accessible to everyone and focused on gamifying the entire Internet Computer ecosystem. To join and begin your dSquad journey, all that is required is minting a personalized Avatar for a low flat rate of 1 ICP. This NFT Avatar is really important as it serves as your “identity” and metaverse personification that you can not only use to win prizes and airdrops, but also for doing missions and engaging with various DApps across the ecosystem. So dSquad is fun, artistic, engaging, and challenging.
This aspect of gamifying the blockchain and Web3 is key, and personally, I think it’s one of the best ways to onboard new users into the ecosystem.
dSquad’s goal is to welcome new users to the Internet Computer ecosystem and directly incentivize them to explore all the exciting things the ecosystem has to offer. This statement is absolutely critical because we all know of Bitcoin, the Ethereum blockchain, Solana blockchain, and Avalanche blockchain, and private company blockchains, but actually starting out using these blockchains is incredibly difficult and troublesome, especially when it comes to poor security (Solana), hacks (Solana), expensive gas costs (Ethereum), etc. Therefore, dSquad creating a business model that incentivizes and rewards users with prizes to participate in the ecosystem in an attractive way is a unicorn-like idea that has tons of potential.
dSquad’s Main Feature: NFT Avatar Minting
The coolest part of dSquad is undoubtedly its NFT Avatars. To get started with an NFT Avatar users have the ability to create one on their own with full customizability. dSquad has a built-in NFT Avatar creation engine that creates aesthetic avatars according to a similar “design language.”
Once you get to this page you can begin customizing your NFT Avatar, and when you’re done with that you can choose to mint it for 1 ICP, which you’ll have to pay either with your Plug Wallet or Stoic Wallet (two wallet providers built on the Internet Computer). Below is what it looks like after completion.
The NFT can then be found in your Plug Wallet. See below for an example.
Once you’re done with your NFT you can then start looking at ways to utilize it in the Internet Computer ecosystem and look out for missions and actions to take to get rewards and build up your profile. This may involve doing things like trading ICP, holding ICP, collecting NFTs, and interacting with Internet Computer-based DApps. This is the main relation to Engage-to-Earn.
The Engage-to-Earn feature is an addition to Play-to-Earn (P2E) because P2E requires constant activity on a siloed DApp such as Axie Infinity. It’s largely useless outside of this “walled garden.” This is a shortcoming that needs to be dealt with, especially as the bear market has come in and wrecked so many business models, P2E being one of them in certain scenarios. Therefore, Engage-to-Earn seeks to be a more resilient business model than P2E, and so far it’s just getting started on the Internet Computer.
Why Is The Internet Computer Fun & Easy To Use?
dSquad is just one DApp on the Internet Computer. But dSquad is fun because it’s built on the Internet Computer and not on Solana. For example, you won’t have network outages using dSquad on the Internet Computer like you would with Solana or Avalanche. Moreover, the navigation is easier due to the Internet Computer directly serving web pages to the user and the transacting speed between Internet Computer DApps and wallets is instantaneous. For example, before buying the NFT Avatar above, I had to send some ICP from a centralized exchange to the wallet. It only took 10 seconds at max.
All in all, Internet Computer DApps have these small advantages that make the ecosystem fun and inclusive. And it’s these features that will take the network a long way. The DApps are still young, but they’re already this advanced and integrated through the IC. So it’s still only a matter of time until increased daily users start flooding in. dSquad, in particular, will be needed for a developing metaverse on the IC.
dSquad recently began distributing airdrops and rewards. So now’s a perfect time for new users to go to their website and create an NFT Avatar so you can get the next rewards.
