- Fairness and transparency are crucial for building trust in games
- Centralized systems enable bias and manipulation that invalidates randomness
- Decentralized blockchain solutions can provide verifiable randomness
Randomness is a core component of many games – from loot boxes to matchmaking systems. How that randomness is generated has huge implications for the fairness and equitability of games. Currently, most games rely on centralized servers to generate their randomness. However, these closed systems enable bias, manipulation, and distrust. There is an imperative need to shift to open, decentralized solutions that provide verifiable randomness to all players.
The problems with centralized randomness
When randomness is generated by centralized entities, players have no understanding about how it is produced. This empowers malignant entertainers to control results to their advantage. Regardless of whether organizations mean well, bugs and blunders can in any case cause problems. Without straightforwardness, players can’t check whether they are being dealt with impartially. Unified frameworks work in a black box, with no chance for players to review the code or cycles producing irregularity. The absence of straightforwardness implies that players must choose the option to believe that the framework is fair, which many are reluctant to do.
This has already led to backlash and loss of trust. For example, EA faced lawsuits over claims that pack odds in FIFA games were unfairly tilted against players. Without open inspection of randomness generation, there is an information asymmetry. The house can analyze the systems for bias, while players are left in the dark. Even if the outcomes are truly random, the inability to verify the integrity of the system itself undermines trust. Players will always harbor doubts over whether the odds are stacked against them unfairly.
How decentralized systems enable fairness
Blockchain-based decentralized randomness solutions like Chainlink VRF give all players provable fairness. The randomness generation process is transparent on the blockchain, while still keeping the random values private until needed. This prevents any bias, ensures equitable odds for all players, and enables verification of the integrity of random values. With Chainlink VRF, everyone can openly inspect the smart contract code that controls randomness on-chain. This code is immutable and auditable, unlike closed proprietary systems. The critical sequencing and chain of custody around randomness generation is verified on a tamper-proof blockchain.
Players can see proof that nothing unfair is happening behind the scenes. VRF randomness is generated by a decentralized oracle network run by independent node operators. This distributed control makes it practically impossible to influence or predict outcomes. The nodes have a strong economic incentive to ensure impartiality, as any malicious behavior would be quickly detected and would result in losing their staked collateral. This decentralized structure provides ironclad protection against unfairness.
Summary
For games to build sustained engagement and satisfaction, players need confidence that they are being treated fairly. Centralized randomness enables distrust, while decentralized solutions provide transparency. As virtual worlds scale into massive open metaverses, decentralized randomness will only become more critical. Adopting solutions like Chainlink VRF provides the fairness and equity needed to unlock the full potential of games.
Dr. Naveen Singh is an entrepreneur with achievements in sports, academics, healthcare, innovation, blockchain technology, telecommunications, and philanthropy. He is the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Inery, the first layer-1 blockchain programmed for database management. With Inery, he aligns with his vision of a new paradigm for data to empower web3 and complete decentralization.