Can tapping your phone earn you money? Millions of Hamster Kombat players are hoping so. Hamster Kombat is a tap-to-earn mini-game taking Telegram by storm, with more than 150 million active users around the world. The game is following the path paved by Notcoin and promises players the ability to convert in-game tokens to a Hamster Kombat cryptocurrency starting in July.
But will that really happen? We’ll take a look at whether Hamster Kombat is legit or a scam so you can decide whether this Telegram game is worth your time.
What is Hamster Kombat?
Hamster Kombat is a Telegram mini-game in which players tap an on-screen hamster character and earn points. There’s no catch—anyone with Telegram can visit the Hamster Kombat mini-app through the official Telegram channel and start tapping to get points. There’s no cost, so all users are giving up is their time and attention.
Hamster Kombat offers additional ways to earn tokens, which we’ll get into below. But for the most part, the game resembles Notcoin—another Telegram tap-to-earn game that enables players to earn points just by tapping their smartphone screen.
Right now, points aren’t worth anything. But the hope among many players—and the Telegram bot farms that are playing Hamster Kombat—is that it’s more than just a game, and the points will be redeemable for a new Hamster Kombat cryptocurrency in the near future.
That’s what Notcoin did. In May, Notcoin launched the $NOT crypto token with a token generation event on the TON Network blockchain and enabled players who held Notcoin points to redeem them for the token. Notcoin exploded nearly 3x, delivering a massive windfall for the tap-to-earn game’s users and propelling Telegram tap games into the spotlight.
According to Hamster Kombat’s roadmap, the project will launch its own cryptocurrency in July. So, that’s likely to be the moment of truth when players find out if this is the fortune-making crypto project they’ve been waiting for or whether their hard-earned Hamster Kombat coins are worthless.
The Rapid Rise of Hamster Kombat
Hamster Kombat launched in March, but the project really took off in May after Notcoin rocketed to a $3 billion valuation and minted new crypto millionaires overnight. Within days of the $NOT launch, crypto traders and analysts were on the hunt for the next explosive tap-to-earn Telegram game—and many think they found it in Hamster Kombat.
The game has been hyped on prominent crypto YouTube channels like TradingFace, Crypto Banter, and Knightron Crypto. It’s also made headlines in major media outlets like Yahoo.
Here at 99Bitcoins, our own Hamster Kombat price prediction suggests that the game’s crypto token could become bigger than Notcoin,
All this hype has helped Hamster Kombat attract more than 150 million users worldwide—a stunning audience that makes this one of the fastest-growing mobile games of all time. Hamster Kombat has also earned more than 25 million subscribers on its YouTube channel and more than 9 million followers on X.
The project has posted images of its traffic analytics, and they show exponential growth curves. The team behind Hamster Kombat has said that it hopes to break 1 billion users. That’s a lofty goal, but with more than 800 million users on Telegram, it seems possible.
How Does Hamster Kombat Work?
Hamster Kombat’s basic premise is incredibly simple. Just open the Hamster Kombat mini-app in Telegram, then start tapping the hamster to earn points. The hamster will change its appearance as you earn points and unlock new levels. As you level up, you’ll earn more points with every tap.
Hamster Kombat also offers some additional ways to earn. There are special cards called mining cards, which you can purchase using points. Once you have mining cards, you’ll earn Hamster Kombat points passively, even when you’re not tapping. You’ll keep earning more coins for 3 hours after you leave the game, but after that, you’ll need to log in again to keep earning.
You can also earn bonus points for inviting friends to Hamster Kombat through a referral program The more friends you refer, the more points you’ll be awarded.
Right now, points can only be used within the Hamster Kombat game. There’s no way to redeem your coin balance for cryptocurrencies until the Hamster Kombat token launches. Many are hoping once this happens they can earn crypto coins.
Is Hamster Kombat Legit or a Scam?
Every Hamster Kombat player has the same question on their mind right now—is this game actually going to pay out? In other words, is Hamster Kombat legit or a scam?
It’s impossible to say for sure, but we’ll take a look at what we know about Hamster Kombat and its upcoming token launch so you can decide for yourself.
Free to Play Game
One thing that puts Hamster Kombat firmly in the “not a scam” category is that it’s completely free to play. You never have to pay fiat or crypto to join Hamster Kombat, and there are no in-game purchases to make.
In effect, no matter how into Hamster Kombat you get, you cannot lose money playing this game. That makes it fundamentally different from most scams, which are designed to get money out of you.
To be sure, Hamster Kombat takes time and attention to play—but that’s free for most players to give, unlike cash or crypto.
Following the Same Path as Notcoin
Another reassuring thing about Hamster Kombat is that this tap-to-earn game’s trajectory—launch a game, then enable players to convert in-game points to crypto—isn’t new. Notcoin did the same thing earlier this year and it successfully delivered on its promise of enabling players to redeem in-game points for $NOT tokens.
There’s certainly no guarantee that Hamster Kombat’s token will follow the same explosive trajectory as $NOT. But, the fact that Notcoin blazed this trail already makes it more likely that Hamster Kombat will deliver on its promise of putting crypto tokens in players’ hands.
Anonymous Project Team with Links to Russia
One potentially scammy detail about Hamster Kombat is that the team behind this project is completely anonymous. No one knows who created Hamster Kombat or whether they’re trustworthy.
However, that on its own isn’t a smoking gun. Many meme coin and play-to-earn game creators choose to remain anonymous. It’s common practice in this part of the crypto industry and doesn’t necessarily point to a project being a scam.
Journalists digging into Hamster Kombat have found some indications of who might be behind it, though. The Bell found that a Russian entrepreneur, Eduard Gurinovich, who founded the websites CarPrice and CarMoney, is linked to a Hamster Kombat domain name. Additional reporting found that Hamster Kombat’s domain is registered with a Russian domain registrar.
Still, the government of Russia isn’t thrilled about Hamster Kombat. Russian authorities have called the game dangerous and reminded users that they should not expect to earn money from the game. There are even rumors that the game could be banned in Russia.
No Redemption Details—Yet
Hamster Kombat also hasn’t given any details about its upcoming token release or how redemptions from in-game points to crypto tokens will work. It’s possible that’s simply because the project team is still working on this and doesn’t want to jump the gun. But the lack of details has players anxious that their points will never actually turn into cryptocurrency.
The lack of details could be intentional, too. Crypto airdrops are often vague about who will qualify because they want the ability to weed out airdrop farms and only send coins to highly engaged users.
In Hamster Kombat’s case, there are many token farms using bots to play Hamster Kombat and generate enormous numbers of points. By not providing redemption details, Hamster Kombat could be trying to prevent these farms from gaming the system and claiming tokens that the project wants to send to individual users.
Huge Community Engagement
Hamster Kombat’s social media presence indicates that whether a scam or not, there’s a real team behind this project. Hamster Kombat consistently engages with its millions of followers on X and puts out daily videos on YouTube, many of which cover current events in the crypto world and take a lot of production effort.
This suggests that if Hamster Kombat is a scam, it’s a very dedicated one. The team is going out of its way to build an enormous following while not charging players anything. It could still be a trap, but it’s hard to see where the trapdoor might be.
Conclusion
Hamster Kombat is a tap-to-earn game that’s giving players a chance to rack up points now and promising that they’ll be able to turn those points into crypto tokens later. The project has a lot in common with Notcoin, which launched and distributed its $NOT token in May. However, we won’t know for certain until July whether Hamster Kombat is legit and will launch its own crypto coins. That’s also when we’ll find out whether Hamster Kombat’s token will be as successful as $NOT.
Considering the uncertainty around Hamster Kombat, we think crypto traders and investors are better off putting their time and attention into games that are sure to earn them some crypto. PlayDoge is an exciting new P2E game similar to Tamagotchi where players can earn $PLAY tokens as they complete mini-challenges and care for their adorable Doge virtual companion. You’ll also be able to stake your $PLAY tokens for additional passive income. The token is currently in presale now and is shaping up to be one of the most exciting games of 2024.
FAQs
Who is behind Hamster Kombat?
Hamster Kombat hasn’t revealed any details about its project team. But investigative reporting suggests that Eduard Gurinovich, a Russian entrepreneur who founded the companies CarPrice and CarMoney, is behind the tap-to-earn game.
How much is Hamster Kombat worth?
Hamster Kombat doesn’t have a crypto token yet, and in-game points are worthless until they can be redeemed for cryptocurrency. Redemptions are expected to begin in July, but it’s not clear how much in-game points in Hamster Kombat will be worth in crypto tokens.
Can I make money from Hamster Kombat?
It’s possible that players can make money from the Hamster Kombat tap-to-earn game. Players can earn points in the game, and Hamster Kombat promises those points will be redeemable for cryptocurrency in the near future. However, that’s not guaranteed and it’s not clear how much Hamster Kombat’s crypto token will be worth after it launches.
References
- Hamster Wheel: Telegram’s Social Gaming Brings Millions to Crypto (yahoo.com)
- A hamster for Durov. Who created the most popular game on Telegram (thebell.io)
- Hamster Kombat is dangerous, agree officials in Russia, Ukraine and beyond (therecord.media)
- Harvesting the Digital Skies: The Controversial Practice of Airdrop Farming (bitcoin.com)
