ETHGlobal Autonomous Worlds is a virtual hackathon event organized by ETHGlobal. It allows participants to develop projects using new technologies without the need to travel abroad. The competition schedule is longer, providing opportunities for developers from different time zones to interact. The prize money is not subject to taxation, and projects can be showcased to people from different countries.
However, there are some drawbacks to participating in the hackathon. As it is an online event with a long schedule, it can be challenging to fully focus on the competition. The time zone may not be friendly to participants from the Asian region. The competition involves developers from around the world, posing language challenges. There may be a lack of a sense of participation in the competition, and the technologies used may be new, with limited documentation or bugs.
In terms of personal experience, the author participated in the ETHGlobal Autonomous Worlds hackathon to develop a game using the MUD2 framework. This was a significant challenge as the author had no prior experience in game development or developing games on the frontend using React and Typescript. The author's teammate had game development experience but was also unfamiliar with frontend game development.
The game concept was inspired by the Rogue-lite and shoot 'em up game genre, with ideas drawn from HoloCure. The author wanted to create a game similar in style to HoloCure but with a theme based on a Taiwanese Vtuber called "極深空." Initially, the author planned to use Rust to implement the game but took the opportunity to develop it during the hackathon.
During the competition, the documentation for MUD2 was initially based on MUD v1, and the Quick Start guide was empty. It was only updated with a functional tutorial a day before the competition. This posed a challenge as the game had to be developed using an unfamiliar framework. The competition lasted from Friday 0:00 AM to Tuesday 0:00 AM, with workshops and sponsor offers mostly scheduled during early morning hours. Due to personal commitments and the difficulty of implementing an online game on the blockchain, the author and their teammate faced challenges in fully participating in the development process.
The online judging phase began the day after the competition deadline. Participants had to demo their projects and fill out an online form. The host then assigned participants to judging rooms. The judging process involved the host playing the demo video, followed by two judges asking questions. The author found this to be the best judging phase they had experienced in a hackathon, as the judges genuinely reviewed the project's repository and asked questions about the smart contract content and raised concerns about the repository. The judges also provided suggestions for further improvement of the project.
In conclusion, participating in the ETHGlobal hackathon was a learning opportunity in terms of both technical aspects and the competition mechanism. The author found that creating a well-made demo video and storytelling were crucial. The functionality of the demo was also important, but simplicity in the visuals was acceptable. The demo video and the questions asked during the online judging phase were the most critical aspects of the competition. Additionally, the author emphasized the importance of English proficiency, as the entire competition was conducted in English.
The project developed by the author and their teammate was called "escape-from-chain." The core concept was to create a rogue-like game that allowed players to mint NFTs containing their character's abilities, equipment choices, and appearance after completing the game. These NFTs could then be projected into other MUD worlds, allowing interaction with other players. The author mentioned that due to time constraints, they were unable to fully implement this idea but expressed a desire to explore using Rust and the Bevy engine in the future.
The author also provided a link for support through Buy Me a Coffee.