The Gamer's Guide to Hunters On-Chain

The Gamer's Guide to Hunters On-Chain will tell you all you need to know about this free to play, casual, web3 gaming experience! This game guide will be a living document that we will update as the game grows and changes.

What is Hunters On-Chain?

Hunters On-Chain is a free to play blockchain game that sees players battling mobs and sometimes other Hunters in quick, time-based matches. The top players for each match earn BGEM, a game currency that paves the way for other play to earn / play and earn opportunities.

Hunters On-Chain runs on the Immutable zkEVM network and is available for mobile devices or through a web interface.

Getting Started with Hunters On-Chain

Hunters On-Chain is free to play. All you need to access the game is an Immutable Passport. Once you have that, you can play the game through the web interface, or through apps available for both Android and iOS devices.

Every new player receives a free Hunter to use in-game. This Hunter is in-game only… unless you use it for 14 days in a row, in which case it gets minted to your wallet as an NFT!

How to Play Hunters On-Chain

To play Hunters On-Chain, just login, select your Hunter (if you have more than one), and click Play, choosing your game mode.

Move your character around using W-A-S-D or the arrow keys. You Hunter will auto-attack any hostiles who get within range (be sure and turn on the Show Range option in the settings). Kill mobs, gain experience, level up. Pick up the Stars dropped by dead monsters for even more experience.

Each Hunter type has their own, unique special ability. This ability is either passive, or it triggers based on certain conditions. There won’t be any extra buttons you need to click while playing.

Every time you gain a level in-game you’ll be shown an option of two character upgrades. Choose one and the bonus goes into effect immediately. There is no pause button, so you’ll have to make your upgrade choice while also paying attention to the action. The two upgrade choices are randomly selected from a list of potential options. Many of the upgrades are universal, but some are specific to each Hunter based on their special ability.

Matches in Hunters On-Chain are quick, only lasting a few minutes each. But within that limited time frame expect to see a lot of action!

Hunters On-Chain offers several different gameplay modes – Hunt, Boss Hunt, Hardcore, Bounty Hunter, and Co-Op (co-op mode not yet available). The base rewards and Energy cost vary based on game mode.

Each Hunter has a limited amount of Energy that replenishes once a day. Once a Hunter has no more Energy, they can't be used in matches. However, players can own multiple Hunters and use them all on a daily basis.

Hunt

In Hunt mode, the object is to either have the most experience by the end of the match, or be the last Hunter standing after all the other contestants were killed by the mobs.

Hunt matches last for three minutes, though if you’re the last one left you can choose to end it early and claim your victory. Mobs respawn regularly after they are killed, with the spawn types getting tougher as the match progresses. Where players will begin a match fighting against birds and slimes, in the later stages they’ll be up against dragons, griffons, and other nasty critters!

All players start in the center of the map, where a healing square sits. Visit the healing sqaure at any time to regain hit points. There are a few different maps, but the starting point is always there.

Players only have one life in Hunt mode, so always watch your hit points and be careful about getting backed into a corner!

Boss Hunt

The basic gameplay mechanics for Boss Hunt are the same as regular Hunt mode, expect that players gain experience at twice the speed, and the map is small. The reason for this is because the actual goal of the map lies off to the east side – an enormous and very powerful dragon! To claim victory on this map, you must do more damage to the dragon than any of the other players.

Killing the dragon isn’t required, though players will get a bonus if they do slay the beast.

This is an advanced game mode, and not all character types will fare well here.

Bounty Hunter

Bounty Hunter is a Hunter vs Hunter mode featuring 10 players in an arena. There are no mobs, no level-ups, just the players, four healing heart spawning points, and one occasionally respawning Spellbook in the center of the map that temporarily boosts the power of the player who grabs it.

The action in Bounty Hunter is hot and heavy, with nowhere to hide. Gain points by killing other players. And earn extra bonus points by killing the player who is currently in the lead!

Players respawn a few minutes after death, and the Bounty Hunter matches last for a full XX minutes

Hardcore Hunt

The exact same as Hunt mode, but only first place gets a reward. Oh, and also, only the most difficult mobs spawn in this game mode, so you will probably want a high level Hunter before you venture into this dangerous land!

Co-op Mode

Co-op mode is not yet available to play. However, once it is live, players will work together to protect a king character against increasingly deadly hordes of enemies!

How to Play and Earn with Hunters Online

Taking advantage of the play to earn opportunities in Hunters On-Chain is as simple as playing the game! And it all starts with the BGEM tokens.

Players earn BGEM for placing in matches. Your placement on the scoreboard at the end of the match, the rarity of the Hunter used, and bonuses from equipped artifacts determine the total amount of BGEM earned. You can also earn bonus BGEM by completing daily and one-time quests.

And while it is possible to earn as a free to play player, the Premium and Genesis Hunters provide huge bonuses to the BGEM earned from matches.

Though the BGEM currency exists as a token on the Immutable zkEVM network, it is not swappable. However, you can use BGEM in-game to purchase Chests.

Chests come in a variety of options, with the more expensive variety costing more IN BGEM but offering greater potential prizes.

Inside of the Chests players can find Hunter Shards,, Artifacts, and even new Hunter NFTs!

Genesis and Premium Hunter NFTs

The original Hunters On-Chain collection, the Genesis Hunters are still on the Polygon chain (though a migration portal is expected to open soon). On Immutable zkEVM markets you’ll find Premium Hunters, those that were sold by Boomland and given away through contests and raffles, and regular Hunters, those acquired by players in-game.

Genesis and Premium Hunters offer significant bonuses to their owners. Each has a permanently bound effect that gives them major bonuses to BGEM earnings from matches.

Every Hunter is a generative NFT, with stats and appearance randomly generated at creation, making each one unique.

Hunter Shards

Hunter Shards are used to upgrade your Hunters. Upgrading your Hunter boosts their stats, gives them extra Energy to use in Hunts, and at levels 5 and 10, opens up extra Artifact slots on the Hunter.

Leveling up Hunters requires a certain number of Hunter Shards that match the Hunter type and rarity. Players will also have to pay a fee in BOOM tokens to level up.

Artifacts

Artifacts are single use items that can be attached to Hunters to give them a bonus. Some are generic, such as boosting Attack Speed, while others are specific to certain Hunter Classes. Artifacts come in different rarities, with higher rarity Artifacts providing higher bonuses. 

Attaching an Artifact is a one-way process. Once attached to a Hunter, that Artifact NFT is gone forever. The owning player can choose to replace that Artifact with something else, but they will not receive the replaced Artifact back.

Each Hunter begins with one empty Artifact slot, with other slots opening as the Hunter levels-up.

Items

Items are various objects that players will use to summon new Hunters. This feature has not yet been added to the game, but players will need to collect a specific collection of items that will then allow them to create a specific type of Hunter, though the looks and stats will still be randomized.

Regular Hunter NFTs

Well, these are pretty self-explanatory. Though very rare to find, it is possible for players to pull a full, ready-to-go Hunter NFT – even potentially one of Legendary rarity! Use this new Hunter to play more matches and earn more BGEM, or put it up for sale on the markets.

Hunters found in-game still won't have the earning bonuses you can get from a Premium or Genesis Hunter.

What is BOOM token?

BOOM token is the primary ecosystem token for Boomland, creators of Hunters On-Chain. BOOM will have utility in all games under the Boomland umbrella.  For Hunters On-Chain, it will be used for leveling up Hunters, summoning new Hunters, renting Hunters, and making in-app purchases.

Players can use BGEM to buy BOOM in-game, though the BOOM shop is only filled periodically, so it is often empty.

Hunters On-Blockchain 

All items in Hunters On-Chain are on the blockchain as NFTs. Everything purchased or found in a Chest is immediately added to the player’s wallet – no transaction required and no fee paid by the players! So when you open that Chest and find Hunter Shards you don’t need, you can immediately turn around and put them up for sale in the marketplaces.

In fact, players can join, play and earn with Hunters On-Chain, without ever having made a single purchase themselves. No NFTs are required to play or to earn. You don’t even need any tokens of currency to put items up for sale! Hunters On-Chain and Immutable have done a great job at making the player experience as smooth as possible.

And the fact that all of the game items are on-chain makes it easier for players to buy and trade items, and encourages plenty market activity.

Token Trove and Sphere are the two biggest markets for Hunter On-Chain NFTs on Immutable zkEVM.

The Future of Hunters On-Chain

Hunters On-Chain launched in June of 2024, and with their initial play to airdrop campaign, attracted over 2 million players to the game!

The team is still working on getting older assets migrated into the system and re-launching features such as the Hunter rental system and their BOOM-centered economy.

One knock I do have against Hunters On-Chain is that all (or almost all?) of the opponents are bots. You aren't actually directly playing against other players. At some point in the future, there may be new modes for PvP, or existing modes may be revamped, but nothing is certain at this point in time. And while this blockchain game is fun to play casually, Hunters On-Chain will need to find new ways to keep their players entertained and engaged.

But as part of the rapidly growing Immutable X ecosystem, Hunters On-Chain seems to be in a good spot to continue growing!