In 2017, the crypto industry saw the dawn of a new era in blockchain gaming with the launch of CryptoKitties - the first-ever game built on the Ethereum network. The game became a sensation almost immediately after its release, and it was not long before people were paying extravagant prices for in-game digital collectibles.However, only a few of the rarest CryptoKitties command exorbitant prices, while others just do not attract such high bids. CryptoKitties revolve around buying, collecting, breeding, and selling digital collectibles. However, the value of a CryptoKitty is determined by several criteria.In this article, we explore the reasons why some CryptoKitties are worth more than others. But first, let’s take a closer look at what CryptoKitties are.Also Read: Why you may want to avoid investing in crypto in these four countriesWhat are Cryptokitties?Cryptokitties is a blockchain-based digital collectible game whose gameplay revolves around collecting and breeding cats that possess a one-of-a-kind genome, which determines their physical traits. Since these virtual cats are backed by Non-Fungible Tokens , each CryptoKitty is unique and cannot be replicated or transferred without the owner’s explicit consent.Simply put, each virtual cat has its own DNA, along with 12 attributes referred to as “Cattributes.” When a player breeds these virtual cats, their ‘Cattributes’ and DNA get passed to their offspring, such as the shape of their eyes, the colour of their skin, the shape of their mouth, and so on.To make your CryptoKitty fetch a good amount of money in the market, a player has to obtain rare attributes for their virtual kitten. For example, the rarest CryptoKitty is the Genesis Cat, the first CryptoKitty created by the game creators. In 2017, Genisis Cats were sold for 225 ETH, which was around $114,481 at the time.The Genesis CryptoKitty was created with a fast cooldown of 1 minute. Cooldown is the time a kitty takes to recover after breeding, ranging from fast to catatonic . This time increases each time a player breeds the cat. Furthermore, each digital cat has its own 256-bit genome that consists of its DNA and attributes, allowing for 4 billion possible variations. Thus, the possibility of creating a rare CryptoKitty is not as easy as it sounds. So, the question here is: How can you create a CryptoKitty with rare attributes to fetch good profits?How to make money with CryptoKitties?To start playing CryptoKitties, you have to register on its website, cryptokitties.co, and connect your MetaMask wallet. From there, all you have to do is buy CryptoKitties with ETH using your wallet. The website also has a marketplace where players can buy and resell their CryptoKitties. However, if you want your CryptoKitties to sell for higher prices, you should aim for the ‘cattribute’ called Gen, which stands for “the generation.”For example, the Genesis cat was from Gen 0, or Generation 0. A total of 50,000 cats can ever be created in this category. As they mate, new kittens are generated with a higher Gen number than their parent cat. The Genesis cats are part of the 100 Founder cats that include 1 Genesis and 99 Jaguars. These are highly valued CryptoKitties in the game.The lower the Gen number, the rarer the cat is. However, creating kittens with rare attributes through mating is not easy, which is why people pay large amounts to buy ones with the rarest attributes. Therefore, while playing the game is easy, buying and breeding CryptoKitties makes it trickier to earn money, as kittens hatched from mating are generally worth less than their parents.Also Read: Coinbase sues SEC over rulemaking petition, seeks regulatory clarity for cryptoBut that does not mean new kittens are completely worthless. There is always a chance that CryptoKitties will inherit rare attributes from their parents, which makes them more attractive.The game has three more types of kitties: Fancies, Special Editions, and Exclusives. Fancy cats are a series of special cats first released to breed as many as possible, but now they are all limited editions to make them special and rare.Special Edition cats, as the name suggests, were released in large numbers but in limited quantities. However, they can be used to breed new regular cats. There is another version of these Special Editions that cannot be bred and can only be purchased. The last, exclusive Cats, are similar to Fancy cats, but they are the rarest and they cannot be bred as they serve a specific purpose, such as commemorating an event. To make your CryptoKitty more attractive to the market, you must consider rarity, appearance, and utility to earn more while selling them on the market.TakeawayCurrently, 38,015 Gen 0 CryptoKitties have been created and the rest will only be issued for special campaigns and events. While higher-generation cats can be bred, Gen 0 cats cannot, which makes them scarce.Furthermore, each Kitty born in the game is granted an ID number. Low ID numbers indicate that the Kitty was born early in the game, which makes them more valuable than others. Other characteristics to consider are low-generation kitties with “mewtations” , quick cooldown speeds, purebred, multiple mutations, and fancy breeders, among other traits. Knowing all these different types of traits and attributes can maximize the value of your CryptoKitties should you decide to sell them for profit.Also Read: Which crypto firms are planning to leave the US amid regulatory tensions
