Takara: Gotta Catch 'em All (all 21-million)
Takra is a new bitcoin geocaching game produced by Mandle Duck. Think of the game as bitcoin meets Pokemon. Takara, which means "treasure" in Japanese allows users to drop chest filled with different amounts of bitcoin anywhere in the world. Then users have can pick up these chests when they are within close enough geographic proximity.
Maybe the best part of the game is that the developers have integrated the Indiesquare wallet, which supports counterparty tokens, so now users can also drop tokens within the game. This opens up a world of possibilities for businesses that want to publicize their workplace, or for startups that want to promote a product, or even for event organizers that want to plan an event.
The First Treasure: An adventure.
After downloading the app and checking to see which Takara were close to my location, I found out I was in luck: Out of only 3 takara on the whole of the African continent there was one in a residential section of Nairobi about 5-minutes away from where I stay. My friend and I drove over around 9 pm and found that the takara was located within a school field. You can read his experience here. We had to climb a fence and then convince the ubiquitous guards in Nairobi that we weren't doing anything illegal. And all for 1000 bits!
The Second Treasure: Giving Back
After picking up the first takara, and realizing there weren't any other nearby. I decided to drop a chest. This one is located in the Nairobi Arboretum.
Takara allows you to put a password on your chest. This prevents people from spoofing their GPS to catch takara. So for someone to pick up this takara they need to go find the tree that it is place under and find the scientific name of the tree on the placard. I'll admit I looked into spoofing my GPS but didn't want to jailbreak my iphone so gave up.
Added-Value to Gaming...and beyond.
Combining geo-location and bitcoin creates many possibilities for gaming enthusiasts. Now, it's possible to create a game that involves real-life situations and has tangible value.
We could even store bitcoin in "physical locations". Over and above having a paper-wallet we could decide to entrust certain communities with value. These are communities that perform a job, like protect wildlife from poachers for example.
Do you have a place where you would like to drop a Takara? Let me know in the comments below!