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Dark Forest shows how advanced cryptography can be used in a game—and how blockchains might host decentralized digital worlds.
By Mike Orcuttarchive page November 10, 2022 screenshot from Dark Forest game DARK FOREST VIA DFWIKI Start exploring in Dark Forest, and you quickly realize just how much you don’t know.
The universe is vast, and most of it is shrouded in darkness. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to venture into the unknown, avoid being destroyed by opposing players who may be lurking in the dark, and build an empire of the planets you discover and can make your own.
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But while the video game seemingly looks and plays much like other online strategy games, under the hood it’s a very different story.
That’s because it doesn’t rely on the servers running popular online strategy games like Eve Online and World of Warcraft. Instead, Dark Forest runs completely on a blockchain, in a way that means no one is in control of how it plays out.
Its early success doesn’t just reflect a fun way of making games that work in an entirely different way. It also helps prove that blockchains can be used for far more interesting and complex applications than just moving digital money around, something some blockchain boosters have been saying since the technology first emerged.
In fact, the game’s most die-hard fans believe that what makes it so cool is something even more profound—something that hints at the future of our shared digital realms. And that includes the possibility of a metaverse that isn’t owned by Meta or another big tech company but runs in a decentralized way, between its users.
How it was built Dark Forest began as an idea in the mind of the pseudonymous Gubsheep (maintaining pseudonymity is not uncommon among figures in the crypto world), who describes it as a “massively multiplayer strategy game that takes place in an infinite, procedurally generated universe.”
The game is partly inspired by the science fiction novel The Dark Forest, by Cixin Liu. Gubsheep says he was so enthralled by the book that he read it in just one sitting, in a bookstore cafe. One theme he found particularly compelling involves the dilemma our civilization would face if it were to discover another civilization in the universe. We wouldn’t know whether it posed an existential threat, says Gubsheep, but one view is that to ensure our own survival we should assume so and make no contact.
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crypto pop up ads concept It’s okay to opt out of the crypto revolution The crypto industry is investing heavily in getting more people to buy in. That doesn't mean you have to. Gubsheep happened to read The Dark Forest just a few days after he had attended a conference focused on an emerging class of cryptographic tools called zero-knowledge proofs. Using this advanced cryptography, it’s possible to prove that a statement is true without revealing anything else about it. Imagine, for instance, proving your citizenship without revealing any of the other information in your passport.
As he walked back to his apartment from the bookstore, fresh ideas inspired by The Dark Forest started to combine with others sparked by what he had just learned.
The idea behind zero-knowledge proofs dates back to the 1980s, but some of the first practical applications have appeared recently in blockchain systems. The most prominent example is Zcash, a Bitcoin-like cryptocurrency that uses a class of zero-knowledge proofs called zk-SNARKs—the same kind Dark Forest uses—to hide transaction data so that users can deal anonymously, almost as if they were using a digital form of cash.
Gubsheep began to imagine a “cryptographic Dark Forest” in which opposing players would be like civilizations “tiptoeing” through a universe filled with potentially hostile counterparts—hidden from view thanks to zero-knowledge proofs. When he got home, he stayed up all night sketching out the idea. Shortly thereafter, he convinced two friends to help him build it.
Eventually, Dark Forest’s creators decided that to make it work they’d need to use a blockchain. They wanted to build the game in a way that would allow everyone to be able to check that “the mathematical protocol underlying the game is being followed correctly,” says Gubsheep. He acknowledges that it would have been technically possible to write the game in a traditional server so that its entire history would be viewable, including every zero-knowledge proof—“but at that point you’re basically starting to build a blockchain.”
They knew it was a “pie-in-the-sky” idea. Blockchains are slow and expensive to use—far from ideal infrastructure for a game that must keep track of many interconnected systems and a vast number of player moves. Despite all the initial hype around a wide range of non-finance uses for blockchains, the popular perception now is that using blockchains makes sense only for simpler, finance-related applications.
Proof of concepts Gubsheep and his friends achieved what they set out to do: make a cool, sci-fi-inspired game using cutting-edge cryptography. What they built, however, has hinted at new possibilities they didn’t fully anticipate.
Dark Forest is the most complicated blockchain game to date, and the first of its kind to feature what game theorists call “incomplete information.” When a new player first arrives in Dark Forest, most of the universe—including potentially hostile opponents—is hidden. The hidden areas become visible only if the player explores them. Every time players move, they send a proof to the blockchain that the move is valid—without revealing their coordinates in the universe.
Since February 2020, more than 10,000 people have played. Some of them, like software developer Nalin Bhardwaj, have been inspired by the game’s technical underpinnings to stay and work on the Dark Forest universe—and build new Dark Forest–inspired games. They see Dark Forest as the first step toward rich digital realities—some might call them metaverses—that are run by decentralized networks instead of company servers.
Dark Forest is not only the most complicated blockhain game, says Bhardwaj: “I do not think there is an application on the blockchain that is more complex.” By designing it to run on a blockchain, the game’s creators also produced technical infrastructure that broadens the scope of how we might use blockchains to interact online, he argues.
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To Bhardwaj and other true believers, Dark Forest is proof of several new concepts at once. First, it demonstrates how advanced cryptography can be used to add new features to online worlds. Developers and computer scientists inspired by Dark Forest are already exploring new games and applications that take advantage of zero-knowledge proofs.
Gubsheep and others have even launched an R&D organization, called 0xPARC (a reference to PARC, the storied R&D company that Xerox launched 40 years ago), to support this work. Bhardwaj recently did a stint as a 0xPARC intern.
The scope of 0xPARC is not limited to gaming. For example, one application the group is interested in is digital identification. Recall the passport example. Zero-knowledge proofs could make it possible to prove all kinds of things about yourself without revealing anything else. You could prove you were above a certain age without revealing your actual age, or that you have more than a certain amount of money in your bank account without revealing the actual amount. It could also be possible to use zero-knowledge cryptography to prove that you’ve run a machine-learning algorithm on a sensitive data set while keeping the data private, says Gubsheep.
A new vision for the metaverse? Zero knowledge is also not the only focus at 0xPARC. The deepest thinkers about Dark Forest seem to agree that while its use of cryptography is genuinely innovative, an even more compelling proof of concept in the game is its “autonomous” game world—an online environment that no one controls, and which cannot be taken down.
So far, Dark Forest has existed in temporary instances, called rounds, that last between one and two weeks. But since it exists entirely in blockchain smart contracts—computer programs that the blockchain stores and executes—a Dark Forest world could be deployed in such a way that no one would have the capability to stop it, says computer scientist and 0xPARC cofounder Justin Glibert. “You could think of it like a Minecraft server but it can’t be taken down,” he says.
Once a smart contract is deployed, it’s a bit like a robot that lives in digital space—one that can run forever. Unless the creator installs a mechanism that can be triggered to kill the program, it will keep running as long as the network exists. In this case, Glibert argues, the virtual world would be “more like a digital planet” than a game.
What happens on a digital planet? Whatever the world’s rules—its “digital physics”—allow, he says. Dark Forest players have used its digital physics to build in-game marketplaces, tools that automate game functions, and even bots that can play the game themselves. It’s also free for anyone to copy, modify, and build on.
Glibert’s team at 0xPARC is focused on creating systems that make it easier not only for game developers to create autonomous worlds but also for the inhabitants of those worlds to interact and create.
Gubsheep says this is the natural development of the internet. “The digital world is becoming the host of more and more of our most meaningful interactions,” he says. But he wagers that people will be less likely to accept a version of “the metaverse” that is governed by a company or any other centralized entity.
What they will want instead is “a credibly neutral substrate for people to express themselves in relatively unconstrained ways and to self-organize and self-govern,” he argues. “That’s a much more powerful vision of the metaverse to me, and one that I hope 0xPARC’s experiments can contribute to.”
A few people slagging off levenshulme- I will defend it by saying there's a lot going on in terms of cool pubs and bars, international cuisine, and some lovely parts to live like the Errwood road area. On the downside there's loads of shitty terraces with no parking. South Levy's much nicer than north. I think the main chorlton comparison is in the attitude of some of the people there, there's a strong presence of pretty open minded people with a cool market. It's nowhere near as rich as chorlton but I've lived nearby for about 3 years and in that time I've seen several independent places to go out that are interesting like aunty Ji's or Overdraught that are the sort of place that really bring an area up. Also close to the fallowfield loop
interesting you said Heaton chapel was too expensive, the Eastern parts nearer reddish are much cheaper. We looked at Urmston and thought it was too expensive, it had already up and come rather than being up and coming.
It's funny, I think many of the people saying forget Leve have maybe only judged it passing through on the A6.
I live in the Errwood area and would agree with everything you say. South definitely better. Also only 15-20 mins walk from Heaton Moor/Chapel if you want something classy!
Didsbury
Monton - lovely but not well connected by trains/trams
Heaton Moor/Chapel
Marple Bridge - a bit too expensive and far away
Altrincham
Sale - Overpriced, not as nice as Altrincham but prices to nearly match
Chorlton - Overpriced, not as nice as Didsbury but prices to match that
Stalybridge
Marple - Far distance, bad commute by car
Stretford/Old Trafford - Lived around here for a few years it’s ok but a bit overpriced
Prestwich/Areas around heaton park
Whitefield - More value for money than Prestwich
Levenshulme - There appears to be many mixed reviews on living here
Edgeley - Talked about a lot we the next big thing but still similar prices to Prestwich which we prefer
South Reddish - Not as well connected but close to the heatons
Urmston
Flixton/Davyhulme
Cheadle
Broadheath
Prestwich
After visiting a lot of areas we have found Prestwich (The areas around Heaton Park and Bowker Vale tram stops) to hit most of our points while being affordable enough. If anybody has any suggestions on where else to consider we would be grateful.
I would also rule out Levenshulme - rented there for 3 years until recently - would never buy there for various reasons - don’t believe the ‘it’s the next Chorlton’ hype - they have been saying that for over ten years haha
Urmston is nice - I think prices are rising there too - partly to do with parents being able to get kids into free grammar schools in Trafford borough. Urmston has improved over the last few years in terms of bars and places to eat etc - worth a look for sure.
I don’t know the other areas you are considering really other than Chorlton/Didsbury which are as you say pricey !
Have you looked around the Davenport area? Good train links to Stockport and City Centre. Also by car within 15 mins you can be hitting countryside. Plenty of green space nearby as well as a small high street with new bars/food places popping up as well as the refurbished Jolly Sailor pub.
About five years ago I was in the same position - same age, also looking to buy a house within walking distance of the Metrolink with a garden.
I came to much of the same places. I couldn't afford South Manchester, and in the end Prestwich and Whitefield became the places I viewed the most, as well as some other stops on the Bury line. Prestwich was just slightly out of my price range at the time, and I ended up buying a house in Whitefield and I have no regrets.
My thoughts after living here for 4 years:
The Bury tram line is great, because it's on an old railway line without road traffic, so despite the distance it is fast and reliable. I can get to Victoria in 20 minutes (and Bury in 7 minutes).
It's really great being this close to Heaton Park (5 minutes on the tram and I'm there). Plus, there is another large park within walking distance of my house called Springwater Park.
If you have a car (which I didn't until this year) you have really good access to the motorways and it's easy to do day trips to beautiful hiking areas in Lancashire, Yorkshire, or Derbyshire and the Peak District. Obviously South Manchester would be closer to the latter, but I've found the ring road to be quick. I've also done day trips to North Wales (about a 2 hour drive) or the Lake District.
The area in my experience is fairly safe. It's not very studenty so it's quiet at night (which you might see as a bad thing, personally I like it). As far as I can tell it's mostly families with kids and old people that live here. I've come back on the last tram loads of times and never felt unsafe, whereas I have felt unsafe on some other tram lines, even during the daytime.
Whitefield is not a particularly good place for going out, and doesn't really have a well-defined town centre. It's a 99% residential area with some restaurants and pubs, but there is not really much here. I think it's a little bit too close to both Bury and Manchester to develop its own town centre, because if you ever need anything or want to go out you'll generally go to one of those places. Pretwich also has a more defined centre a few minutes away on the tram.
In the last few years I've seen Whitefield described as "up and coming" quite a lot. I don't know how true that is. There have been new restaurants and bars and shops opening before COVID, but honestly I think it's still 10-15 years away from being a trendy area. The main reason it's considered up and coming is it treads the line of affordability and niceness, which means young professionals like me move here and over time the area gentrifies. Since lockdown I have gone to local shops and cafes a lot more, so there is potential for it to develop.
Whitefield is leafier than central Manchester, as you might expect. Lots of old trees line the roads.
Whitefield is a real mix of classes. There are a few large housing estates (mostly ex council houses now, some of them are quite nice) and then a few minutes walk away there are large 6-8 bed houses with long driveways. And then everything in-between. So you could potentially find whatever kind of house you are looking for, although perhaps not close to the Metrolink.
The air is a lot cleaner here than in central Manchester. In fact it is really noticeable how bad the air quality is in central Manchester when I go back in.
My biggest complaint is how much litter there is, but that's true of all of Greater Manchester for some reason.
聚集的陰霾經濟學人（英國） 2022/11/05 隨著成本上升，英國企業的前景黯淡
看到威斯敏斯特的瘋狂並得出結論認為倒霉的政客是英國經濟困境的唯一原因是很誘人的。 他們不是。 隨著 Liz Truss 政府在 9 月下旬開始自焚，英國企業界已經陷入困境。 根據數據提供商彭博社對經濟學家進行的一項民意調查，2022 年第三季度標誌著英國最近一次衰退的開始。
根據諮詢公司安永的數據，倫敦上市公司共發布了 86 次盈利預警，比 2008 年以來的任何第三季度都多。 儘管面向消費者的企業受到的打擊最為嚴重，但很少有行業能夠倖免於難：受害者包括快遞公司皇家郵政和保險公司 Saga。 這些警報中有超過三分之一來自連續第三次發出警告的公司，這是一種預示未來困境的指標（他們估計五分之一的此類公司繼續退市，主要是由於破產）。 巴克萊銀行、勞埃德銀行和 NatWest 銀行這三家英國銀行通過標記不良貸款準備金或提前記賬損失來彌補他們擔心可能無法全額償還的損失，從而限制了本季度。
英國企業的主要問題是幾乎所有東西都變得越來越貴。 安永確定的近五分之三的公司和 70% 的面向消費者的公司將利潤下降歸咎於成本上升。 批發能源價格雖然低於夏季達到的天文水平，但與年初相比仍然令人瞠目結舌。
這是烏克蘭戰爭和英鎊貶值的結果。 進入英國電網的天然氣價格已從每百萬英熱單位 17 英鎊（23 美元）上漲至 33 英鎊。 同期，作為油價基準的一桶布倫特原油價格從 57 英鎊漲至 83 英鎊。 勞動力也變得越來越貴：2022 年第三季度的平均工資比去年同期高 5.4%。
由於這種上漲，9 月份的消費者價格通脹率為 10.1%。 對於一些必需品來說，這個數字要高得多：貿易機構英國零售聯盟估計食品價格通脹為 11.6%。 這意味著負責降低通脹的英格蘭銀行必須提高借貸成本以抑制需求。 隨著《經濟學人》11 月 3 日的報導，該銀行的貨幣政策委員會預計將把利率從 2.25% 提高到 3%。 這將是自 1989 年以來的最大漲幅，遠在該銀行獲得獨立之前。 未來還會有更多收緊政策：市場預計到 2023 年底該銀行的利率將升至略低於 5%。
這種預期已經導致抵押貸款變得更加昂貴，進一步提高了許多人的生活成本，並減少了他們在大街上的消費。 根據數據提供商 Moneyfacts 的數據，截至 10 月底，新抵押貸款的平均兩年期和五年期固定利率分別為 6.5% 和 6.3%。 這是一年前的兩倍多。 智庫決議基金會估計，到 2024 年底，五分之一家庭的年度抵押貸款賬單將增加 5,100 英鎊。 （對於價格較高的倫敦家庭來說，這一數字上升到 8,000 英鎊。）
在陽光明媚的時代，公司可能能夠通過將更多的價格上漲轉嫁給客戶來保護他們的利潤。 但是，來自更高能源、食品和借貸成本對家庭的三方面擠壓使這變得更加困難。 消費者信心已經崩潰（見圖表）。 銀行高盛的 Jari Stehn 指出，儘管許多家庭在大流行期間積累了超額儲蓄，但到目前為止，沒有證據表明他們會以能夠抵消經濟衰退的方式消費這些儲蓄。
有一些一線希望。 評級機構穆迪的科林·埃利斯指出，英國公司的違約率低於全球平均水平； 他預計不會出現像 2009 年那樣的“全面違約週期”。巴克萊銀行的 Emmanuel Cau 指出，許多公司從實力雄厚的位置起步，盈利能力高，而導致擠兌的過度支出要少得多 -直到那次低迷。 英國的富時 100 領先股票指數（主要關注從價格上漲中受益的能源巨頭和享受更高利率的銀行）甚至可能會得到提振。 但在大多數情況下，英國 plc 正在進入一個嚴峻的冬天——也許還會更久。
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日本漫畫「Manga」這個單字相信大家一定不陌生，不過你知道「Manhwa」這個代表韓國漫畫的英文單字，也在去年正式被放入牛津字典嗎？繼K-pop韓星，韓國影視作品如《魷魚遊戲》等風靡全球後，韓國漫畫也蓄勢待發，準備成為下一個席捲全球的韓流風暴。
事實上，目前全球前10大的網漫公司，其中就有6間來自韓國。不只如此，許多席捲全球的影劇都改編自韓國漫畫，像是《與神同行》、《社內相親》等。另外，爆紅韓劇《非常律師禹英禑》也被反向改編成漫畫。隨著相關影視作品屢創票房及收視新高，韓國網漫儼然成為韓流輸出的新模式，也讓「漫畫大國」這稱號，不再屬於眾人印象中的日本或美國。
不同於傳統漫畫的翻頁閱讀（又稱「頁漫」），韓國網漫（Webtoon）以垂直閱讀長條漫畫的方式（又稱「條漫」），讓觀看體驗貼近智慧型手機的使用習慣，成功吸引大量平時不看漫畫的用戶，因而培養及擴大網路漫畫的閱讀人口。
這不只為網漫的規模化打下基礎，也發展出不同於傳統漫畫產業的拓展路徑與商業模式。 韓國兩大網漫入口網站Naver Webtoon和Kakao Page推出的「付費閱讀」，加上平台廣告收入，讓流量得以順利轉為現金流，也帶動整體網漫市場迅速成長。以Naver Webtoon為例，支援英文、中文、泰文和法文等多達十種語言，每月常駐讀者多達8,000萬，其中更有75％來自海外，顯示網漫市場在全球都有商機。
Kakao Page更將網漫視為開發日本市場的一大利器。該網旗下子公司，日本網漫訂閱服務Piccoma，交易額在2021年達約700億日圓（約3,720億港元）。不但較前一年成長85%，也在當年成為全球收入第3高的非遊戲類APP，僅次於抖音和Youtube。此外，韓國電子書閱讀平臺RIDI也將事業版圖拓展至網漫市場，潛在成長空間使RIDI估值成長至13億美元（約102億港元），成為韓國第一個內容平台獨角獸公司。上述跡象清楚顯示，無論是用戶數還是含金量，這塊網漫市場都不容小覷。
網漫在韓國和亞洲各地掀起新一波漫畫風潮，但回過頭看，身為漫畫大國的日本，卻尚未出現具代表性的網漫平台。或許這與日本行之有年的漫畫連載體系有關，現時日本大多數漫畫均在紙本週刊上連載。若要換到網漫平台上，不但意味要改變作畫風格，還必須重新經營觀眾。加上在日本看頁漫的觀眾仍屬多數，對日本漫畫產業而言，改變的成本太高，使得日本在新型態的網漫市場中走得較慢。
韓國網漫的強力輸出滲透全球，讓人再次見識到韓國娛樂文化產業的本事。這件事亦為筆者帶來一個啟發：韓國網漫其實僅是改動了漫畫閱讀習慣的一個環節，便以後起之姿，撬動了傳統上認為難以撼動的漫畫產業。同樣道理應用在各類創新，只要留心觀察生活中待改善的環節，或許就能從中挖掘無限商機。