Telegram-based play-to-earn games have seen explosive growth so far in 2024, with the launch of Notcoin and its hot token fueling a new wave of popular games. The biggest of those so far is Hamster Kombat, a game that tasks you with running a crypto exchange as a fuzzy hamster.

Gemz is basically that—but with sloths operating a crypto-mining firm. It’s an unabashed clone, from the gameplay to the interface, and there’s really no point in stepping around that.

But while Gemz comes up short on originality, that may not matter much to Telegram users looking for another tap-to-earn fix alongside Hamster Kombat and other hot games like Yescoin, Catizen, TapSwap, and PixelTap. Here’s a look at Gemz, how to play it, and what’s up with a potential token listing and airdrop ahead.

What is Gemz?

Gemz is a Telegram-based game that puts you in charge of a budding crypto mining firm operated by sloths that look rather similar to the sloth from “Zootopia.” But the bigger resemblance here, as previously mentioned, is to Hamster Kombat—the smash Telegram game that has purportedly amassed over 200 million players in recent weeks.

It’s a bit of a cut-and-paste job, but for Telegram players who want another simple tap-to-earn game to play ahead of a potential token launch and airdrop rewards, Gemz offers another riff on the familiar formula. The team announced on June 28 that Gemz has drawn 8 million players so far, so it’s still relatively small compared to Hamster Kombat—but on the rise.

How to play Gemz

The main screen of Gemz is anchored by a large circle with an image of a gem inside, and tapping on it via your iOS or Android device earns you coins. You can tap until your energy meter runs out, at which point you’ll either need to wait for it to refill or use one of the three free daily refill boosts.

Simply tapping the screen isn’t the best strategy to propel your sloth mining business, however. It’s better to hit the “Mine” button and invest your coins on things like Gear, Workers, Services, and Special cards to upgrade your operation. Each nets you passive income, both when you have the Telegram mini app open and when you’re offline.

Hit the “Boosts” button, and you can also spend coins on things like a Tap Bot that continues racking up taps for you when you’re offline, or a Multi Tap feature that gives you extra coins for each tap. You’ll also earn coins for referring friends into the game, or for doing things like following the Gemz accounts on Twitter and YouTube.

Is there a token or airdrop?

Why plug away at a fictional, sloth-based crypto-mining operation? For potential profit, of course. While Gemz has yet to explicitly announce a token launch, it is billed as a play-to-earn game and lets you connect a wallet for The Open Network (TON)—aka, the chain many Telegram games are using for their tokens.

Assuming Gemz carries its Hamster Kombat impression forward, we may well see the game bring its own token to TON. But for now, all you can do is stack up in-game coins in the hopes of a possible future payday. Stay tuned as more details emerge.

Edited by Ryan Ozawa.