You can’t beat it.
I remember seeing an interview with David Hasselhoff in the late 90s where he was discussing his Baywatch spinoff show, Baywatch Nights. He talked about how he had been hesitant on agreeing to the name because he didn’t want to have “Baywatch nights , mornings and afternoons.” However, the show went with the name anyway, and the creativity was reserved for the episode storylines (which often incorporated elements of science fiction and the occult) of the actual episodes. Though the show wasn’t quite as popular and only lasted a couple of seasons, many viewers would agree that it was artistically superior to Baywatch. Personally, I was quite fond of Baywatch Nights. It had a vibe. I only wish that in 2020 I didn’t have to venture to shady, obscure websites to obtain a copy of the coveted series on DVD.
What does any of this have to do with cryptocurrency? Not much, but it does help us begin to understand the appeal of Ravencoin Classic (RVC).
According to an article from Bitcoin Insider on May 25, 2020:
It seems that there is a Ravencoin Classic (RVC) fork off the Ravencoin (RVN) blockchain that has happened along the last RVN hardfork when the new KAWPOW algorithm had been adopted by Ravencoin. The thing that differentiates RVC from RVN is the fact that the Ravencoin Classic retains the original X16R mining algorithm that has been introduced with the launch of RVN.
Placed within that context, Ravencoin Classic is more analogous to something like Coca-Cola Classic, the flavor of which many consumers preferred over the updated “New Coke” formulation that was introduced in the 1980s. Another example is when Diet Pepsi attempted to change their formula a few years ago but ended up switching back to the original ingredients after public outcry.
In addition to its vintage, indie aesthetic, Ravencoin Classic offers the benefit of long-term consistency on the blockchain. People don’t necessarily desire a lot of tinkering and tampering with their pet coin. It could also be argued that Ravencoin Classic embodies the open-source spirit and vision of the Ravencoin project even more authentically than Ravencoin itself. Despite being backed by a wealthy and powerful corporate investors, Ravencoin has always attempted to cultivate a “grass roots” image, promote transparency and foster a fun, community atmosphere. The extent which they’ve succeeded in this endeavor (and at what financial cost) is a subject for another article.
Meanwhile, Ravencoin Classic—with (presumably) zero investors and a “team” consisting of merely a handful of clever and resourceful individuals—has created a genuinely organic community based around this coin. RVC may in fact have more potential than anyone realizes. It has all the features of the original Ravencoin that people know and love. Yet, RVC has a very low market cap. The aesthetics, “pumpamentals” and substantive blockchain characteristics can carry this coin a long way. All this blockchain has to do is function without breaking, and it will at least find modest success as a cryptocurrency. If the community can manage to establish a couple of legit partnerships and simple use cases (even just a Google Play payment app) then Ravencoin Classic could soar into uncharted price territory.
In many respects this project is already learning to fly on its own. It actively trades on several exchanges and recently shocked the crypto world by scoring a listing on Bittrex Global. In Greek mythology, ravens were linked to Apollo, the god of prophecy. Though ravens typically symbolize bad luck, the color of the raven and the direction of its flight are taken into account when interpreting the messages of the Gods. It’s worth noting then that the Ravencoin Classic bird is not black but the color green. Make of that what you will.
I initially discovered this coin just by by searching for derivative crypto projects with the word “classic” in their titles, hoping to find something equivalent (in potential) to Ethereum Classic. Most of the ones I found were no longer active (if they ever were to begin with) or had never amounted to anything beyond a dime-a-dozen, ERC20 rug-pull token created out of thin air. Of the semi-promising projects, Monero Classic appeared to be a likely scam (or non-functional at the very least), and the project calling itself “Bitcoin Classic” was a hot mess. Ravencoin Classic was the only project in this class that had any real potential. It may seem odd to refer to a version of a coin that is already so new as “classic,” but that ironic affectation is intrinsic to the coin’s charm. I hope that the community continues to develop Ravencoin Classic and keep things running smoothly, not just because I am accumulating a fair amount of this coin but because—in an age where multinational corporations and the vultures of global finance have swooped into the crypto space—the success of Ravencoin Classic would be nothing short of heroic…and some of us are just partial to the classics.
If you enjoyed this article, feel free to send me some RVC.
RVC Address: RGsYMs15EfpjZ7GkJCmGFErku2ffyrJtiA