A Web3 startup building their own mini-games ecosystem within Telegram
A Web3/Telegram startup developing their own ecosystem of mini-games (tap-to-earn apps). The client needed a centralized platform where third-party developers could publish their projects, and users could engage in PVP games and lottery using in-game currency. The goal was to create a self-sustaining gaming ecosystem with fair mechanics, referral tracking, and seamless Telegram integration.
Industry
Web3 Gaming
Telegram Mini Apps
Telegram Mini Apps
Location
Ukraine
Services
Timeline
5 months
Challenge
Creating infrastructure for a gaming marketplace
The client was building a mini-games ecosystem but faced multiple technical and architectural obstacles that prevented scaling and user growth.
Core problems
No unified platform for third-party games: They needed a catalog where partners could publish projects, and users could discover, filter, rate, and access games through referral links.
Complex authorization flow: The platform required seamless user identification across Telegram → Mini-game → TapPad, handling personal links with embedded hashes, Telegram WebApp auth, and preserving referral structures.
In-game balance integration: Games needed to operate on the main app's pseudo-tokens with deposit from main app, token usage in games, and withdrawal back to main product.
Fair PVP games and lottery mechanics: The ecosystem required rock-paper-scissors with stakes, bingo with rooms, "6 out of 49" lottery, and systems for rooms, bets, waiting queues, and timers.
Content moderation and project management: An admin panel was essential to control users, balances, referrals, moderate comments, add and edit projects, and manage news.
The goal
Create a comprehensive gaming platform that serves as both a marketplace for third-party mini-games and a gaming hub with PVP and lottery mechanics — all seamlessly integrated with Telegram, featuring a unified token economy, referral tracking, and complete administrative control.
Authorization System & Telegram WebApp Integration
We built a robust authorization system that ensures users are always correctly identified regardless of entry point.
Smart authentication flow
- Automatic authorization via personal link with embedded hash
- Fallback mechanism through Telegram bot if cookies are cleared
- Automatic Telegram ID synchronization with database
- Referral hierarchy recording even before user registration
Result
The platform always correctly identifies the user, traffic source, and upstream referrer, ensuring accurate referral tracking and seamless experience.
Games Catalog & Monitoring
A marketplace for mini-games
We created a discovery platform similar to app stores but tailored for the tap-to-earn ecosystem.
Filtering and sorting
- Sort by date, activity, popularity
- Filter by status, rating, launch date
- Project preview cards with logo, description, rating, status
- "Add Project" button with submission guidelines
Individual game page
- Logo and title
- 10-point rating system
- Status (active, listing, disabled)
- Full description
- Reviews with moderation
- Ability to leave reviews with ratings
- "Play" button with automatic referral tracking
Gaming Hub
PVP games and lottery system
We developed a complete gaming module with multiple game types and fair mechanics.
Game 1: Rock-Paper-Scissors
- Pre-created rooms with fixed stakes
- Player matching system for second slot
- Best of 1-3 rounds
- Winner takes entire stake
Game 2: Bingo
- Rooms with fixed ticket prices
- Multiple card purchases allowed
- Waiting lobby until game starts
- Number generation at set intervals
- "Bingo" button for winner declaration
- Prize pool formed from ticket sales
Game 3: Lottery "6 out of 49"
- Ticket purchasing system
- Select 6 numbers
- Winning combination generation every X minutes
- Jackpot distribution for 3/4/5/6 matches
- Rollover when no winners
User interfaces
- Game selection menu
- Available rooms preview
- Interactive waiting room
Financial System
Unified token economy
We created a single token balance system integrated with the main tap-to-earn app.
Token flow
- Token deposit via API request to main app
- Verification of deduction on app side
- Credit to TapPad balance
- Withdrawal back to main app
- Unified wallet for PVP games and lottery
Architecture
The system is designed to support multiple currencies in the future, with flexible balance management and transaction tracking.
Admin Panel
Complete ecosystem control
A comprehensive management system for the entire platform.
User management
- User and balance control
- Data and referral structure editing
- Project addition and editing
- Review moderation
- News management
- Game and room control
- Add/remove games on platform
Technical breakthrough
- Real-time WebSocket communication for live games
- Redis-based queue and timer management
- Scalable architecture supporting hundreds of games
- Telegram WebApp deep linking integration
- Fair randomness generation for games
Technologies used
Backend Development
Node.js
Frontend Development
React.js, Next.js, Flutter
Real-time
WebSockets for live game logic
Infrastructure
Redis, PostgreSQL, Docker
Games
Custom PVP logic, random generators, room timers
Integration
Main app API, referral system, Telegram ID → TapPad account
Telegram
Telegram WebApp / Bot API
Key Outcomes
Complete mini-games marketplace
Third-party developers can publish their tap-to-earn projects with ratings, statuses, and user reviews
Fair PVP gaming
Rock-paper-scissors, bingo, and lottery with transparent, verifiable mechanics running on in-game tokens
Seamless Telegram integration
Authorization through Telegram and deep links ensures smooth user experience across the ecosystem
Ecosystem-level referral system
Comprehensive referral tracking from first click through all games and transactions
Unified content management
Single admin panel controls users, content, games, and platform settings
Built for scale
Add more games without architectural changes
Support multiple currencies and tokens
Open API for third-party developer integrations
Scale catalog to hundreds of projects
Automated game mechanics reduce manual intervention
Real-time systems handle concurrent players
Modular architecture enables rapid feature development
Result
TapPad transformed from a concept into a fully operational gaming ecosystem. The platform provides a complete infrastructure for mini-games, handles complex authorization flows, manages in-game economy, and delivers engaging gaming experiences — all while maintaining fair mechanics and seamless Telegram integration. The modular architecture ensures the platform can grow alongside the client's ecosystem ambitions.
