One of last year’s big snacks was Non-Fungible Tokens (NFT), where blockchain technology is used to create digital signatures for, for example, images or other digital objects. Owning an NFT can be compared to owning a kind of certificate of authenticity and has previously been used, among other things, for trading cards.
In addition to those who auctioned off Twitter posts, memes and photos, the gaming industry has also taken advantage of the trend. However, it has not proved to be fully appreciated by players. Studios such as Konami, Square Enix and Ubisoft have faced criticism for their attempts, with the latter introducing NFTs as cosmetic accessories in Ghost Recon. However, it is not only players who disapprove of NFTs, even developers are anything but happy.
According to data from GDCs latest report, 70 percent of surveyed game developers are not interested in implementing NFT in their games. In addition, there are a number of quotes from what the study participants expressed about the phenomenon.
I’d be lying if I said that I don’t think NFTs are, at best, stupid, and at worst, predatory and ecologically dangerous. Cryptocurrency, I think, can also be a sensitive thing to deal with. Both have had an immense amount of scams pop up in a very, very short while, and it makes me wonder if that trend will stay. – Anonym deltagare 1
Blockchain is a foundational technology that will transform organizations and
accountability, but NFTs and cryptocurrencies in general are a scam. – Anonym deltagare 2How this hasn’t been identified as a pyramid scheme is beyond me. – Anonym deltagare 3
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Several express concern and say that they see a connection between NFTs, cryptocurrencies and fraud. Another participant is more positive about blockchain technology per se, but thinks that NFT and cryptocurrencies in general are a hoax. A third says that it is beyond his understanding that it has not been pointed out as a pyramid scheme yet. There are also a number of participants who question NFT’s and cryptocurrencies from the perspective of impact on the environment and climate.
Burn ‘em to the ground. Ban everyone involved in them. I work at an NFT
company currently and am quitting to get away from it. – Anonym deltagare 4–
Not everyone is negative about it, and those who are more positive see NFTs as an opportunity to make digital content more unique. It is pointed out, however, that NFTs have a bad reputation and are looked down upon by colleagues and others in the industry. This is further reinforced by a participant, who wishes to ban everything and everyone that has to do with NFTs.
If developers and players get to decide, it does not look like NFT’s games have a particularly bright future at the moment.
What do you think of NFT’s games?
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