Board 8 > So what is your thoughts of NFT/Crypto in videogames?

(+) Yeah! (+)

you are describing the nemesis system from the recent Lord of the Rings games, except with a PvP and trading element

Why does this need blockchain

the only unique capability of a blockchain implementation (compared to a server-side company-owned one) is that the record of you owning the trading card or whatever will exist as long as the blockchain is alive, even if the original game is dead

that would allow your item to be used in multiple games, etc

view it as a replacement for the steam marketplace

But the blockchain doesnt record stats, mesh, physics, ability effects, or anything relevant to gameplay, it will still require a developer to implement everything. (Were also ignoring copyright/licensing).

This theoretical could likely only be used between games by the same dev, in which case they could just do it without blockchain.

Just seems like so much extra, with massive potential downsides, for so little.

Again I'd direct you to Candy Digital. Their MLB Icon NFTs are digital assets created specifically to be used as NFTs. They released 25,000 packs with 3 NFTs per pack of five varying rarities. They combined video clips and graphics and sound effects to create a pretty slick looking NFT and the high rarities were more detailed with additional features. That is miles beyond the Topps approach of "take the picture of our baseball card and make an NFT of the same static image that we print on the cards".

Candy also did a run of "Suite Futures - Football" NFTs last year where they selected 22 up and coming college football players and did a release of NFTs for them. These NFTs were not as elaborate as the MLB ones described above, but were still more than just a static image. Now that college football players are allowed to monetize from and benefit from their likeness, this was a positive thing for those 22 players.

The key flaw with these specific services is that they don't have to be NFTs.

Collectible NFTs: Far fewer people would pay for these or assign value to them if there was no proof of ownership. If TopShot released a new set and gave 1 of every highlight to everyone with an account then who would pay for them?

When you said "but they can just not" I assume you were saying "[people] can just not [buy collectible NFTs]"

If you are saying that "[TopShot] can just not [give out a free copy to everyone]" then my point was that by removing the authentication of blockchain ownership they have effectively ceased to be a product that people will buy.

Except being NFTs allows them to be digital products that can be sold. Without the authenticity it ceases to be something that people would pay for.

Collectible NFTs: Far fewer people would pay for these or assign value to them if there was no proof of ownership.

And sure, Blizzard to turn around one day and say "we're turning off the hearthstone servers so it doesn't matter if you have those assets in your wallet because the game doesn't exist anymore" then someone else could make a different game that adds functionality to those same assets you already possess.

And no one is forcing anyone to collect them.

Just like nobody is forced to collect baseball cards. Or bobbleheads. Or coins. Or stamps.

It's like anything else, people can just not buy it. I don't own an air fryer and no one (except my wife) can force me to buy one. That doesn't mean that air fryers shouldn't exist or are somehow pointless.

Okay but people buying airfryers isn't getting other people's art literally stolen for profit

creating a massive shortage in quality video cards people need for their jobs and for recreation.

Are you referring to people who take someone else's digital art and make an NFT of it?
Because that's why you should do research and due diligence before purchasing an NFT to verify that it is being sold by the legitimate party.

Or are you referring to people who have their wallets hacked and emptied of NFTs and cryptocurrency?
Because that's why you should be very careful and not give access to your crypto wallets to anyone.

You'll notice I'm incredibly opposed to proof-of-work. Not sure why you are mentioning this to me again.

Do you realize how absolutely fucking absurd it is that you're saying "You should do the research to make sure you aren't buying stolen digital art"?

What about the people who don't give a fuck that it's stolen and just want to buy it because it's cool?

What about the people stealing the art that can do so and get away with it no problem?

What about the artists who literally need to hire lawyers if they want the rights to their artwork back or to get people to stop selling their art for profit because the system has had SO MUCH stolen art they closed their ticketing process for it?

actually does have some value to it in the form of sequels. they can say "Heartstone is over, we're going to Heartstone 2 and your cards are transferred to that."

this is probably done easier through NFTs/blockchains because the tech for that will be more consistently the same as opposed to a 5-10 year old game. there's definitely an element on this which would make the transfer of data easier. some cross-game integration can also be done with this, like Gwent can have a game of its own but you can play with the actual cards in The Witcher 3 as well.

Digital Artwork NFTs: Anyone can already replicate the artwork itself, but having official ownership of some kind gives an artist something to sell to people who want to be an owner of the digital art and support the artist.

all these companies already have their own account systems that can track what you do in one game and give you stuff in a different game, they dont really need the blockchain for that

i got a TF2 hat for playing Poker Night at the Inventory like ten years ago now

I've still yet to read a single instance where NFTs actually improve anything. At all. I've heard and read lots of explanations for what it does, and can do, but not a single drop of WHY it is needed, wanted, or helpful to humanity in any way.

"I took a screenshot of this conversation and I have declared that I now own the rights to it. Would anyone like to purchase this NFT for a handsome sum of money?"

But I don't see where it hurts either.

so maybe theres a good use if you live in an authoritarian country or something

Except being NFTs allows them to be digital products that can be sold.

this isn't exclusively something that only NFTs can do but it's one area where it might be better as it can work across platforms. coded something for mobile? for Windows? for Windows 5 years later? that key still works to pull up that info, like a mini torrent if nothing else.

but really, what you're saying sounds eerily similar to people in 2006 asking why we need smartphones

which was really just being curmudgeonly, and complaining that new things exist

This is a totally different and laughably weak argument

This is a totally different and laughably weak argument. Imagine if btc or eth came out with this argument in their white papers?

PoS also does use a good amount of energy. It's thousands of times less than PoW but that still puts it way higher than a web request. The cost is absolutely worth it for decentralized currency, but absolutely not for decentralized game skins and shit.

hold up for a second- what do you think i'm arguing?

i suspect we're miscommunicating here, and i apologize if i've been confusing

ah shit, i lost the deed to my house and the town hall burned down

good thing it's recorded as an NFT on the blockchain

but really, what you're saying sounds eerily similar to people in 2006 asking why we need smartphones

which was really just being curmudgeonly, and complaining that new things exist

We didn't NEED smart phones when they came out, we still really don't

They're the only devices that have truly democratized computing. Imagine your life if desktop/laptops never existed. That's how it is for billions of people.