Sega Is Rethinking Its NFT Plans Thanks To Negative Player Feedback, Square Enix Is Diving In, Though

It’s only been a few months since Sega announced they were thinking about playing in the NFT ball pit and (much like adults realizing how filthy ball pits probably are) they’re now rethinking that whole thing. They’re not completely deterred, but according to a report from Tweaktown, the company has decided to pay some attention to player feedback while determining if it’s going to move forward with the whole idea.

Sega CEO Haruki Satomi addressed the company’s NFT plans in a recent management meeting, stating that there is an interest in trying “various experiments” and that the company has kicked off different studies, but has yet to decide anything. He also concedes that since the announcement, there has been negative feedback from players and goes on to add that they need to “carefully assess many things” in order to “mitigate the negative elements” as well as make it work within Japanese regulations and be sure as to what users will actually accept. He also stated that “if it is perceived as simple money-making, [he] would like to make a decision not to proceed.”

Of course, there’s been a lot of talk about NFTs in the video game industry lately. In fact, Square Enix President Yosuke Matsuda kicked off the new year with a fairly lengthy letter discussing plans to implement blockchain in games, stating that while he realized those who “play to have fun” (read: “most gamers”) seem to be against the whole idea, and although there are those who “play to contribute” (read: “modders”) the fact that there’s no monetary motivation for contributing to games is holding things back. He noted that “inconsistent personal feelings [such as] goodwill and "volunteer spirit” contribute to the limitations of user-generated content. (Obviously, it has nothing to do with certain game developers limiting what players are allowed to do content-wise or even punishing them for it.) So, currently, the company’s plan is to lean into blockchain and crypto throughout 2022. We’ll see if they end up wheeling that back as Sega did.

Of course, on the other end of the spectrum, Grinding Gear Games’ Chris Wilson put his foot down on the whole matter, stating that “NFTs can f**k off”. At least there’s that.