Gaming blockchain group Oasys just announced Square Enix has invested in its project as the 21st first node validator on its platform. Square Enix joins several other major game developers, including Ubisoft and Bandai Namco, in investing in the divisive gaming technology.
Square Enix is best known as the developer of game franchises such as Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest. The investment in Oasys will be exploring the possibility of NFTs, cryptocurrencies and play-to-earn models in future Square Enix titles. Square Enix has yet to reveal anything specific about the partnership, but gamers can assume that blockchain gaming will be in the future.
Oasys is a game blockchain started by executives from several game companies, including Hajime Nakatani, President and CEO of Bandai Namco, and Shuji Utsumi, Co-CEO of SEGA and CEO of SEGA of America. It claims to create an “eco-friendly, game-optimized Proof-of-Stake blockchain built for gamers, by gamers.” Although Ubisoft, Bandai Namco and SEGA are the biggest gaming conglomerates supporting Oasys besides Square Enix, it has over a dozen other node validators from new crypto-focused game developers.
Earlier this year, Square Enix declared its intention to explore Web3 games in the future. It even launched its own Blockchain Entertainment Business division in April. “Our shared enthusiasm for Web3 games makes this an exciting partnership for us,” said Yosuke Saito, director of this new division of Square Enix, “and we look forward to gaining insights that can advance the creation of brand new gaming experiences for players Worldwide.”
The initial decision by Square Enix to invest in blockchain gaming was met with a polarized response, and this latest development was no different. NFTs, cryptocurrencies and games to earn money are things few players asked for. Many games that have already tried to implement blockchain technology into their games have met with lukewarm success so far. What’s worse, most blockchain technology is environmentally hazardous, causing a strain on hardware, leading to price increases and supply shortages, such as the semiconductor shortage that has plagued the gaming industry for over a year, or the ever-increasing cost of video cards.
That said, Oasys has claimed that they want to create greener blockchain technology than existing methods. It also claims that its systems will be resistant to fraud, another problem endemic to many cryptocurrency models. While it’s still uncertain what those methods will look like, nor what games Square Enix’s investment in Oasys will create, it seems the company is set on doubling down on crypto-gaming. It remains to be seen what any Square Enix game developers resistant to NFTs and cryptocurrencies, which Final Fantasy 14 director and producer Naoki Yoshida, will have to say about the company’s decision.
Source: Medium/Oasys
