Minecraft bans NFTs and Blockchain technologies
Minecraft has become a gaming staple over the years, allowing players to build the world of their dreams. But what if that dream included NFTs? Developer Mojang has clarified its position on NFTs, and it’s not good news for anyone hoping to inject crypto scarcity into the blockchain world. Mojang says that NFTs will not be supported in Minecraft. Just blocks, no blockchain.
NFTs and cryptocurrency in general had a big year in 2021 – many brands launched NFTs, and entire startups popped up just to have unique JPEGs. However, they don’t have to be pictures. An NFT is essentially a receipt that says you own something, whether it’s a picture, a song, or a Minecraft skin.
Mojang allows players to create and run their own servers, even allowing operators to charge for access. However, everyone must still adhere to the Acceptable Use Guidelines. Some companies have started offering Minecraft content as skins and world files as NFTs, which spurred the developer to take a position, and that position is that NFTs are not allowed. This means that no blockchain technology can be integrated with the client or server applications, nor will Mojang allow NFTs tied to in-game content.
According to a statement on the Minecraft website, the development team is committed to making Minecraft inclusive. NFTs are very much the opposite – they are based on artificial scarcity and exclusion. An NFT may “drop” for the equivalent of a few hundred dollars in cryptocurrency, but it can be resold for thousands because it is unique. It doesn’t matter if we’re talking about a picture of a cartoon monkey that anyone can right-click and save. If it’s exclusive, someone will pay money for it.
Ubisoft went the other way and added NFTs to Ghost Recon Breakpoint in 2021.
The speculation surrounding NFTs has driven costs up, and while the crypto market has cooled in 2022, it’s still a place Minecraft wants to avoid. The developers behind Minecraft believe the game is best when you can cooperate and play with others, but that’s not possible when you have to pay thousands of dollars for an NFT – there’s not even a guarantee that the expensive NFT items you buy will always be available. The industry is full of “rug pull” scams where the creators take everyone’s crypto and abandon the project.
Other developers are clearly less concerned about the potential impact of blockchain technology in games. Ubisoft famously started issuing NFT items in Ghost Recon Breakpoint last year. It ended the NFT campaign in that game just a few months later, but Breakpoint wasn’t a new title – Ubisoft was just using it as a test bed for its blockchain ambitions. It promises more NFT content in future games, whether you like it or not. There are also some games designed from the ground up around NFTs, but these projects are still very early.
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