Video game publisher Square Enix will release more titles with NFTs.
As reported by Anime News Network, Yosuke Matsuda, president and representative director of Square Enix, revealed that the video game company had “several” blockchain games in development. Blockchain games are titles that include non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and cryptocurrencies. In Square Enix’s New Year’s letter, Matsuda announced that the video game publisher had devoted “aggressive investment and business development efforts” to its future in blockchain gaming. Furthermore, Square Enix’s original intellectual properties will inspire the company’s future blockchain game catalog.
Square Enix NFT plans
Previously, Square Enix’s 2022 New Year letter declared its investment in NFTs and metaverse technology. Following the controversial announcement, many people flocked to social media to criticize the company for its recent business moves. One Final Fantasy fan compared Square Enix to Shinra Electric Power Company, an evil and money hungry company i FFVII. Coincidentally, Square Enix also sells figures off Final Fantasy VII characters Cloud, Tifa, and Aerith with NFTs.
The 3rd of November was Dragon Quest game publisher announced Symbiogenesis, its first digital collectible art project. With an expected release date of spring 2023, Symbiogenesis contains six chapters and 10,000 NFT artwork in collaboration with LGG, Japan’s largest gaming guild. The upcoming game includes characters of different racial and career backgrounds and will be available in English and Japanese.
In December 2021, Ubisoft announced that NFTs would appear in the Ghost Recon: Breakpoint. The non-fungible tokens, only available in Ghost Recon’s PC version, allows players a variety of options for weapon skins and armor pieces. The company unveiled “Digits” as a “unique collectible that has its own serial number that others can see in-game.” A new platform titled Ubisoft Quartz is responsible for tracking digits. After the service’s announcement trailer, users dramatically increased the number of dislikes for the video.
“With Digits, items are no longer tied to a player’s game inventory as they can be sold for other eligible players to acquire outside of the Ubisoft ecosystem,” Ubisoft wrote. While many argue that the NFT process harms the environment, the company claimed that Digits is “energy efficient” and “environmentally sustainable.” But, Ghost Recon’s The NFT feature could have done better with players. Ultimately, Ubisoft blamed fans for the failure of their digital marketing strategy.
Square Enix’s Future Games
In addition to an increased interest in the cryptocurrency world, Square Enix’s extensive lineup includes future releases of Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth and Final Fantasy XVI. FFVII Rebirth producer Yoshinori Kitase also teased big news beyond the existing project. “Rest assured that we are working hard to ensure that 2023 is the most exciting year yet,” he said. According to the 2021 leak on Nvidia’s GeForce Now streaming service, fans suspect that Square Enix may be working on a remaster of Final Fantasy Tactics or a remake of Final Fantasy IX.
Source: Anime News Network
