Just like Metaverse is stirring the interests of the mobile game developers and investors, Non-Fungible Tokens have also caught the interests and attention of Startups, Developers, and big Enterprises alike. However, unlike Metaverse, NFTs have not been dismissed as science fiction hype, and are revolutionizing the Gaming Sector.
NFTs have climbed the popularity charts in recent months as a way to successfully and securely sell and buy digital arts and collectibles. In fact, one of the leading Game Publishers,
This is all due to the bunch of advantages that NFTs bring with them for the Publishers and the Players. In this article, we will have a look at what NFT is, its characteristics, and what are the NFT advantages in gaming for Publishers and Players.
What are NFTs?
Non-Fungible Tokens are cryptographic assets on blockchain that are distinguished from each other with unique identification codes and metadata. Unlike all the other cryptocurrencies like Ether (ETH), Bitcoin (BTC), and Monero (MXR), Non-Fungible Tokens cannot be exchanged or traded at equivalence.
Non-Fungible Tokens can be any type of media like art, videos, games, music, etc. The term Non-Fungible refers to a unique and irreplaceable object.
For example: when you have 100 bitcoins, you can exchange them for other bitcoins, and the value that you have in hand will be the same. However, all the Non-Fungible tokens are unique, and therefore when you exchange one for another, the value will not be the same.
In the above example, Bitcoins are Fungible Token, which means, they are tradable for each other and have a constant value.
In simple words:
Have you seen pokemon cards?
There were many simple pokemon cards, however, there were various special cards too. Now the special card is much more valuable than a simple card and owning a special card used to be a big thing. The special card used to come with a heavy price tag and can be stolen too, however it was just physically possible.
This is a digital age, and therefore everything has gone digital, but if there will be a special digital card, it can be easily duplicated using the copy and paste feature. Now how can the specialty and the uniqueness of the special card be preserved in this digital age?
For this, Non-Fungible Tokens can be used.
The card can be transformed into a Non-Fungible Token, and therefore the card can be stopped from being copied, as the original card will be unique due to the blockchain. Now, it is possible to have special cards and art pieces thanks to the Non-Fungible Tokens and blockchain.
Therefore now, Nintendo can sell digital pokemon collector items that cannot be copied or stolen. This has given birth to a leading-edge method. This will ensure that there is no stealing or copying of the item, and therefore, the collector's item can maintain its uniqueness and specialty.
Characteristics of Non-Fungible Tokens
Here are the unique qualities of Non-Fungible Tokens that differentiate them from other Tokens:
- Rare:
Although the developers of Non-Fungible Tokens can create as many Tokens as they want, they often keep them limited so that they can be scarce to increase their price.
- Indivisible:
Although this is not the case with all Non-Fungible Tokens, they are often indivisible. You cannot break the Non-Fungible Tokens in half, and therefore you will have to buy the full Token.
- Unique:
This is the most highlighted feature of Non-Fungible Tokens. They can record their uniqueness on their permanent information tab. This tab is like a certificate of authentication.
NFT Advantages in Gaming for Publishers
A Game Publisher invests a lot of money in the game that he then recovers and profits from via in-game purchases, in-game advertisements, etc. The inclusion of NFTs in the game can increase the profits for the publishers and it can also provide various other advantages. Let's have a look at them:
- Earning from Transaction Fees:
When an NFT is transferred, the publisher can collect a transaction fee from the seller or directly cut it while the transaction is processed from their game. This way, the publisher will earn every time the NFT changes hands. In some instances, NFTs have been sold for millions, and therefore this will bring a great amount of transaction fee for the publishers.
- Extra App Store and Play Store Earnings:
When an app or game gets a particular number of downloads on the app stores, the publisher receives a share of the download cost. The share that the publisher earns depends on the number of downloads, and they will earn more if they get more downloads. NFT can increase the popularity of their game and can attract more users to play their game with the objective to buy or sell NFTs based on the game.
- For Takeovers and Mergers:
If a new product is launched on the market, that disrupts the reputation or the popularity of a big company/enterprise, they often tend to buy the new product and merge the product in their catalog to remove the competition and to earn from the same. This can also happen to small startups and small businesses that launch their own NFT game.
- Leveling up the current Game:
The game will get boring if it does not have anything new to offer the user every now and then. The publishers spend huge budgets on their R&D Departments to find new and interesting additions for their game. NFT brings a golden opportunity to the publishers that they can use to scale up their existing games. The addition of NFT in the game will attract new users to the game, and will also keep the existing users engaged and entertained.
- Attract Venture Capital:
Investors invest in products that show promising results and are sure to be a hit in the future. Smart people do acknowledge the possibilities and the profits that blockchain and NFTs can bring, and thus having an NFT game can benefit the publishers in attracting venture capital.
NFT Advantages in Gaming for Gamers
Here are the amazing advantages that NFT brings for the gamers:
- Asset Ownership
What do you get in return for a character that is on the highest level in the game? Nothing right!
But this will change with NFT. With NFT the gamers will get the ownership of their character as well as of all the assets like rare items or even small items that they can sell to earn money. Collectibles and legendary items can earn great money for the users, and now the gamers can pursue collecting and selling NFTs as a career.
All the NFT games can now serve as a money-earning platform for the users.
- Increase in Security
As NFTs are backed by Blockchain, it offers a high level of security. The players can stay assured that their assets and money in the game are safe and they do not have to worry about anything. NFTs cannot be replicated and therefore the players can also stay assured that their assets will not be copied or stolen.
- Transparency and Provable Scarcity
The concept of NFT is based on the scarcity and rarity of the digital asset. Blockchain technology helps in maintaining transparency in the transactions related to the NFTs. It also states the owner of the NFT and proves that the asset is unique. The uniqueness of the asset attracts high prices for the same.
Wrapping Up
NFT is an emerging technology with the potential of revolutionizing the gaming sector completely. It has already started changing how people used to earn from games. NFT games showcases a huge potential. NFT in the gaming sector brings various advantages for publishers and players, and it is going to increase the fun of the gaming experience by various folds.