International Game Developers Association, a global group that includes game programmers and developers from all over the world, addressed NFTs in gaming. The director of the group has stated that the introduction of these elements in gaming projects presents “ethical issues,” and this also might represent a “socio-political explosion waiting to happen.”
IGDA’s Take on NFTs
A large group made up of programmers and developers has been vocal about including NFTs within games. Some companies have begun to include them in recent years. These elements could cause problems in the game industry, according to International Game Developers Association (IGDA).
Jakin Vela (interim director at the IGDA), stated that the agency is ready to do something to increase awareness about the potential problems NFT gaming could cause. Vela spoke to Ars Technica about:
[IGDA is]In the course of reviewing our stance, we will need to strengthen it because NFTs can pose many ethical problems.
Another of the worries that the organization has is the “pyramid scheme” element that some of these games present to their participants, in the sense that some of them require a constantly growing userbase to keep their self-sustained economies afloat, like some play-to-earn (P2E) games.
Vela claims that gaming is also affected by NFT environments’ unregulated nature. This means gamers have the option to put all their employment activities in uncertain environment without official protection. This, with other aspects, might create a “socio-political explosion.”
The Future Of Gaming
Although some gaming companies see the importance of NFTs, play-to earn games and other gaming technologies as important for the future of the industry, the backlash has come from many gaming groups that oppose this trend. This opposition came from within the gaming industry, and in July 2021, the IGDA issued a statement calling for action. The organization stated:
If a database table that is simpler, cheaper and offers the same information and benefits as NFTs can be created and managed, you should not use them.
According to the same statement, proof-of work (PoW), and proof-of-stake networks are recommended by the company. They offer energy efficiency. Other industry experts believe that the reason gamers reject these ideas is because they are not aware of the potential benefits. Nicolas Pouard is responsible for blockchain development at Ubisoft.
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