In a new interview with Bloomberg, Sega Co-Chief Operating Officer Shuji Utsumi said the company will abandon its plans to develop blockchain games for the time being. His GDC survey earlier this year found that only 23% of game developers are interested in using cryptocurrencies or blockchain technology in their games.
Sega will not make blockchain games, but will license NFTs for some characters.
talk to bloomberg newsUtsumi said, “Play-to-earn game action is boring. What’s the point if the game isn’t fun?” He said he was re-evaluating the use of to-earn game mechanics. While staying away from using blockchain in its top-tier franchises, Sega will allow some characters to be used as NFTs, including characters from Virtua Fighter and Romance of the Three Kingdoms. The company will also offer “smaller franchises” for use in multiple blockchain games that have yet to be announced.
Sega will no longer incorporate blockchain into its most high-profile games, but Utsumi told Bloomberg last month that Sega was not interested in any acquisition talks, although he does intend to pursue the technology in the future. The possibility of reconsideration was not ruled out. He also declined to comment on whether blockchain technology will be used in Sega’s enigmatic big-budget “supergame” slated for release in 2026. Despite being optimistic about the use of blockchain and other Web3 technologies at Sega, Utsumi told Bloomberg that the company is. Now, “at the end of the day, we’re trying to figure out whether this technology is really going to take off in this industry.”
Despite Sega’s hesitations about the technology, other game companies may go all out for Web3 functionality. It was recently revealed that Sony had patented a system for transferring and trading PlayStation NFTs, showing that console makers are open to the technology even if developers aren’t. The use of blockchain and other Web3 technologies in games has become a thorny issue for many players in recent years, leading to significant backlash, but developers and publishers believe there are potential benefits to its use. As long as it exists, it doesn’t seem to disappear anytime soon.
