Reception for blockchain and NFT games have been a mixed bag as far as mainstream gaming is concerned. Though there has been a lot of interest in it as of late, many gamers feel NFTs are a scam while others compare it to microtransactions which has always gotten a bad reputation. Gaming company Activision-Blizzard, who’s already not in the gaming public’s good graces, was quick to disassociate with the polarizing technology.
Recently, rumors have sparked that Blizzard is also planning to introduce NFTs into their games and it has caused a lot of talk lately. However, Blizzard President Mike Ybarra has come forward, replying to a tweet saying, “No one is doing NFTs.”
No one is doing NFTs.
— Mike Ybarra (@Qwik) April 17, 2022
The rumors and speculation was sparked when it was reported by Video Games Chronicle that several gamers were asked on a YouGov survey about their interest in NFTs if they were introduced by Activision Blizzard along with other gaming features such as VR and subscription services. When the story came out, Ybarra was quick to respond and get in front of the rumors.
The survey which was published back in January showed that 70% of respondents were not interested in NFTs while only 21% expressed any interest and 7% says they were very interested. This only shows the strong dislike for NFTs and that it’s still a long road before NFTs become accepted as legit in the mainstream gaming community.
Activision Blizzard is the home of many big games such as Overwatch, Starcraft and the wildly popular MMORPG World of Warcraft. But it has been in the receiving end of bad news lately due to allegations of sexual misconduct, poor worker welfare and overall mismanagement which has tarnished the company’s reputation and have caused many gamers to steer clear of the games.
Blizzard is not the first studio that has their name involved with NFTs. Big studios such Ubisoft and Square Enix have expressed incorporating NFTs but it has been met with harsh criticism. In fact, a popular game Storybrook Brawl was suddenly review bombed when the company that acquired their game studio announced the inclusion of NFTs in the future.
Sega has also expressed some interest in NFTs with their upcoming Super Game project as they see it as a way for players to connect their games together. However, they have been keeping silent about specific plans as there is already growing feedback against their inclusion of NFTs.
At this time, Blizzard cannot afford any more bad press, in wake of the very public exposure of their questionable workplace practices that often lead to sexual harassment and toxicity. They are also on the verge of announcing the next installment to the World of Warcraft franchise. It makes sense for them to at least get ahead of this now.
Earlier in the year, Jorge Murillo, Senior Designer for the Overwatch team at Blizzard stated in a tweet that they were “strongly against NFTs and will fight to make sure they aren’t integrated into our game.”