Japanese Game Developers Taking Notice of NFTs

It is highly likely that you have come across the term ‘NFT’, especially these past few months. However, many lack general understanding regarding it and its effects on the economic sphere and other aspects of the world as a whole. You are not to blame for this as it can be quite vexing seeing as how suddenly it has taken the world by storm. For a simplistic breakdown, you can always refer to this if you find yourself lost among the sea of information as you surf the internet for a meaningful explanation.

The games industry, with its wide appeal, is no exception to the influence of NFTs. Many devs have shown interest in it and have either announced plans for either looking into it or to implement it into their future games. These include Riot Games, and with overwhelmingly negative reception, Ubisoft. The audience’s reaction has been mixed, with some fans finding unique ways to ridicule the very concept.

Recently, Famitsu conducted interviews with over 122 influential people of the Japanese games industry and asked them about their aspirations and whatever they were looking forward to, and some named NFTs as something that has piqued their interest and what they are looking forward to in 2022. Among them is Mr. Yosuke Saito, Director / Executive Officer at Square Enix, whose credits include the NieR series. When asked what to look out for in 2022, he said, “I’m curious about NFT-related content and games. I think that new play is from new technology, so now I want to do something with NFT. However, there are still many unpublished ones, so I wonder if it will be after that …”

Other influential devs had this to say regarding NFTs:

1. Mr. Yoshinori Kitase (director of many fan favorites such as Final Fantasy VI, VII, VIII, X, and Chrono Trigger): “It will be interesting to see how new technologies such as NFT and Metaverse will be involved in the game world!”

2. Mr. Noriyoshi Fujimoto (chief producer/director of the “Dragon Quest” series): “NFT digital assets. There are many issues such as legislation, and I think there are still many groping trials this year (2022), but it seems that interesting game ideas will be born. It seems that new values ​​will be born in the world in three or four years.”

3. Mr. Hiroyuki Sakamoto (Chief producer of the “Ryu ga Gotoku” series): “I think the verification phase will continue, but we are paying attention to things that may affect future lifestyles, such as blockchain, NFT, and Metaverse.”

4. Mr. Taku Yamamoto (Producer from Konami): “We are paying attention to whether new chemical reactions can occur with Murder mystery, board games, game distribution, NFT, etc., which are all the rage in China. In the work, I am looking forward to the progress of the ” Mountain of Madness ” animation project launched by Mr. Mottled Cow based on TRPG.“