Ubisoft: CEO tells developers that with NFTs we are only at the beginning
Ubisoft
Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot held a video Q&A session to reassure his company's developers about the NFTs just introduced with Quartz in Ghost Recon Breakpoint in the form of exclusive skins (mostly serial numbers). According to him, we are only at the beginning and he then compared certain reactions to those he had against microtransactions and prize funds.According to some of those who saw the session, Guillemot's answers were far too vague and full of words such as "metaverse" and "web 3.0", but lacking any concreteness. The meeting with Guillemot was not initially planned, but it became necessary after reactions to Quartz's announcement, which worried more than some as they were for the most part very negative.
Indeed, why worry about the implementation in the world of video games of systems that are getting noticed above all for the wild financial speculation, for the devastating environmental impact and for the scams to the users?
It was the developers of Breakpoint who were particularly vocal against Ubisoft's decision, who saw all the efforts made to rehabilitate the game destroyed in one go, after the disastrous launch of 2019. Di in fact there was a huge resurgence of player hatred, which shocked the team.
Guillemot stated that the reactions to Quartz had been budgeted, like those he had for DLCs, microtransactions and reward boxes. Like these systems, some of which are actually still much discussed, NFTs will be accepted over time. In fact, comparing NFTs to cash prizes and microtransactions, often considered a disguised form of gambling, does not really support this new technology.
After all, when the developers pressed Guillemot asking him what new forms of gameplay will be introduced thanks to the NFTs, the boss was unable to answer, and then started talking about how new concepts such as that of the metaverse will allow players to build and sell virtual houses and have more agency in the process of creating the games themselves. In short, workers.
Guillemot's most cited game during the session was Roblox, although he couldn't explain how Quartz approaches the Roblox Corporation platform. Some have also expressed concern that the model followed is that of a game accused of exploiting child labor. Other developers have worried that the introduction of a new form of microtransactions will take away other resources from game development, already plagued by having to integrate other forms of monetization.
A developer told Kotaku: “I want to make games that are fun and entertaining and I don't see how this stuff goes that way. It's just another way to milk the cow and make money.” In fact, now i video games seem to have become secondary in video games.
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Ubisoft promises early 2022 update on delayed ‘The Settlers’ game
Despite being announced by Ubisoft in 2018, little has been said since about a new entry in The Settlers series. However, in a recent tweet the developer revealed more information is coming in January 2022.
Two days ago (December 16), Ubisoft finally tweeted that it would announce more information about its real-time strategy, city building title early next year. The tweet also included a link to The Settlers website, which while currently very sparse invites potential players to register via Ubisoft Connect PC or Epic Games Store for the chance to play early.
The Settlers franchise is one of Ubisoft’s oldest and longest running series. Originally released in 1993, Ubisoft Dusseldorf announced its intentions to release a new game at Gamescom 2018, showing an announcement trailer which was well received by fans. The game was originally predicted to release around autumn 2019.
Players have had to wait a few years longer than originally expected, with no news coming out for the game over the last two years. With this announcement promising new information and the chance to play the game, it seems that a full release should be expected next year.
There are concerns however, as Ubisoft has recently announced Ubisoft Quartz, a programme to introduce NFTs and blockchains into its games. In a surprise meeting this week, Yves Guillemot, Ubisoft’s CEO announced that he supports the decision to include NFTs in its games. He went on to say that there will be “much more” blockchain integration in the future, including players “taking agency in game creation” and the ability to “build and sell virtual houses”.
While NFTs have not been confirmed for The Settlers, the information released during this meeting makes it seem likely that this will be a part of January’s announcement.
In other news, Activision Blizzard has released its representation data for 2021, reporting that less than a quarter of employees are women, and just 15 percent of executives come from minority ethnic backgrounds.
