Ubisoft Boss Says Gamers Don’t Like NFTs Because “They Don’t Get It”

In recent months, Ubisoft has become one of the first major video game publishers that is looking to implement NFTs )non-fungible tokens) in its various titles. The company took these first steps as part of a new beta program that it is calling Ubisoft Quartz, which looks to give players “more autonomy and agency when interacting with the in-game items that help you craft your own story.” And despite the fact that many Ubisoft fans have been greatly opposed to this implementation of NFTs, one of the bosses at the company has now claimed that this pushback is purely because people just don’t understand it. 

In a new interview with Finder, the VP of Ubisoft’s Strategic Innovations Lab, Nicolas Pouard, talked more about the company’s focus on NFTs. Specifically, Pouard was asked why he thought that NFT implementation in video games has been met with so much blowback. In a general sense, Pouard chalked this negative reaction up to the notion that people just don’t understand how NFTs could be a good thing. 

“I think gamers don’t get what a digital secondary market can bring to them. For now, because of the current situation and context of NFTs, gamers really believe it’s first destroying the planet, and second just a tool for speculation,” Pouard said. “But what we [at Ubisoft] are seeing first is the end game. The end game is about giving players the opportunity to resell their items once they’re finished with them or they’re finished playing the game itself So, it’s really, for them. It’s really beneficial. But they don’t get it for now.”

Speaking more to the reaction to Quartz in a general sense, Pouard said that he wasn’t shocked to see the negative reaction from many video game fans at first. However, he thinks that Quartz will only grow over time, which will lead to people learning more about its positive qualities. . “Well, it was a reaction we were expecting. We know it’s not an easy concept to grasp. But Quartz is really just a first step that should lead to something bigger. Something that will be more easily understood by our players,” he said. “We will keep releasing features and services around this first initiative. And our belief is that, piece by piece, the puzzle will be revealed and understood by our players. We hope they will better understand the value we offer them.”

It remains to be seen if these initiatives from Ubisoft when it comes to NFTs will end up being received more positively in the long run. Given how staunchly many have been opposed to Quartz out of the gate, though, it doesn’t seem like the public perception is going to change at any time in the near future, meaning that Ubisoft has quite a bit of work ahead of itself. 

What do you think about these new quotes from Ubisoft when it comes to NFTs? And do you even want to see NFTs implemented in video games at all? Let me know your own thoughts on this matter either down in the comments or on Twitter at @MooreMan12.