Despite being ‘banned’ by Steams for NFT and crypto games, some Blockchain MMO titles are still available

Back in October 2021, Valve announced that they would be banning games with NFTs and Cryptocurrencies from their Steam platform. Shortly after the announcement, several games were withdrawn from the store, which had previously been listed or sold on Steam, citing “At the request of the publisher, (the game) is no longer available for sale.” on Steam.” However, even though some blockchain-based games have been removed, some remain, and it begs the question, why?

Blockchain gaming, an area that was once thought to primarily revolve around crypto investors, has slowly taken over over the past year. Whether you like the idea, hate the idea, or don’t know what to think, it’s clear that the industry is divided on what to do with technology and trends in general. Valve decided to ban NFT games from their Steam platform last year, which resulted in the removal of several games like Age of Rust and Six Dragons.

We chose to answer first about blockchain & NFT games. As a result, we ended up losing the battle with Steam. While I am disappointed that Age of Rust is removed, the problem is the fact that entire Blockchain games will be removed. This is the setback for all. 2/4

– Age of Rust (@AgeofRust) October 14, 2021

Many believe that Steams siding with the removal of blockchain games is either a rebuke to the technology or possibly an issue around the legal implications of implementing blockchain games, especially in this era. at which point governments have yet to decide whether they intend to monetary regulation, combine them, or ban them right. However, when you take a little closer look, you’ll see that Steam doesn’t ban every blockchain game outright, with some games still listed as free to play, along with a host of other games that are listed as free to play. listed are the upcoming Early Access titles.

An example of this is MIR4. WEMADE’s cross-platform MMORPG releasing back in August 2021. According to Steam’s Referral policy updated, games that do not comply with the distribution rules and guidelines, will not be published on the platform. One such rule specifically states:

“Applications built on blockchain technology issue or enable cryptocurrency exchanges or NFTs.”

– Policy on introduction of valves, steam

MIR4 of this category in a number of different ways. Players can earn Darksteel and melt it into a currency called Draco, which can be sold to Wemix Credits, which can eventually be sold at a cryptocurrency exchange. Players can also mint characters as NFTs and sell them to other players. The process is also not hidden correctly. Actually, when installing MIR4 on Steam, the EULA has made it clear that you accept their use of content based on blockchain technology, including the use of digital assets such as NFT.

“Our services include blockchain-based content.

We provide content based on blockchain technology in conjunction with services from third party companies.

To use blockchain-based content, users must agree to the terms and conditions of the third-party company and complete a membership registration to use such content.”

–4 . MIR EULA, VII. Blockchain-based content

MIR4 Not the only blockchain game on the platform that seems to get a ticket. CSC, Stands for Commander of the crypto space, is a game by Lucid Sight Inc. use blockchain. Similar to MIR4, CSC don’t be afraid to list their blockchain-based provenance.

“CSC is an open-space, sandbox-style MMO with a player-owned economy. Command spaceships and earn digital items to buy, sell, or trade unlimitedly both inside and outside the game universe. Experience a free-market Play-to-Own Economy that offers true ownership and freedom.”

-CSC, Steam Page

Undoubtedly, these are not the only games that seem to receive the pass, and one tends to wonder if the free-to-play nature of these games is somehow creating a prefer to look the other way. Several upcoming games have also been listed as Early Access titles on the platform. Games such as Untamed Isles are listed as early access games, and the team at Phat Loot Studios even offered a Test Key on Steam in their final update in 2021. The turn-based MMO is out. eye Successful Kickstarter back in August 2021, where they describe the main focus of development as “Cryptocurrency First, Second Game”.

“Untamed Island focuses on policy game first, cryptocurrency second and does not require users to play blockchain integration. However, most items and all monsters in Untamed Island are tokenizable and can be sold, bought, and traded on the website marketplace in addition to our in-game auction house, allowing Players earn as they play!”

-Untamed Isles, Kickstarter

Whether The island has not been cooked will actually release on Steam, yet to be seen, but release steam lock is a good indicator that it’s more likely that players with a Steam key can continue to update and access games on the platform during their ongoing beta.

One argument could be made that Valve doesn’t know that these games are using blockchain, although it’s not particularly difficult to figure that out. Commander of the crypto space for example, could have changed their name to an acronym, but their description of the game pretty much. Meanwhile, even though Steams “doesn’t want” to accept blockchain games, other prolific game stores like Google Play have dozens, if not hundreds, of blockchain games listed, while the Epic Games Store has stated that they are open to blockchain games listed, as long as they follow relevant laws, disclose their terms, and are age-rated by rating teams.

The Epic Games Store will welcome games that use blockchain technology as long as they follow the relevant laws, disclose their terms, and are age-classified by an appropriate team. While Epic does not use cryptocurrencies in our games, we welcome innovation in the areas of technology and finance. https://t.co/6W7hb8zJBw

– Tim Sweeney (@TimSweeneyEpic) October 15, 2021

After months of nurturing these “scam” free blockchain games on Steam, can Valve reverse course? Maybe not anytime soon, but that doesn’t seem to mean you won’t find blockchain games listed on the platform.

We contacted Valve and Lucid Sight Inc. via email for comments.