What Are NFTs in the Gaming World?
Over the past two years, NFTs or Non-Fungible Tokens have seemingly taken over the world. We’ve seen the crypto staple burst into popular culture, from music artists to popular brands integrating NFTs in their platforms in one way or another.
One industry that has definitely jumped on the NFT bandwagon is gaming. If you’re an avid gamer yourself, chances are you’ve heard of blockchain games and NFTs in games, especially as of late. But how exactly are NFTs being integrated into today’s games? How are they being used? Do they improve the gaming experience? Are they just fancy ways to get you into crypto?
In this article, we’ll discuss how game companies have used NFTs in their games and how they play into the gaming experience as a whole.
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Before we begin, we gotta understand first what NFTs actually are. In simple terms, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are digital assets that exist on the blockchain and represent digital ownership of a particular thing.
In theory, anything digital can be an NFT, but the key here is that the digital ownership of the original thing cannot be reproduced or replicated because it has properties that are unique to it (hence the term non-fungible).
Now, let’s start our discussions on how NFTs are used in games.
- In-game characters, monsters, and pets as NFTs
This is perhaps one of the most popular ways that NFTs are used in games: making them as playable characters in the game. If you’ve ever heard of Axie Infinity, this game’s main gameplay mechanic is the collection of monsters called “Axies” which are actually unique NFTs that can be sold, traded, or collected.
- In-game currency, coins, gold, tokens as NFTs
Another implementation of NFTs in games is using them to represent an in-game currency. This is especially applicable to role-playing games, where things like in-game currency (such as gold) are actually NFTs that could be traded and sold, making the whole gaming marketplace more robust than ever.
- In-game items and collectibles as NFTs
NFTs have also been integrated as in-game items and collectibles. With NFTs providing gamers real ownership of the item associated with it, this allows in-game items to hold more value as they are, in theory, distinct and unique items that cannot be replicated or copied.
This means that if you want a particular sword NFT, for example, you would have to buy it or trade for it to get that specific item, making the chase for the item all the more enticing.
- Properties, land, and locations as NFTs
NFTs can also be used to represent properties, plots of land, or locations in a game. This can apply to games where mechanics such as farming or cultivating a base or a city are at play. With NFT integration, the process of selling, trading, collecting, and buying these in-game lands becomes all the more realistic!
- In-game trading cards, card packs as NFTs
Last, but not least, game developers can establish trading cards or collectible card packs in their games as NFTs. With many popular digital card games out there, this is a no-brainer since special cards can now be “owned” as NFTs, allowing gamers to do with them what they see fit. This adds another dimension to how digital card games and the digital card marketplace work altogether!
And there we have it, some of the most popular ways NFTs are used in gaming today. Suffice it to say, NFTs presents a huge opportunity for innovation in the gaming industry as they give a whole new flavor to how games can be played. Expect NFTs to become more and more present in future games as crypto technology continues to evolve!
