[Image source: The game S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 Heart of Chernobyl]
Recently, a production team that wants to pull the "meta-universe" into the game has admitted.
On December 15, developer GSC Game World (hereinafter referred to as GSC) announced on Twitter that their new work "S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 Heart of Chernobyl" scheduled for release in April 2021 will cooperate with the NFT platform DMarket to introduce NFTs into the game, mainly in the form of skins, stickers, etc.
In particular, players can buy the right to be "made into the game". Players who purchase this NFT can become "the first MetaHuman ever" and will be digitally twind into the game as NPCs, accompanying the player throughout the story. While this is not uncommon in game crowdfunding, GSC promises to make everything more realistic this time with high-precision digital modeling technology.
The idea of a "digital man" may seem exciting in the past, but despite repeated assurances that it will not lead to a decline in the experience of non-NFT gamers, the GSC's bold attempt has brought in a huge voice from the player community. A large number of players on Twitter claim that NFTs are a trap for capital to "cut leeks" and will no longer buy S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2 Heart of Chernobyl.
As an independent developer, such feedback clearly freaked GSC out. In the world of indie games, the reputation of players is the lifeblood of developers. Often without the ability to promote independently, indie game developers often rely on word of mouth in the player community, and the collapse of player reputation is likely to mean that the efforts accumulated by developers over the years are destroyed.
As a result, GSC urgently deleted the relevant Tweets two days after the announcement, and promised players that all NFT content in the game would be removed. Fortunately, because of their timely response and sincerity, players did not delve too deeply and said, "Now it's time to buy your game again."
This failed attempt by the NFT to enter the game was "short-lived". Although it happened overseas, it is also a lesson learned after all.
Companies that do metacosmation may shift their thinking: instead of "self-deprecating" in a beautiful picture, it is better to think about what users really want.
Although NFT games are popular in the market and "meta-universe speculation" is popular, it does not mean that all users, especially gamers, really buy the "meta-universe".
Wu Tong, a blockchain and digital economist and investor in the meta-universe, has observed that players in NFT games are not a group of other gamers: compared with the latter, which is more concerned about the quality of the game, the former is more concerned about how to use the game to "make money", and may not even care about the game itself.
Confusing these two completely different groups of people with the sale of games is obviously not helpful, while gamers' attitudes toward NFTs are mostly repulsive and resistant, and they are clearly not interested in being made "digital people".
Being able to gain insight into the likes and portraits of different groups of people is extremely important for game makers— and even for any manufacturer. A partner of a consulting agency in Beijing who pays attention to the meta-universe told Leifeng Network: "Many manufacturers who cannot do projects are not able to really pay attention to the needs of users, fail to successfully solve the problems of users, and are holding supply to find demand, without delivery thinking." ”
Is our understanding of the needs of the metacosm really completely free of water? If we could actually meet, would we really need to use virtual meetings? Do we really need a virtual identity that is completely anonymous and disconnected from reality (after all, we already have a precedent for the decline of QQ and the rise of WeChat)? Do we really need (or be able to) consume a lot of time in the XR world?
An industry insider who is a digital product manager at a real estate group provides Leifeng with a reference dimension for examining the project:
1. Is the market demand faced by the project real? Is this demand strong enough to support users' willingness to pay?
2. Can the market demand faced by the project be met?
3. To meet this demand, what kind of investment does the project need to carry out? What is the input-output ratio?
Although the concept of the metaverse is very beautiful, the actual landing needs solid business logic to support it. The tide will always recede, and respect for the market and demand will become an important foundation for the company.