As 2022 begins one of gaming’s biggest topics will be the utilization of NFTs (non-fungible tokens) in games. It is a source of controversy as well as people argue its place in the gaming space and the effect it has on the planet’s climate. NeverthelessSTALKER 2: Heart of Chernobylplans to make use of the technology for its proposed Metaverse component turning players into “Metahumans.” This will makeSTALKER 2one of the first AAA games in the industry to make use of NFTs.
The developer ofSTALKER 2, GSC Game World, has announced that the title will be using blockchain technology to allow the community to own a piece of the game. This will include the ability for gamers to become the “first-ever metahuman,” taking the form of an NPC rendered in extraordinarily high detail. How GSC Game World is achieving this however is through partnering with the NFT platform DMarket and notthrough Epic Games' MetaHuman Creatoras previously assumed.
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Players will have the opportunity to bid for an NFT offering that will act as a prize for an auction that will take place in January 2022. After the auction, whoever “owns” the NFT will be able to sell it to whomever they choose before its claim date and before the NPC creation begins. The player that ends up with the NFT will have to report toGSC Game World’s office to undergo a “detailed scanning procedure"in order for that person’s likeness to end up on an NPC inSTALKER 2.
GSC Game World has also confirmed that the use of NFT’s will continue throughout the lifespan ofSTALKER 2: Heart of Chernobyl. The company is remaining tight-lipped on just what those implementations are but assured that theNFTs will not in any way impact gameplayitself nor give players any kind of in-game advantages over other players.
There has been much hesitation regarding the use of NFT’s, especially for the environment, as planet-heating carbon dioxide emissions are generated by the cryptocurrencies used to purchase and sell them. Ubisoft just recently received blow-back on its news that the company would bebringing NFT gear toGhost Recon: Breakpoint, while internally Ubisoft developers argue the merits of non-fungible tokens as well. Even Peter Molyneux, ofBlack and WhiteandFablefame, is getting in on the NFT action as he is creating a business simulator where players buy NFTs and then earn a digital currency titled LegacyCoin. Currently, it’s hard to say how successful the NFT business will be in the gaming world, but for now, it appears that the trend is here to stay.
STALKER 2: Heart of Chernobylreleases on April 28 for PC and Xbox Series X/S.
