NFT and Metaverse Craze Sweeping G-Star as Well

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Nahum] At 'G-STAR 2021,' the largest domestic game exhibition returning offline after two years, the metaverse (extended virtual world), blockchain, and non-fungible token (NFT) craze emerged as the hottest topics.

According to the G-STAR organizing committee on the 19th, out of the total 35 sessions at the side event G-STAR Conference, 8 sessions were related to metaverse and blockchain topics. This clearly shows the current trend direction in the gaming industry.

At the G-STAR venue, visitors' enthusiastic interest in these topics was clearly confirmed. The first to raise these issues at this G-STAR was Wemade.

Wemade has been leading the domestic and international blockchain game market by issuing its own coin, 'Wemix,' and early on establishing an economic system that crosses between in-game and real-world environments. At the press conference held in the G-STAR press room the day before, a large number of reporters gathered for a briefing by Wemade CEO Jang Hyun-guk, reflecting the public's keen interest in blockchain.

CEO Jang stated, "In Korea, if game economies or assets come out of the game, they are defined as gambling. There is serious doubt whether this standard fits game play," arguing that a new definition is needed for gambling-related legal regulations. This was an indirect criticism of government regulations on NFT-applied games.

He added, "While Wemade is leading the paradigm shift toward P2E, Wemade did not create it alone, nor is it indispensable. The flow of games cannot be stopped by anyone or any company," he said.

As these keywords are spotlighted as new business models in the gaming industry, industry insiders expressed diverse opinions on their ripple effects. On the same day, many visitors flocked to the lecture hall inside the G-STAR venue. They came to listen to a lecture by Lee Ki-yong, CEO of Realcheck, one of the conference sessions. He gave a lecture titled ‘Application of Blockchain and NFT in Games,’ highlighting the negative aspects of NFTs.

CEO Lee said, "Currently, numerous NFT platforms are thriving, and game companies are developing their own platforms, but each platform differs in NFT issuance processes, rules, and underlying blockchain technologies. From the user's perspective, this inevitably causes confusion, and the burden increases as it becomes the user's responsibility to determine which NFT platform is the most stable and how to utilize it."

In the afternoon, a lecture titled ‘Games and Metaverse’ by Lee Seung-hee, Head of Korean Business at The Sandbox, attracted attention. Lee explained The Sandbox’s business based on metaverse and NFTs, forecasting, "The metaverse is one of the hot keywords in 2021, and the next-generation games incorporating the metaverse will be ‘NFT’ games, whose future will surpass imagination."

He said, "Sandbox places the highest importance on collaborating with various intellectual properties (IPs) and brands," adding, "Currently, about 165 IPs have joined the metaverse. Sandbox's goal is to create NFTs for people interested in IPs to show and spark curiosity."

Meanwhile, marking its 17th edition this year, G-STAR 2021 is being held until the 21st with participation from 672 companies and 1,393 booths across 40 countries.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.