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Heavy Hitter Joining The NFT Gaming Industry

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When will cryptocurrency start to penetrate the mainstream?

This is a question that is on everyone's mind. Those who regularly read what is written here know my view that gaming holds the greatest potential for leading the masses to adoption. According to some studies, there are over 2 billion gamers around the world. This means we are dealing with a rather large part of the population. At the same time, many of them are technologically advanced. Here we see a group that might have an easier time transitioning. Finally, they are already, to some degree, accustomed to digital assets. Presently, their games offer assets for purchase (or accumulation) that have value. The only challenge is the value is relegated to that game only.

Non-fungible tokens offer a completely different scenario. All that was mentioned above is the same except for the last part. Blockchain based assets do not lose their value once the game is exited. Instead, their value is retain because the asset itself is actually owned by the individual. There is a platform outside the game that stores the tokens, thus providing the potential value. Through markets, these assets can be traded, bought, or sold.

Since it is such a great alignment, why is it taking so long for things to start moving in this direction? I believe part of the explanation lies in the fact that the big players in the industry already have a business model that works. They are making a lot of money by keeping the status quo. While they are most likely aware of what is taking place with cryptocurrency, at this point is it not take seriously within the industry.

This is very common. It is important to remember that major disruption within particular industries rarely comes from within. Often, it is someone from the outside who makes a move that causes a paradigm shift within that industry. Something it results in a completely new industry, with the previous falling away. A prime example is how streaming replaced the video cassette rental market.

If we are not going to see the changes come from within the gaming industry, how will it occur? Obviously, the thousands of different games being produced by independent programmers will likely help to start the ball rolling. This will open some people's eyes up to the possibilities. However, that is a far cry from mass adoption.

Thus, we could see the change come from the heavy hitters. In this, I am not referring to the big companies as much as individuals. We might have seen one such move already.

8Hours Foundation just appointed Michael Katz to its advisory board. Most of us are not familiar with him so here is a bit of his background.

Katz has a long 25-year tenure within the video game entertainment sector, including top roles in major gaming companies. He was the former president of Atari Video Game Division, president of SEGA in the U.S., and Mattel’s marketing director.

That is considered a heavy hitter. He held top positions with some of the biggest players in the gaming industry. Obviously, this is experience that is going to be drawn upon to help transition into NFT-based gaming.

Here is what one member of the foundation said about Katz.

“His [Michael Katz] industry weight is unmatched, having been part of some of the most successful novel product launches in gaming history. With extensive experience working at the head of Atari, SEGA and Mattel, we are confident Michael's advisory will prove indispensable for our future success, having already led major gaming companies to new heights and product areas.”

Situations like this see a lot of hot air being passed around. Foundations like to have big names tied to them because it helps their fund raising efforts. Often, joining a board means little to the individual other than providing a name for the organization to leverage.

That said, this could be different. 8Hours Foundation does have a platform that is being built upon.

VIMWorld is a non-fungible token ecosystem that provides a system of authentication that allows owners to store and build value through different connections among gaming entrepreneurs.

https://cointelegraph.com/news/former-sega-atari-executive-joins-the-nft-gaming-boom

Here is where we can see the bridge between the present system and what is being created starting to emerge. Having those who know the present system starting to be attracted to blockchain gaming is the onset of the process. Bringing that expertise of how the existing companies operate is invaluable. It also provides an opening for the new system to leverage.

These guys know the big players weaknesses. All companies, through their system, have areas where they are vulnerable. Across an industry, since things tend to copy each other, we see blindspots that can be exploited. This is what a guy like Katz can bring to the table.

All of this signals a shift. Industry experts tend to not leave for new projects until there is a degree of certainty tied to them. In this, I am not so much referring to the start up, which always carries a risk of failure. What I mean is more the overall picture. If there is not an optimistic outlook, people at that level tend not to make the move.

In my mind, this adds a bit more legitimacy to the entire concept of NFT-based gaming. While it is slow to take off, having someone with Katz' background helps the sector in general. Eventually, this holds the promise of filtering all the way down to the independent game developers.

Having contacts is sometimes the greatest asset someone can bring to the table. Getting the publicity can often be the difference between success and failure. Top industry players tend to be able to generate the publicity because of their years of contact building.

Here again, this move alone is not the holy grail of cryptocurrency. It is, however, another brick in the foundation that is being laid. To me, there seems to be more of them being put down a weekly basis as this industry grows and expands.

Gaming remains, in my mind, one of the more viable pathways to mass adoption. Creating the platforms where NFTs are accessible to the majority of the players will mean a quicker transition from the old model towards the new.

Obviously, a few of the heavy hitters from the gaming industry see that same potential.


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