SEGA Confirms The Future Of Sonic Is In NFTs
Sonic has practically been reinvented in the last few years.
He had become a symbol of failure, with each of his games over the last couple of decades failing to breach the "passable" grade, from the disaster of '06 to the stumbles of Unleashed and Forces.
The series has suffered - but the movies have helped to bring Sonic back to his roots as a sweetheart who serves as a lovely reminder of what he truly means. And now, with Frontiers on the way, there's every chance that the games could follow suit and surprise fans and naysayers alike.
But, that's not all that SEGA has in store for Sonic - and it doesn't all look good.
SEGA Won't Rule Out Sonic NFTs
Click to enlargeNot even the fastest hedgehog in the world can outrun companies trying to capitalise on the naivety of crypto-bros.
Despite promises that they wouldn't engage with NFTs if players thought they'd be a symbol of greediness (newsflash - they do), SEGA has hinted more at plans to get involved with NFTs as part of their "SuperGame" initiative.
Hinting in an interview that many AAA games will crossover with the SuperGame plans, SEGA producer Masayoshi Kikuchi has suggested that NFTs will be a part of it.
"Gaming has a history of expansion through the connection of various cultures and technologies," he said. "For example, social networking and game video viewing are recent examples. It is a natural extension for the future of gaming that it will expand to involve new areas such as cloud games and NFTs. We are also developing SuperGame from the perspective of how far different games can be connected to each other."
Can SEGA NFTs Work?
Click to enlargeIt's tough to say if NFTs will actually work in SEGA's plans, as their application is still under wraps - but we only have to look as far as Ubisoft Quartz to see that plans to integrate NFTs can be hugely detrimental to gaming companies.
The plans (whatever shape they take) are widely seen as a big scheme to make money, and those outside the strange crypto-bubble aren't quite as receptive to the idea as companies would hope - and as interest in them continues to tank, it's hard to see them working at all.
Of course, it all remains to be seen - but SEGA might be on for a loss here. Players don't take lightly attempts to milk more money out of players, and we doubt that Sonic fans will be much more forgiving.
