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Valve, one of the world’s largest gaming platforms, has banned blockchain-based games from its platform. The digital video game publisher, distributor, and developer have, in essence, booted decentralized gaming alternatives from Steam, its game distribution service.
Valve has not explained its express crypto game ban on Steam. Their rules and guidelines documentation simply states that it would not allow blockchain-based apps, cryptocurrencies, and NFTs on its platform.
Blockchain developers such as SpacePirate, of the popular ‘Age of Rust’ have voiced their opinion on Valve’s action. SpacePirate says that Valve’s view is that blockchain games’ in-game assets have real-world value.
Steam does not want items that have real-world value on its platform. “While I respect their choice, I fundamentally believe that NFTs and blockchain games are the future. It’s why I started this journey with all of you, ” SpacePirate says.
Blockchain games are a game-changer
More NFT and blockchain game developers are speaking out on the Steam ban. An advocacy group comprising developers from Enjin, The Blockchain Game Alliance and Fight for the Future have written an open letter to Valve addressing Steam’s booting of crypto games off its platform.
“Games that use blockchain technology and web3 token-based technologies like DAOs and NFTs can positively enhance the user experience of games, and create new economic opportunities for users and creators,” they say.
Steam’s decision highlights the enormous challenges that acute centralization brings to the gaming environment. A video game’s success highly depends on a gamer’s hard work, time, and capital investment.
Unfortunately, gamers barely make a penny from the $203.12 billion revenue industry. On top of this, they have no say in its direction or governance structure. To this end, despite their critical value to the gaming ecosystem, they are highly exposed to the worst traits of the centralized gaming network.
The benefits of blockchain gaming
As an illustration, there are huge online commercial communities built around the trade of in-game assets such as New World game coins or Diablo 2. Most of their activities take place in gamer social media forums or e-commerce websites such as eBay.
Most gamers have fallen prey to fraud while purchasing or selling their items because there are no trade protections in place. Video game developers and their businesses ban the trade of in-game assets between players terming it as cheating.
They argue that gamers have to earn their special weapons, gear, or outfits by participating in in-game events and spending endless hours playing. The purchase of in-game assets is a betrayal to the gaming spirit, they say.
That said, this argument is flawed because it does not take into account player experience. As an illustration, to accumulate New World game coins, you have to spend hours completing town projects and quests. You can buy New World game coins at the game’s Trading Post but if you want a decent number of coins at a reasonable price, you need to trade in a secure third-party website such as Eldorado.gg.
Eldorado’s TradeShield tool protects all traders from scammers and attempted fraud. Eldorado will hold on to your New World game coin payments until you have your purchases in your account. The in-game assets market thrives because these assets have real-world value, represented by a gamer’s hard work in building their inventory and their cost.
Blockchain technology can turn these valuable items into in-game virtual assets, eliminating the friction that black market in-app purchases cause. Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) provide provenance of virtual goods, preventing fraud and theft.
Blockchain technology will build trust in transactions, creating open, transparent, and immutable transaction records. Cryptocurrencies, on the other hand, will support the secure transfer of value to these virtual markets. The technologies that Valve is trying to stifle are truly the future of gaming.
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