Cryptocurrency and NFTs seem to be getting a much different reception from the average consumer than the tech titans that helped launch the crazes. While entrepreneurs such as Elon Musk, Jack Dorsey and Chris Dixon have dropped millions-to-billions into various blockchain piggy banks, Ubisoft gamers, startups on Kickstarter and artists like Brian Eno are speaking out against everything from NFTs to digital coins. Gamers, in particular, have made their disapproval known, somewhat surprising given they’re typically first-movers, eager to try new technologies and push boundaries. Now, reports are emerging of a schism in the game world.

“Gamers are a notoriously skeptical crowd,” observes CNBC, detailing protests over Ubisoft’s debut of the Quartz platform to let players obtain in-game NFT items such as helmets, gunskins and leg armor.

While much of the opposition stems from the fact that blockchain technologies (including crypto and NFTs) are notorious energy hogs and viewed as on the wrong side of the global warming debate, in the case of Quartz there has also been “widespread anger from gamers, who slammed Quartz as a cash grab,” CNBC writes. Ubisoft doesn’t see it that way, pointing out that the NFTs are currently free.

Make Use Of describes the Ubisoft set-up: “Each NFT is unique, includes an identifying serial number, and maintains a record of previous owners. A certificate of ownership remains on a decentralized blockchain, ultimately removing a large amount of control over your items from Ubisoft itself. Digits won’t tie to specific accounts, and you’ll be able to sell your collectibles on third-party platforms.”

While there are plenty of blockchain enthusiasts touting the joy of NFTs, others remain unconvinced. In November, YouTube began hiding counts for thumbs-downs (an effort to avoid “dislike attacks” on creators, who can still access the counts in their dashboards), but Quartz critics found a work-around using a free GitHub download and proceeded to make Ubisoft’s Quartz trailer “overwhelmingly disliked, with only 1,600 likes and more than 40,000 dislikes,” CNBC reports.

NME writes that Kickstarter upon announcing its crypto plans began trending on Twitter, much of it backlash.

“The NFT movement has now become a key growth aspect of the broader social media space, and while there are many skeptics, and many questions about the long-term viability, and value, of these digital art works, the growth of NFTs is undeniable, with Twitter, Instagram and Facebook all exploring new ways to directly integrate NFT art and ownership into their apps,” writes Social Media Today.

“Globally, investment in blockchain startups in 2021 has shattered all previous records, topping $15 billion so far this year, a 384 percent increase from total investment in all of 2020,” according to The Wall Street Journal, sourcing CB Insights.

The rapid growth and dollar volume are enough to make some artists uncomfortable. “NFTs seem to me just a way for artists to get a little piece of the action from global capitalism, our own cute little version of financialization,” artist and music producer Brian Eno is quoted as saying on The Verge.

Related:
Ubisoft Has Barely Sold Any Ghost Recon NFTs, Engadget, 12/21/21
Social Media App Parler Plans to Expand into NFTs, Reuters, 12/20/21
Line Is Lining Up an NFT Service for Next Year, TechCrunch, 12/20/21
Will NFTs Transform the Art World? Are They Even Art?, The Washington Post, 12/18/21
Nike Buys into NFTs, Eyeing Real Money from Virtual Sneakers, The Wall Street Journal, 12/19/21
Adidas’ First NFT Drop Earns $23 Million, Engadget, 12/18/21