Sega COO backs away from blockchain
(2023/07/11)
- Reference: 1689053232
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2023/07/11/sega_blockchain_web3/
- Source link:
Sega's co-COO Shuji Utsumi has said the Japanese gaming giant still hasn't figured out what blockchain is good for, and may not make it part of a flagship "supergame" slated for a 2026 release.
Speaking to Bloomberg at a games conference, Utsumi said Sega is not "denying the potential" of blockchain but, he added, "We are trying to figure out what is the best way to entertain the audience. [We are] evaluating, searching, learning."
Sega is still pondering blockchain because, in part, some gamers have expressed a dislike for "play to earn" features that see players given in-game incentives to earn non-fungible tokens.
[1]
"We are very careful because we understand that especially Western gamers are not big fans of our Web3 initiative," Utsumi explained in [2]this video interview .
[3]
[4]
The COO also said Sega is yet to decide if a forthcoming "supergame" – expected to feature multiple Sega characters, and which Sega expects will revive its fortunes – will employ blockchain or related Web3 technologies.
[5]OpenAI challenges you to beat 1990s classic Sonic the Hedgehog using machine learning
[6]The law of run Nintendo consequences: Sega brings out mini Mega Drive / Genesis
[7]The PainStation runs Windows XP because of course it does
[8]After Burner : Sega’s jet-fighting, puke-inducing arcade marvel
Utsumi's remarks appear to represent a reversal of the sentiment he expressed in 2022, when in an interview published on Sega's own site he [9]enthused that Sega "is currently focusing on new areas such as metaverse and Web3."
At the time he added news that "Sega has invested in several Web3 and metaverse startups as part of its open innovation efforts. Through these companies, we are accumulating various know-how, and we are researching every day what we can achieve by combining Web3 technology and Sega's resources, and what kind of business we can build."
It appears those efforts, like so many other attempts at putting blockchain and Web3 to work, have produced little.
[10]
Which is not great news for Sega. Analyst firm Gartner recently [11]rated gaming as the sole bright spot for metaverses.
NFT markets, meanwhile, display little of the buoyancy predicted when the tokenized assets burst onto the scene – along with predictions that digital collectibles would be enthusiastically adopted by many. Indeed, The Australian Financial Review this week [12]reported lenders to buyers of "Bored Ape" NFTS are asking some very unpleasant questions about repayments given the tumbling value of the digital art. ®
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[2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pag622ST-mA
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44ZK0oRNjH2hWds0bXTWfj1AAAAY0&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
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[5] https://www.theregister.com/2018/04/05/openai_challenge_developers_to_play_sonic_the_hedgehog_with_ai/
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2018/04/16/sega_to_bring_back_1988/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2022/06/14/computerspielemuseum/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2015/10/15/antique_code_show_after_burner_retro_gaming/
[9] https://www.sega.co.jp/recruit/episode/episode07/
[10] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44ZK0oRNjH2hWds0bXTWfj1AAAAY0&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2023/06/28/metaverse_adoption_slow_gartner/
[12] https://www.afr.com/technology/bored-ape-owners-sent-broke-after-nft-price-collapse-20230706-p5dm7ce
[13] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Speaking to Bloomberg at a games conference, Utsumi said Sega is not "denying the potential" of blockchain but, he added, "We are trying to figure out what is the best way to entertain the audience. [We are] evaluating, searching, learning."
Sega is still pondering blockchain because, in part, some gamers have expressed a dislike for "play to earn" features that see players given in-game incentives to earn non-fungible tokens.
[1]
"We are very careful because we understand that especially Western gamers are not big fans of our Web3 initiative," Utsumi explained in [2]this video interview .
[3]
[4]
The COO also said Sega is yet to decide if a forthcoming "supergame" – expected to feature multiple Sega characters, and which Sega expects will revive its fortunes – will employ blockchain or related Web3 technologies.
[5]OpenAI challenges you to beat 1990s classic Sonic the Hedgehog using machine learning
[6]The law of run Nintendo consequences: Sega brings out mini Mega Drive / Genesis
[7]The PainStation runs Windows XP because of course it does
[8]After Burner : Sega’s jet-fighting, puke-inducing arcade marvel
Utsumi's remarks appear to represent a reversal of the sentiment he expressed in 2022, when in an interview published on Sega's own site he [9]enthused that Sega "is currently focusing on new areas such as metaverse and Web3."
At the time he added news that "Sega has invested in several Web3 and metaverse startups as part of its open innovation efforts. Through these companies, we are accumulating various know-how, and we are researching every day what we can achieve by combining Web3 technology and Sega's resources, and what kind of business we can build."
It appears those efforts, like so many other attempts at putting blockchain and Web3 to work, have produced little.
[10]
Which is not great news for Sega. Analyst firm Gartner recently [11]rated gaming as the sole bright spot for metaverses.
NFT markets, meanwhile, display little of the buoyancy predicted when the tokenized assets burst onto the scene – along with predictions that digital collectibles would be enthusiastically adopted by many. Indeed, The Australian Financial Review this week [12]reported lenders to buyers of "Bored Ape" NFTS are asking some very unpleasant questions about repayments given the tumbling value of the digital art. ®
Get our [13]Tech Resources
[1] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2ZK0oRNjH2hWds0bXTWfj1AAAAY0&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pag622ST-mA
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44ZK0oRNjH2hWds0bXTWfj1AAAAY0&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33ZK0oRNjH2hWds0bXTWfj1AAAAY0&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://www.theregister.com/2018/04/05/openai_challenge_developers_to_play_sonic_the_hedgehog_with_ai/
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2018/04/16/sega_to_bring_back_1988/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2022/06/14/computerspielemuseum/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2015/10/15/antique_code_show_after_burner_retro_gaming/
[9] https://www.sega.co.jp/recruit/episode/episode07/
[10] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/front&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44ZK0oRNjH2hWds0bXTWfj1AAAAY0&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2023/06/28/metaverse_adoption_slow_gartner/
[12] https://www.afr.com/technology/bored-ape-owners-sent-broke-after-nft-price-collapse-20230706-p5dm7ce
[13] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Re: Entertainment
Ian Johnston
Oh, I don't know. Molly White's [1]web site provides me with hours of amusement.
[1] https://web3isgoinggreat.com/
It's very strange...
Neil Barnes
Instead of looking at a technology and asking whether its use might bring value to your product, everyone seems to be saying 'ooh, shiny, we must include it even if it provides no function, because, ooh, shiny'.
Not just blockchain but so many other technologies.
Re: It's very strange...
JimmyPage
Is it ?
Just read up on how electricity became the fad for everything in the 18th and 19th centuries. You name it, there was an "electrickal" machine or solution for it.
Re: It's very strange...
Korev
Just read up on how electricity became the fad for everything in the 18th and 19th centuries.
How about a more current example?
Re: It's very strange...
Dan 55
All Sega have done is look at Square Enix who followed the NFT hype and got burnt by it, now Sega are trying to find a way of changing their mind and saving face.
"the Japanese gaming giant still hasn't figured out what blockchain is good for"
Pascal Monett
Oh come now, we know what it's good for : for separating a fool and his money.
Entertainment
""We are trying to figure out what is the best way to entertain the audience."
I know that there a pockets of particular nerdiness in the gaming community, but I'd be very wary of someone who could be entertained by blockchain.