Square Enix and Crypto

[Shironeko_Narunyan]

As long as they keep this out of FFXIV, I don't care what other games they poison with it, but if this pops up here, I'm gone. By the time they get to implementing this, other games I've been waiting for might near completion, and while I had intended to play them alongside XIV, I'll just leave.

If this is irrelevant for XIV, it doesn't matter to me at all.

[Riardon]

If they want to implement this scum shite into crappy cash milking mobile games I'm fine.
The moment they decide to taint XIV and XVI or any other mainline FF we are going to have a problem.
The ethical environmental issue is a huge one as we enter a new environmental conscious company policy.
SE is against the environment with this decision but this is to be expected from money grabbing CEO's without any moral compass.
After all these people caused the environmental crisis and the future collapse of the climate.
I hope the scummy money laundering tech that surrounds blockchain and crypto currency dies the sooner.

[Driavna]

If turn out to be profitable will stick around. If that happens eventually will be normalise and some will defend it. Already happened with other anti-consumer practices.

[NautiaHadas]

What I really want is for someone to tell me the difference between cryptocurrency and a Ponzi scheme.

[Thalesnm]

Another thing to keep in mind is that, in FFXIV's case, I feel like the mogstation items are already at a level which is barely acceptable. I don't know any FFXIV players that know about the mogstation itens and don't see something wrong there. Most players don't care, but they know what the problems are. So, any attempts at further monetizing the game must be done with the utmost care. At this point, a single mistake would be enough to completely break the consumer's trust.

And, like I said before, this is what the problem boils down to. This isn't actually about NFTs or the metaverse or terms such as "play to contribute". This is about failing to understanding the consumer. This letter shows that the current president of Square Enix doesn't understand or at very least pretends not to understand the consumer. That's why this letter did so much damage, even though there were no actual annoucements in it.

But there's still time to correct course. I hope the reaction here and in other places make them realize this.

[Morphiana]

I love FFXIV, have been playing since 1.0, and FFXI before that. However, like loot boxes NFTs are a hard line in the sand for me. I cannot get behind business practices like this and should SE opt to utilize NFTs I will quit XIV and not purchase another product from them as a company until the practice is ended, period.

There are some lines I just cannot support and I will vote with my wallet. It's a greedy practice and it must not be allowed to spread like the plague in video games.

Companies are getting bold with this stuff. Even cars creating more services you pay monthly for such as Toyota's remote start service. If we don't vote with our wallet it will not end with NFTs or loot boxes.

Gaming is a relaxing hobby that I acknowledge will have costs that come with it. NFTs would not be justifiable in my eyes though in a game or really, at all.

[DPZ2]

I love FFXIV, have been playing since 1.0, and FFXI before that. However, like loot boxes NFTs are a hard line in the sand for me. I cannot get behind business practices like this and should SE opt to utilize NFTs I will quit XIV and not purchase another product from them as a company until the practice is ended, period.

Too late. Time to cancel your subscription. They've been testing this for over a year, not with Final Fantasy XIV but with some of their mobile game properties.

[Caurcas]

Something something bad fur planet...something something final days...something something smoking monkey. Y'all are getting mad at rich people and faux rich people wasting their money on a stupid fad.

[Garruss]

The sooner nft's fade away the better

[Thalesnm]

One thing is for sure: NFTs, cryptocurrencies and the like are far from a consensus. Even if you somehow like these things, you have to admit that not everyone likes them, far from it. This is a fact.

So, introducing such things to a beloved game or franchise... it's bound to fail. You'd be going against a very big chunk of your playerbase, from the most dedicated fans to the newest sprout. You could say that the profits in NFTs would compensate the loss in subs and other sources of revenue, but that's extremely unlikely (I'd say it's pretty much impossible).

That is to say... If you want to experiment with NFTs and the like, fine. You'll probably fail, but fine. Just remember to do it somewhere else, far from FFXIV or your other beloved games.