Minecraft Still Hasn’t Officially Banned NFTs—But It’s Coming

The July 2022 announcement that Minecraft deliberate to ban using NFTs on player-run servers despatched a shockwave by means of the Web3 world. 

Almost a 12 months later, nonetheless, that deliberate motion has but to take impact—however it’s nonetheless coming.

Microsoft-owned recreation developer Mojang issued a information publish final summer time saying that it might replace the sport’s utilization tips to spell out particular restrictions concerning using NFTs, or distinctive property tokenized on the blockchain. Broadly, Mojang wrote that “integrations of NFTs with Minecraft are typically not one thing we’ll help or enable.”

Since then, nonetheless, Minecraft’s tips nonetheless haven’t been up to date, and there’s been no follow-up announcement. 

However a Microsoft consultant confirmed to Decrypt this week that “the replace to the official tips remains to be forthcoming and the coverage hasn’t modified.”

Minecraft’s anticipated ban announcement got here final 12 months within the wake of unofficial and community-driven Web3 initiatives constructed round Mojang’s long-running recreation, which Microsoft stated had 141 million month-to-month lively gamers throughout all gadgets as of 2021.

Taking intention at token-gating

Mojang stated particularly that it might ban using NFT property in ways in which “gate” or limit entry to sure content material or options on fan-operated recreation servers. 

Mojang permits gamers to cost for entry to servers, however such options have to be accessible to everybody to buy. With NFTs, there could possibly be options restricted to a small set of asset house owners.

“Every of those makes use of of NFTs and different blockchain applied sciences creates digital possession based mostly on shortage and exclusion, which doesn’t align with Minecraft values of inventive inclusion and taking part in collectively,” Mojang wrote after citing utilization examples. “NFTs are usually not inclusive of all our neighborhood and create a situation of the haves and the have-nots.”

“The speculative pricing and funding mentality round NFTs takes the main focus away from taking part in the sport and encourages profiteering, which we expect is inconsistent with the long-term pleasure and success of our gamers,” Mojang added.

Moreover, the publish stated that Minecraft would ban the creation of third-party NFT property which might be based mostly round any official recreation property. The deliberate strikes impacted third-party Web3 initiatives that had been constructed round Minecraft servers.

Most notable amongst them was NFT Worlds, a mission on Ethereum scaling community Polygon that offered customizable land plots as NFTs, with plans to construct out a devoted Minecraft server that utilized them. That mission’s creators pivoted and adjusted the mission to Topia, an authentic recreation that’s nonetheless visibly impressed by Minecraft however is seemingly “constructed from scratch.”

Apparently, Microsoft itself launched NFTs tied to Minecraft in February 2021, launching a collection of digital collectibles to have a good time Worldwide Day of Girls and Ladies in Science. These NFTs had been launched in affiliation with crypto gaming startup Enjin, and could possibly be used throughout the recreation through an Enjin-created plugin.