Author: Weilin

Editor: Wendao

David Baszucki, the founder and CEO of the metaverse gaming platform Roblox, recently expressed his desire to introduce NFTs. He hopes to see limited edition NFTs being generated on the Roblox platform and circulating internally and externally, thereby creating an open ecosystem for Roblox.

Founded in 2004, Roblox has made various moves in the Web3 field, such as supporting blockchain-driven game PlayDapp and introducing the in-platform virtual currency Robux to help creators monetize. However, Roblox itself has not actually issued true NFTs, and Robux is not a cryptocurrency.

Interestingly, after Baszucki expressed his views on NFTs, Web3 gaming companies including Animoca Brands and Sky Mavis quickly responded on social media. Why is Roblox's attitude towards NFTs drawing such attention from Web3 gaming companies?

It turns out that there are "scarce items" of Web3 chain games on the Roblox platform, which are even more important than traffic.

Why is the Roblox boss promoting NFTs?

Roblox's latest financial report shows that in Q3 2023, the company's revenue was $7.132 billion, a 38% year-on-year increase. The daily active users have exceeded 70 million, a 20% increase from the same period last year.

The "first stock of the metaverse," Roblox, once again exceeded analysts' expectations. This platform, which combines virtual worlds, casual games, and user-generated content, once again demonstrated the appeal of "creation" to gamers. On Roblox, you can not only find games but also use various tools provided by the platform to create games.

Roblox's financial report shows that approximately 75% of 9-12 year old teenagers in the United States frequently visit Roblox, and the average time spent by 70 million active users on the platform is 2.5 hours.

The strong appeal of game creation has attracted teenagers, and Roblox has successfully captured the "Generation Z" crowd. Another thing often associated with "Generation Z" is NFTs, which Roblox has also taken notice of.

In an interview with CNBC, Roblox's founder and CEO David Baszucki was asked whether NFTs could exist on Roblox. Baszucki said, "There is a dream here about objects and NFTs being transferable between platforms."

He proposed a hypothetical scenario, "If musician Elton John were to release limited edition capes for charity events on Roblox, we can imagine that these capes would one day be used as NFTs outside the platform and could also be sold outside our platform, and then return to our platform."

Baszucki's dream implies his expectations for an open ecosystem for Roblox, which aligns with the concept of Web3.

In fact, when creating its own metaverse empire, Roblox has already used Web3 methods, including the characteristics of NFTs.

Earlier this year, Roblox launched the market for virtual wearable products called Limiteds, which are limited edition virtual goods created by users and supported for sale within the Roblox market. It also allows buyers to resell them when they no longer want them, with the original creators receiving a 10% royalty when secondary sales occur.

Limiteds in the Roblox market

This is very similar to the initial release and sale model of NFTs on the blockchain, but Limiteds are not NFTs and do not use blockchain technology.

In June 2021, Roblox also supported the first blockchain-driven game, PlayDapp, where players in this game's virtual town could choose to use regular Roblox characters or upload their own NFT characters.

In fact, in November 2022, there were reports that Roblox was planning to introduce an NFT market, but insiders said the company was "taking cautious steps" and might launch a series of NFT-like limited edition goods. In the end, Roblox's NFT plan did not materialize, but it did introduce markets like Limiteds.

Based on Baszucki's statement and Roblox's support for Web3 games, this metaverse gaming and game development platform is likely to not issue its own NFTs but to support the creation of related game applications within the platform, thereby using these NFT works to lead Roblox towards a cross-platform open system.

Roblox possesses the "scarce items" of Web3 chain games

Interestingly, when Baszucki expressed his "dream" about what NFTs could achieve, Web3 chain game developers containing various NFT game assets were the first to get excited.

First, Animoca Brands, the company that produced the Web3 racing chain game "Torque Burnout," saw its co-founder and chairman Yat Sui repost Baszucki's interview video on X, stating, "Emotions are changing, and the spillover effects brought about by the inherent shared network effects of Web3 will have a huge impact on everyone in the NFT field."

Next, the well-known Web3 play-to-earn game "Axie Infinity" developer, Sky Mavis, revealed an even more important piece of news—David Baszucki has been an investor in Sky Mavis since 2021. "We regularly brief him and other investors on our plans for Ronin and Axie," he said. He believes that games using NFTs will be more immersive and attractive, "this is inevitable."

Axie, a creature in "Axie Infinity," is an NFT

According to industry analysts, game-related NFTs actually account for a large proportion of the NFT market, "but they also depreciate significantly and are prone to fluctuations." In contrast, blue-chip NFTs based on images are still widely held due to the reasons of the previous bull market. After forming an IP, some are also transitioning into games, "such as Bored Ape Yacht Club."

According to data from Footprint Analytics, the number of daily active users of Web3 games has remained relatively stable at around 1 million in the just-passed October, which is almost the same as in September. Although the number of games in the Web3 gaming industry is constantly increasing, the growth of active games and active users has not kept pace. Web3 games face ongoing challenges in user acquisition and retention.

Since Axie Infinity became popular in Southeast Asia with the play-to-earn (P2E) model, gold farming has become the main feature of Web3 chain games, which has been criticized by the gaming industry as "Ponzi-like." In terms of gameplay and economic models, Web3 chain games have not yet matured, and games that are not fun will be abandoned once they lose their gold farming value.

The entire Web3 chain game market is facing a problem of lack of innovation. In this light, the value of the Roblox platform and its user base to the Web3 chain game market is very clear: once the "first stock of the metaverse" introduces NFTs, Roblox, which has a wide young user base, will undoubtedly bring fresh creative blood to the NFT market and Web3 chain games.

Compared to traffic, the creator community is the true "scarce item" of the Web3 chain game market, and Roblox, which has accumulated tens of thousands of games and millions of development players in nearly 20 years, if attracted by Web3 chain games and NFTs, will bring new vitality to both markets.

How do you predict Roblox will introduce NFTs?

免责声明：本文章仅代表作者个人观点，不代表本平台的立场和观点。本文章仅供信息分享，不构成对任何人的任何投资建议。用户与作者之间的任何争议，与本平台无关。如网页中刊载的文章或图片涉及侵权，请提供相关的权利证明和身份证明发送邮件到support@aicoin.com，本平台相关工作人员将会进行核查。