Stalker 2 developer announces removal of 'metahuman' NFT that will appear as in-game NPCs

“We are listening to you,” the GSC statement reads. “Based on the feedback we have received, we have decided to cancel everything related to NFT in S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2.” The rest of the message said, “The interest of our fans and players is our team’s top priority. We’re making this game for you to enjoy, no matter what the cost. If you care, we care.” Says.

However, while this wasn’t the first statement the developer made today, very different messages were tweeted and deleted shortly thereafter. In its first statement, GSC doubled the inclusion of “NFT bonuses” within S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2. “We are eager to do NFT Right,” said the now deleted message. The company wanted to allow players to “join the game without disrupting the experience of other players”. I have saved a copy of the previous statement that you can read in the image below.

Again, the above image was originally S.T.A.L.K.E.R. The Twitter account was deleted after a while.

Whatever the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. pressure and the overall gaming community seems to have worked, they have worked very quickly to completely reverse the direction of the NFT, which the company has apparently insisted on keeping intact.

The NFT NPCs in question and what they entail can be read from the original story right here.

Original story: S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chernobyl developer GSC Game World announced the creation of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. A metaverse in which players can reside in an upcoming shooter as an in-game “metahuman” NFT in the form of an NPC.

I’ll give you a few seconds to wrap your head around this… Basically, starting this month, users will be able to sign up for an in-game item drop that will “evolve with new game features built on top of S.T.A.L.K.E.R 2.” According to the press release, the first drop will be through an auction scheduled for January 2022. Whoever gets this first drop will be the “first metahuman” and “will be released and exposed to hundreds of millions of gamers worldwide.” GSC Game World seems to have very high expectations for the upcoming sequel.

The press release states, “In-game, metahumans appear as ‘NPCs’ or non-playable characters. “We use photogrammetry techniques to reproduce the faces of real-world owners in-game, providing the highest level of realism possible.” exists on the blockchain like other metaverse related items coming soon to the game, but GSC does not specify which ones, but GSC is working with the NFT trading platform DMarket on all of this.

Blockchain games and NFTs have been heavily criticized in the industry for some of the ongoing environmental damage to date. Using cryptocurrencies that are often used to buy NFTs and mining those currencies emit millions of carbon dioxide, damaging the Earth’s atmosphere, as reported by The Verge. Currently, the use of cryptocurrencies is considered harmful to the planet. However, one of the most used cryptocurrencies, Ethereum, is working on something called “The Merge” that will “start the era of a more sustainable and greener Ethereum”. But only time will tell how green Ethereum is.

Exactly why this NPC needs to reside on the blockchain is unclear. Especially considering that video games have previously included real-world scans of people as in-game NPCs. The same is true for in-game items that drop in-game. NFT or not, GSC can technically remove these drops from S.T.A.L.K.E.R 2 if they wish, so the promise of living forever in-game with NFTs and blockchain is real. More promises from GSC.

According to the press release, the second drop will take place in February with a “very secretive genesis pack” and the next drop will be announced on Twitter and Discord. GSC states that these drops “will not affect the gameplay itself or provide an in-game advantage over other players”.

GSC has joined with many other developers who have announced games or features related to NFTs and blockchains, such as Ubisoft, which recently unveiled its Quartz NFT platform. EA CEO Andrew Wilson last month said he wasn’t sure how it would work after he said NFTs and blockchain gaming were “the future of our industry.” Last weekend Gala Games announced a $100 million initiative to fund blockchain games like Peter Molyneux, Will Wright and more.