Steam tells developers to keep NFTs off the platform, but Epic Games is cool with the idea

Last week, Valve updated its rules to ban games that used the blockchain to distribute NFTs and cryptocurrency to players.

While Valve didn’t go into details on why it banned these things on Steam, it’s not hard to believe public perception had something to do with it. NFTs, and cryptocurrency as a whole, have plenty of issues.

One NFT game developer also points to Steam not wanting to have games with items that have “real-world value,” but that argument is weak at best. You only need to look to games like CS:GO, which is known for the buying and selling of in-game skins by players through the Steam platform.

Granted, “real-world value” can be perceived in different ways in this case, but still, Valve’s decision seems to be pointed more towards how players and media would react to NFTs and cryptocurrency on the platform as a whole.

Tim Sweeney, CEO of Epic Games, on the other hand, says that Epic Games is open to the idea. In an email to The Verge, a spokesperson notes that Epic is “open to games that support cryptocurrency or blockchain-based assets.”

Epic does note that developers will need to ensure all laws are followed for NFTs and crypto projects, but would work with developers who are looking to implement these types of things into their games.

As The Verge notes, don’t expect developers to flood the Epic Games Store with crypto game projects. Epic’s self-publishing program is still in the works and is currently in closed beta.

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