Games that feature blockchain technology that allows the exchange of NFTs or cryptocurrencies will no longer be allowed on Steam.
According to a new rule on steam partner login page, Valve says distributors should not publish, “blockchain-based applications that issue or allow the exchange of cryptocurrencies or NFTs.”
Age of Rust, a game that includes players who collect in-game NFTs, says Steam has informed them that they are “removing all blockchain games from the platform, including Age of Rust, because NFTs have value.”
👉 NFT means “non-fungible token” and are digital assets that are sold and purchased online. NFTs can take many forms, but they have become increasingly popular as digital art. Artists can create a piece of digital artwork, register it as an NFT and sell a limited number of them.
According to Age of Rust, Steam doesn’t want to allow objects on the platform that can have real value. IGN contacted Valve for comment, and we’ll update this article when there’s an update.
Epic doesn’t seem to have a problem with blockchain-containing games
On the other hand, EPIC Games does not seem to have a problem with blockchain or play-to-earn games.
Epic tells The Verge that it’s “open to games that support cryptocurrencies or blockchain-based elements” in its game store, unlike its competitor Valve who has banned games that feature blockchain or NFT technology from Steam.
When we asked about the license games that have NFT, Epic told us that there would be some restrictions, but that it is willing to work with “early developers” in the “new field”.
Epic says games should comply with financial laws, make it clear how blockchain is used, and have appropriate age scores. It also says developers won’t be able to use Epic’s payment service to accept encryption. they would have to use their own payment systems.
Epic’s CEO, Tim Sweeney, said the company is not interested in touching NFT, but this statement now seems to apply only to its own games. Epic tells The Verge that it will clear up the rules as it works with developers to figure out how they plan to use blockchain technology in their games.
Sweeney also wrote some additional thoughts after the publication of this story: he says epic welcomes “innovation in the fields of technology and finance” and suggests that blockchain is not inherently good or bad.
Epic says games should comply with financial laws, make it clear how blockchain is used, and have appropriate age scores. It also says developers won’t be able to use Epic’s payment service to accept encryption. they would have to use their own payment systems.
None of this means that developers who have been abused by Steam can hurry up and ”throw” their game into the Epic Game Store. Currently, Epic’s self-publishing program is in a closed beta release, and Epic’s FAQs say it chooses who can participate “on a case-by-case basis.”
Epic, however, has proven to be a fairly permissive platform owner, which became a point of contention in its trial with Apple when lawyers unsolided the “offensive and sexual” games available at Itch.io, a toy store accessible at Epic’s toy store.
Allowing games that ban Steam is another way EPIC could compete with Valve. Some NFT fans immediately looked to Epic after the news about Steam.
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