Minecraft Dev Mojang Slams The Door Shut On Blockchain And NFTs

The world of NFTs has encroached the realm of Minecraft, and devs are not happy about it. In an attempt to provide players with a safe and inclusive experience, Mojang has decided to not allow blockchain technologies in its popular world-building game.

As NFTs have grown in both popularity and use, companies have been having to decide whether or not to embrace the technology. Some companies, such as Amazon and Nike, have chosen to embrace the trend, while others like Itch.io have warned against them. Now, game devs with the highly popular Minecraft game have decided to announce where the game company stands on blockchain technologies and NFTs as they pertain to the realms of Minecraft.

In a recent post by the company, it stated, "While we are in the process of updating our Minecraft Usage Guidelines to offer more precise guidance on new technologies, we wanted to take the opportunity to share our view that integrations of NFTs with Minecraft are generally not something we will support or allow."

It describes an NFT in its post as a "unique, non-editable, digital token that is part of a blockchain and often purchased with cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin." While an NFT can be associated with any form of digital asset, it is most commonly used as digital art, such as JPEGs. One of the concerns with NFTs is that a digital file can be copied, moved, or even deleted. The technology has also been associated with speculation, where prices are driven up quickly, and as many have experienced, can decline just a fast.

In Minecraft's Guidelines, it states it aims to provide the same functionality and access to all players. So, no matter who may own and operate a server on the service, all players should have the opportunity for the same type of experience. The issue with NFTs is that they can create models of scarcity and exclusion that conflict with both the guidelines and "the spirit" of the game.

The recent blog post states, "To ensure that Minecraft players have a safe and inclusive experience, blockchain technologies are not permitted to be integrated inside our client and server applications, nor may Minecraft in-game content such as worlds, skins, persona items, or other mods, be utilized by blockchain technology to create a scarce digital asset."

Devs indicated that they will be paying close attention to how blockchain technology evolves over time in order to determine if it could be used in a way that fits within the company's guidelines in the future. For the time being, however, the gaming company has no plans on allowing the technology into Minecraft.

Top Image Credit: Mojang/Minecraft