Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick is a “big believer” in NFTs, but says that just because something is an NFT, doesn’t mean it instantly has value.
During an interview with GamesIndustry, Zelnick revealed his stance on NFTs.
“If you believe in collectible physical goods, I don’t know why you wouldn’t believe in collectible digital goods,” he said. “And blockchain authorization, which is what an NFT really is, is one way—not the only way—to authenticate the fact something is singular, is rare.”
NFTs have been a source of much controversy – especially as many struggle to get to grips with why a digital token can be perceived as holding quite so much value. But Zelnick hints that this is one of the problems – just because something is an NFT doesn’t mean it’s worth anything.
“I’m a big believer,” he added. “But what I don’t believe is that just because something is digital or an NFT that it suddenly has value and/or has value that will be increased in the future. And I think that’s the problem.”
“NFTs, because they’re related to the blockchain as currently contemplated and because some have gone for a lot of money, are seen by some as just another opportunity to invest in a speculation that some think will only go up. And speculations don’t just go up; they come down too.”
A number of recent NFT scams have begun to shake the market – such as the notable Banksy scam which almost cost one NFT buyer £244,000.
“For an NFT to be valuable and durable, it has to be found at the intersection of rarity and quality, of rarity and value,” said Zelnick. “And there’s rarity for sure in all NFTs, but I’m not sure there’s value.”
Whether or not Take-Two will step into the world of NFTs remains to be seen, but it won’t be easy with the likes of Steam announcing a blanket ban on NFT games.
Meanwhile, pop star Zara Larrson has made over £700,000 selling digital items in Roblox.
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