The United Kingdom’s video game industry has been stagnant for the past two decades. It would have plummeted even further without the support of foreign entrepreneurs. A number of industry pundits predict that a series of new IPOs will drive a resurgence in the ailing industry. However, new blockchain for gaming may actually be the biggest savior of the UK video game market.
What really hurt the industry?
Most experts agree that the regional video game industry experienced a setback before the turn of the century. However, their views diverge when it comes to pinpointing the cause of the problem. Some experts, such as David Braben, the head of Frontier, suggest that a series of failed IPOs in the 1990s were the biggest contributors to the problem.
While there is some truth to this claim, it doesn’t provide any real context. Taking a deeper look at the state of the industry, it becomes clear that a slew of technical problems also contributed to the demise. Authentication issues, unreliable payment providers, poor graphics rendering capabilities, and a number of other technical shortcomings have also been responsible.
Although technical problems are obviously significant contributors to the sluggish growth of the UK gaming industry, some other significant problems have not drawn as much attention. One issue is the risk aversion that has plagued many developers. They recognize that piracy and copyright infringement are serious threats to their livelihood. Few developers are comfortable investing tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars and months of time to develop products that they may not be compensated for.
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Video Game Issues That Blockchain Can Help With
Blockchain is going to disrupt the video game industry in the United Kingdom. It has already taken hold in other parts of the world. What are the biggest ways that it will affect game developers and creators? Let’s take a look at some of the largest impacts it will have.
Tilting Odds in Favor of Players
More players are seeking games where the odds are better stacked in their favor. When they are playing against simulations run by the developers, this means they need a lower house edge. With other players, they want to combat cheating. Blockchain is helping improve fairness on both fronts.
Making sure that developers are adequately compensated
Lots of developers would be more comfortable investing their time and resources in game development if they were confident that they would be financially rewarded for their hard work. Unfortunately, piracy has deterred many of them from pursuing what would otherwise be very lucrative careers as game developers.
According to Andrew Rossow, blockchain will be the solution to this frustrating reality that has left so many game developers disheartened. New gaming platforms can have blockchain integrated into them to make sure that all game creators are properly credited when their products are purchased. Since traditional piracy isn’t so much of a concern with modern gaming applications, blockchain will offer more effective solutions.
One of the biggest problems with modern gaming applications is that the applications can be tkaen over by rogue content syndicators. They can replace the ads in the game with their own, so they can collect the advertising revenue that should be credited to the game developer.
Blockchain can help avoid this problem. It can create a ledger that assigns the ownership of the game to the rightful copyright holder. This prevents anybody else from trying to distribute it and steal revenue.
Offering incentives to gamers
Some experts point out that slow service speeds and lags with other players can cause significant delays. Players need to be highly dedicated to follow through with their campaigns. Since many people get frustrated with long wait times, they often give up.
Blockchain can make it easier to track players’ habits. It can help offer rewards to people that are committed to participating. Since they are helping game developers generate revenue by playing longer (since they are exposed to more ads), they could be rewarded for their contributions. This could come in the form of vouchers to hotels or discounted rates on credit cards. Highly engaged players could even be compensated with cash.
Blockchain is Permanently Changing the UK Gaming Industry for the Better
The UK gaming industry has faced its share of setbacks over the years. Fortunately, it seems to be on the verge of a rebound. Advances in blockchain could play a very key role in the future of the industry. It will resolve issues of IP property rights and provide new incentives to players.
