Since the NFT boom in early 2021, non-fungible tokens have been perfectly suited to integrate into the gaming industry. Their unique ability to represent in-game assets, coupled with their ease of exchange and on-chain tracking, has made them an ideal fit. Innovations like ERC-6551 have further expanded their utility by enabling them to maintain separate wallets designed for specific asset categories, such as item inventory or achievements.

The mass adoption of in-game NFT assets has nonetheless continued to face obstacles due to an underdeveloped infrastructure, resulting in suboptimal user experiences and persisting challenges in the industry, including limited scalability, high development costs, and security concerns.

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The advent of white-label NFT infrastructure solutions aims to address some of these challenges and facilitate the integration of in-game NFT assets. Players get to enjoy a familiar gameplay, while benefiting from complete asset ownership, and real-world trading options right from the start. At the same time, game studios and developers can fast-track their entry into the web3 space, saving time and resources, all while delivering gaming experiences on par with web2 standards, without the need to build new infrastructure from scratch.

Let's delve into the current challenges plaguing the integration of NFT assets in-game and the way game studios can leverage white-label NFT marketplace solutions to their advantage.

Challenges Integrating In-Game NFT Assets

In the gaming industry, four primary aspects have impeded the widespread adoption of in-game NFT assets: suboptimal user experiences during purchases, security concerns, high development costs, and a complex regulatory environment.

First, the subpar user experience can be attributed to two key factors:

On the one hand, users must connect their web3 wallets to initiate transactions for their preferred NFT items, since studios lack solutions to easily integrate a hidden wallet within a game engine.

Imagine Fortnite transitioning to web3, where players must navigate a complex process to sell in-game ammunition earned after eliminating several waves of husks. This process would entail collecting the NFT item, using the appropriate NFT marketplace on the game's specific chain, selling the ammunition for network tokens, and finding a centralized exchange to convert these tokens into fiat currency. Such complexity can discourage players, impacting the game's adoption and overall appeal.

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On the other hand, studios have refrained from integrating NFT-related features into their games due to their limited expertise in blockchain technology and the absence of pre-existing solutions tailored to their needs. Some of them have invested significant time and resources in building in-game NFT marketplaces from scratch, only to grapple with performance issues and on-chain latency. This, in turn, has had a detrimental impact on the overall user experience.

Another major barrier to integrating NFT assets is the security concerns associated with smart contracts. Hacking attempts and security breaches continue to pose a considerable risk, as illustrated by instances in the past two years when well-established gaming brands like Axie Infinity, Tales of Elleria, and Z-ERA fell victim to hacking. Such breaches can compromise player-owned assets, leading to substantial financial losses and damaging trust within the gaming community.

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To ensure the safety and integrity of player-owned assets, game studios are required to become experts in wallet security and invest in smart contract security audits. These audits often have prolonged waiting times and come at a high cost. 

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Alongside the expensive audits, the recruitment of blockchain engineers can prove to be a costlier endeavor compared to traditional game developers. This is because many proficient smart contract developers are often hesitant to join game companies primarily focused on web2, where blockchain is not the core focus of the organization.

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Lastly, the uncertainty surrounding regulatory frameworks can make studios cautious about incorporating features that leverage in-game NFT assets. Different markets have distinct rules governing crypto on-ramps and customer asset management, requiring a thorough approach to ensure compliance with regional laws. Integrating payment providers only adds to the complexity, as each operates within its distinct coverage regions and abides by specific regulations.

What Is A White-label NFT Marketplace?

A white-label NFT marketplace is a fully customizable, out-of-the-box infrastructure solution for in-game NFT listing, sale, and purchase that can seamlessly integrate with most applications. Game studios can leverage it to create their own NFT marketplace, complete with tailored branding, design, and functionalities. Some marketplaces specialize in first-party sales (like storefronts), while others specialize in player-to-player marketplaces or auction houses.

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Integrating a white-label marketplace eliminates the need for players to exit the game and contend with cumbersome transaction signing and token swapping, ultimately enhancing the in-game experience. All transactions are efficiently managed, while ensuring secure and scalable player-asset interactions within the game.

Why Integrate A White-label NFT Marketplace?

The adoption of white-label NFT marketplaces has transformed the gaming industry's approach to player engagement with in-game assets, enabling a dynamic gaming economy with enhanced social interactions. They facilitate asset interoperability, allowing cross-game experiences, and provide game developers with new revenue streams through in-game asset NFT creation and sales. 

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Blockus offers game studios and developers a range of advantages when integrating a ready-to-launch NFT marketplace in-game:

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Cost-Efficiency: Building an NFT marketplace from scratch can be resource-intensive and time-consuming, requiring dedicated infrastructure development and robust security measures.  Opting for a white-label solution simplifies this process, offering game studios a cost-effective and time-saving alternative to incorporate NFT functionality seamlessly into their games. By leveraging Blockus’ solution, studios can directly allocate their resources to branding, marketing, and growing their user base, rather than delve into complex in-house technical development and counsel on security and legal aspects.

Tailored Marketplace Experience: Blockus offers two marketplace avenues - web and in-game, all powered by the same backend so that game assets can be listed everywhere. On the web, game developers can granularly customize the look and feel of the in-game marketplace to closely align with the game's aesthetics. From logo placement to color schemes and layout, every facet of the marketplace can be fine-tuned to maintain brand consistency. In addition to aesthetic alignment, developers can integrate additional features into their platform, such as advanced search, filtering tools, or cross-chain capabilities. In the game itself, Blockus provides the same APIs so game developers can power their own in-game marketplace with the same backend.

‍Scalability: Scalability is paramount in the gaming industry, where games like Fortnite can experience rapid surges in popularity, as it did when its user base grew sixfold in just a year post-launch. Blockus' white-label NFT marketplace solution is purpose-built to offer the scalability needed and is readily deployable across a wide range of chains. This means players can bid farewell to the inconveniences of network switching and token transfers for gas. With this solution, studios can ensure uninterrupted growth and flexibility in the gaming experience, while allowing user bases across different chains to enjoy their in-game NFT characters and inventories simultaneously.

Conclusion

We are excited about how white-label NFT marketplace solutions can transform the player experience with virtual assets, bringing web3 capabilities to web2 gameplay.

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From virtual real estate trading to true ownership of in-game items and the creation of player-driven economies, these marketplaces are poised to drive the widespread adoption of in-game NFT assets.