Square Enix, the renowned video game developer known for iconic franchises like Final Fantasy, is making a move. The company has announced transitioning its Symbiogenesis blockchain game to the Ethereum layer-2 network Arbitrum. This shift aims to reduce gas fees and enhance the user experience for the game’s next wave of NFT character minting.
Reducing Gas Fees
The decision to adopt Arbitrum follows the initial minting of 500-character NFTs on the Ethereum mainnet in December. This initial process incurred high gas costs, challenging the project’s accessibility and cost-effectiveness.
By moving to Arbitrum, Square Enix expects to drastically reduce these fees, reducing them to around 1.3 yen (approximately $0.01) per bid. The substantial reduction, approximately 1/1000th of the previous cost, aims to make the NFT minting process more affordable for users.
Symbiogenesis is a story-driven adventure game that integrates NFTs for characters and various in-game items. The game features a branching storyline that evolves based on players’ choices and interactions, influencing the narrative’s direction.
Social elements are integral, allowing players to collaborate, compete, or betray each other to achieve their goals. Importantly, while owning NFTs can enhance the gaming experience, players can still enjoy the main storyline without purchasing any NFTs.
Enhancing Accessibility
By leveraging Arbitrum’s capabilities, Square Enix aims to tackle the high transaction costs that have been a barrier for many users. The reduced fees will likely boost adoption and engagement, enabling more players to participate in the minting process without being deterred by prohibitive costs. This move aims to democratize access to the game’s blockchain features, potentially attracting a broader audience.
Upcoming NFT Auction
The next significant event for Symbiogenesis is the public auction of 1,500 new NFT characters, scheduled to take place over three days starting on May 31. Square Enix will release the characters in small batches throughout the auction period.
Furthermore, to facilitate this transition, Square Enix has provided a detailed how-to guide for users to bridge their assets to Arbitrum One, ensuring they are prepared for the auction.
While the shift to Arbitrum is a notable development, Square Enix still needs to clarify whether it will continue using Polygon, another Ethereum sidechain scaling network, for future in-game NFT assets. Overall, the company’s decision may hinge on user feedback and Arbitrum’s performance during the upcoming auction. This ongoing evaluation will determine the long-term strategy for integrating blockchain technology into their games.