Yu Suzuki is also getting in on the NFT craze, so SEGA is slowly starting to feel its way in that direction. True, they haven’t gone as far as Square Enix has.

Before creating the SEGA Dreamcast killer app with Shenmue, Yu Suzuki was a co-creator of the Virtua Fighter series. He uses that IP to create thousands of these products with NFT company Oasyx. SEGA has licensed the IP to them, but the company is not directly involved in the project, but it is a cover, and it’s a way for the Japanese publisher to test the waters. They can’t fool us with this caution.

“As a director at SEGA, I initially developed Virtua Fighter using innovative 3D computer graphics (CG) technology, which was cutting-edge and industry-leading at the time. Since then, the Virtua Fighter series has become loved by many players and continues to be supported by numerous fans today. Through my work supervising the development of OASYX’s unique worldview, I am delighted to combine innovative technology in the form of blockchain-based NFTs with three titles from the Virtua Fighter series to create new entertainment for a wide range of gaming fans,” added Suzuki, who was the director of the franchise from its inception in 1993 until the late 2000s before leaving SEGA.

Note that SEGA has previously indicated an interest in exploring NFTs. Last year, the public criticized companies interested in technology. In response to this, CEO Haruki Satomi has stated that he is willing to back down from his plans for NFTs: “In terms of NFT, we would like to try out various experiments, and we have already started many different studies and considerations, but nothing is decided at this point regarding P2E. There have been many announcements about this already, including overseas, but some users show negative reactions now. We need to carefully assess many things, such as how we can mitigate the negative elements, how much we can introduce this within the Japanese regulation, and what will be accepted and what will not be by the users. Then, we will consider this further if this leads to our mission of “Constantly Creating, Forever Captivating,” but if it is perceived as simple money-making, I would like to decide not to proceed.”

It seems he hasn’t backed down from his plans after all…

Source: VGC