PUBG developer's NFT metaverse platform is coming this year and still sounds like nonsense

PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds — (Image credit: PUBG Corp)

PUBG developer Krafton announced that it was getting its hands dirty with NFTs and metaverse shenanigans last year, and it looks like its plans are coming to fruition. The metaverse platform, which has the working title Migaloo, is due to launch this year.

Like so many NFT and metaverse projects, the initial announcement was pretty vague, offering no real indication what prospective players could expect. Over a year later, and with its arrival on the horizon, nothing seems to have changed. I have no idea what Krafton, or its partner Naver Z, have in mind.

"The companies have invested KRW 48 billion (roughly $36.8 million USD) to develop the platform," the announcement reads, "which features a Create-to-Earn (C2E) system that allows content creators to build works in the metaverse that users can purchase and own using NFTs and blockchain technology."

So far, so vague. What sort of things will it be possible to build? And why would anyone want to buy them? The concept of user-generated content is ancient now, so at the moment all that Krafton is offering is a way to sell your stuff, which itself is hardly revolutionary. It's also not clear how it's going to stand out from the other metaverse and NFT projects floating around. "[I]t promises to be a new metaverse platform that incentivizes creators and offers transparency in transactions and settlements," the announcement adds, but again, this is all pretty woolly.

Chang-wook Kim, CEO of Naver Z, claims that we'll "witness the rise of a groundbreaking metaverse platform that introduces a new C2E system and has the potential to transform the way content creators are motivated and rewarded," whatever that means. Maybe some goons will come over and break your legs if you don't finish creating whatever its users will be able to make. That would certainly motivate me.

It's just so easy to be incredibly sceptical of these kinds of announcements because they all sound like half-baked snake oil pitches that lack specifics and always fail to answer the basic question of why this needs to exist. I am very tired.

Fraser is the UK online editor and has actually met The Internet in person. With over a decade of experience, he's been around the block a few times, serving as a freelancer, news editor and prolific reviewer. Strategy games have been a 30-year-long obsession, from tiny RTSs to sprawling political sims, and he never turns down the chance to rave about Total War or Crusader Kings. He's also been known to set up shop in the latest MMO and likes to wind down with an endlessly deep, systemic RPG. These days, when he's not editing, he can usually be found writing features that are 1,000 words too long or talking about his dog.