Ruholamin Haqshanas
Tim Sweeney, Epic Games CEO and co-founder, has recently lashed out at a token that trades under the name “Fortnite Token.” He also slammed “cryptocurrency marketplaces” for enabling the trade of such cryptocurrencies. It is worth noting that the total market cap of Fortnite Token does not exceed $300.
Notably, Sweeney’s remarks against scam cryptocurrencies come at a time when Epic Games is preparing to roll out the first NFT game on its store.
Epic Games CEO Points Out “Scam” Fortnite Cryptocurrency, Says Lawyers “are on it”
On Monday, Sweeney took to Twitter to eliminate any possible confusion, announcing that there is no any Fortnite-related cryptocurrency. “There isn’t a Fortnite cryptocurrency,” he said, adding Twitter accounts promoting such tokens are “scams” and that the company’s lawyers will take legal action against them.
The CEO also took a shot at “cryptocurrency marketplaces” that allegedly “enable” the trading of these unofficial and unauthorized cryptocurrencies. “Also, shame on the cryptocurrency marketplaces that enable this kind of thing,” he said.
Sweeney might be referring to decentralized exchanges like SushiSwap, PancakeSwap, and CronaSwap when mentioning “cryptocurrency marketplaces.” However, it is worth noting that these platforms enable users to trade virtually any token so long as those users manually input the token’s contract address.
In a series of replies, Sweeney specifically pointed to the “Fortnite Token” (FNT), calling the token and the team behind it a “scam.” “This account is operating a scam,” Sweeney wrote, referring to the Twitter account @fortnite_token. “Anybody involved in this is being scammed,” he added in another response.
The Twitter account behind the unauthorized Fortnite token tried to argue with Sweeney. “This is a fair-launch, community-driven, Fortnite game fans-created cryptocurrency project with no specified owner or company structure behind it or a CEO deciding on its future,” the account said.
In response, Sweeney noted that Fortnite is a trademark of Epic Games, meaning the company holds all rights for the brand and no one else may use it unless they obtain permission. “You can’t use the Fortnite name and images without permission to market an unrelated product,” he said.
It is worth noting that the token in question has hardly attracted any investor attention. According to Nomics data, the FNT token, which is based on Binance Smart Chain, is down by around 97% compared to its all-time high. Moreover, the coin had a trading volume of $20 over the past 24 hours and a market cap of approximately $300.
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Epic Games to Launch First NFT Game
Sweeney’s remarks against scam tokens come at a time when Epic Games is readying for the first NFT game on its store. Gala Games’ GRIT, a Wild West-themed cowboy battle royale game, is slated to become the first NFT-powered game to launch via the Epic Games Store, the company announced on Monday.
GRIT, which is expected to launch later in 2022, will be a free-to-play online multiplayer game for Windows PC players. The game will also feature NFTs that can be purchased, resold, and utilized within the game. John Osvald, Gala’s president of games, said:
“Epic is a pioneer and visionary in the video game industry. Gala Games’ titles being available on the Epic Game Store brings legitimacy to this new genre of gaming. Easy access to Web3 games is a turning point for those players who have not yet seen how digital ownership can enrich the gaming experience.”
As reported, in October 2021, Epic Games revealed that it would be open to blockchain-based games after rival platform Steam banned games powered by NFTs.
Notably, Sweeney has not always supported NFT-powered games. Back in September, he said that Epic Games isn’t “touching NFTs as the whole field is currently tangled up with an intractable mix of scams.” However, he has ostensibly changed his position. He said on Monday:
“When new technology emerges, some put it to good use, and others put it to bad use. It would be terribly shortsighted to ban an entire field of technology for such a reason.”
Nevertheless, it is worth noting that NFTs haven’t received a warm welcome in gaming. While games argue that NFTs can help improve the player experience and add value to the game, players seem to view these tokens as yet another cash grab attempt by gaming companies. In fact, for this reason, Ubisoft’s Ghost Recon Breakpoint game received a massive backlash after unveiling NFT integration.
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About the author
Ruholamin Haqshanas is an accomplished crypto and finance journalist with over two years of experience writing in the field. He has a solid grasp of various segments of the FinTech space, including the decentralized iteration of financial systems (DeFi), and the emerging market for non-fungible tokens (NFTs). He is an active user of digital assets for remittances.
