Like all things facing the dread of extinction, a last-ditch effort must be made to clinch to the dying light. Gamestop, just a year removed from their soft relaunch into popularity with crypto, is pushing even forward into the digital age. The iconic videogame retailer announced the launch of its NFT marketplace. While still in the early stages, Gamestop’s NFTs are sure to attract a lot of attention from investors, gamers, and meme lords. The marketplace will allow the public to purchase NFTs for things like avatars, weapons, gear, and more. Though the news hasn’t been made public very much, Gamestop has started to add things to their website that suggest the move.
NFTs, the world’s most recent digital trend, have seen a large boom over the past year. As the world rapidly moves towards a more digital currency-based system, it’s becoming very hard to not see the digital age is upon us.
Big-name companies like Nike, Adidas, the NBA, and Coca-Cola have all made their dive into the NFT industry. Gamestop isn’t even the first video game-based company to hope on the NFT train. Video game studio Ubisoft launched their own NFT marketplace, Quartz, towards the end of last year. Their launch was met with very bad reviews as many likened their NFTs to microtransactions that have plagued games. It’s unsure if Gamestop will have the same reactions from their crowd.
While many are very much skeptical (and for good reason) of NFTs, there are many creators making bank from the craze. As the world continues its shift into the new age of the internet, NFTs and cryptocurrency will soon become a norm.
After news broke, Gamestop shares jumped more than 20% last Friday. The Wall Street Journal reported the findings after the news leaked. It seems a repeat of the 2021 meme stock rising is making a small comeback as AMC saw its shares jump to 6%. This proves Gamestop is looking to cash in on the craze of NFTs as more investors pour savings into Gamestop.
Gamestop’s move into the finical and crypto space is something many may have seen coming and something many businesses should model.
After the success of last year, Gamestop realized the power of the internet. Seeing the shift early on and breaking away from the brick and mortar, Gamestop began its comeback as a digital industry power. The company hired Ryan Cohen, Chewy co-founder, to spearhead their relaunch. It seems his vision for Gamestop is quickly coming true. To show their commitment to this rebrand, Gamestop has pulled out all the stops to ensure their longevity. The company hired more than 20 employees to fill this team. Gamestop’s moves over the past two years are something many brick and mortar companies should consider. The way this company has revamped itself is very much a sight to behold. It was only a few years ago that Blockbuster was put out of business by Netflix. Surviving is in our nature and Gamestop has found a way to avoid being destroyed like various other dinosaurs.
