GameStop Leverages Its Meme Status To Create Its Own NFT Marketplace For Gamers
GameStop, a brand slowly fading out of relevance, suddenly had another five minutes of fame when its stocks shot up exponentially last year. Thank you, meme stocks.
Although it’s not exactly back to its heyday, the name has become resonant with something else: crypto. And of course, NFTs.
On Thursday, the firm announced a partnership with Immutable X, a layer 2 protocol specializing in NFTs with zero “gas” fees for minting. The collaboration, besides GameStop NFTs, will also see the firm’s own NFT marketplace.
This will host content created by gaming studios, web 3.0, and metaverse gaming developers, according to a statement from GameStop. To encourage creators to join the marketplace, the two companies are offering up a US$100 million fund to aid the development of the assets.
Protocol notes that although the company saw its stock rise, it now has to prove itself to its investors. Retail storefronts aren’t the way to go in 2022, and the company already has a “financial celebrity” meme status to capitalize on.
NFTs have been popular in gaming, and this marketplace will allow players to buy and trade digital assets that can be incorporated into their favorite titles. Some examples might be character skins or virtual real estate.
At the time of writing, it’s not yet open, but Engadget reports that the platform’s debut is planned for later this year.
We’re thrilled to announce that @Immutable is taking another leap forward in the gaming & blockchain industry by partnering w/ @GameStop to power their NFT Marketplace: https://t.co/Tase31CBt3 🎮
— Immutable | $IMX (@Immutable) February 3, 2022
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