Sony has published a very interesting patent that uses a blockchain ledger to track in-game items such as cosmetics and user-generated content, including screenshots, videos and even user-generated items. In theory, it could be tied to a token economy where users buy and sell digital content.
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Note: The existence of this patent does not imply that the functionality described herein will be available in the final product or service.
Sony’s latest patent, US20220358450 – Tracking Unique In-Game Digital Assets Using Tokens on Distributed Ledger, will have a significant impact on the future of the PlayStation brand. The core idea is very simple. Sony has patented a method that uses a blockchain ledger to track, authenticate and value digital content, allowing digital assets to be sold on the market. Assets include cosmetics, in-game items, customized weapons and armor, game save files and loadouts, as well as social his content created by his PlayStation user such as screenshots and videos. It should be stressed that much of this is theoretical and most of the features described in the patent will likely never be used.
Like all patents, this particular patent is highly technical and spans many different scenarios. There is a library of drawings, diagrams, and descriptions of specific features. I will do my best to cover more interesting topics.
OK, so let’s start with the square. Why is Sony thinking of doing this?
Sony wants their in-game items to be unique. Perhaps because unique items are more valuable and can cost more. Did you know you had to buy Fortnite cosmetics to avoid FOMO? What if it’s unique to you, or at least limited enough to prevent it from spreading…basically like an NFT.
Background:As a result, traditional video games have no way to recognize, track, or authenticate the history of specific instances of in-game items.
The patent directly references celebrity and influencer collectibles. This strengthens our focus on NFTs. For example, we’ve seen many popular sports icons release their NFTs, but similar things can happen to big streamers and even video game publishers who can “mint” their assets. .
However, unlike traditional NFTs, which are actually images, these digital assets can actually be used in games. Use cases include items, weapons, cosmetics, and actual game save files. Sounds familiar. Sony previously had a patent that allowed users to effectively “jump” to another player’s save game..
Technical field: Current technology is concerned with tracking digital assets. More specifically, the technology is used to track the creation, use, modification, and/or transfer of digital assets created within video games and/or based on gameplay of video games. We can offer a variety of technologies.
FourWhy should Sony track in-game assets? In this way, the assets themselves can be authenticated and verified, both for security and potential valuation. Why should items be rated? The patent specifically mentions a marketplace where gamers can exchange digital assets.
Now let’s get to the real roots of this patent. To my understanding, the biggest reason Sony wants to do this is to create a vibrant economy for gamers to buy, sell and even rent digital assets.
So why buy something someone else made? There are several reasons. The patent outlines the various customizations that users can add to in-game items, and many games have been found to have randomized mods for specific weapons. Imagine being able to buy the perfect weapon.
These can probably be earned in-game (e.g. imagine being able to sell a legendary weapon from Final Fantasy to someone else who doesn’t want to spend time unlocking it), which is also customized by the player. increase.
Certain metadata properties can also increase the value of items. The proposed user interface shows item-specific data, such as players killed by laser guns. Items that killed popular streamers may be worth more than others.
It gets even deeper. The UI has an interactive media playback option that shows a video on how to use the item. For example, how laser guns were used to kill streamers like Ninja for example.
FourAlso notable is the ability to license or rent digital assets owned by gamers. Someone could pay you her $5 a day to access items you own. Need a more powerful weapon to use against the boss?Let’s rent the legendary sword for a day instead of buying him $15.
Assets are not limited to just in-game items. This includes save files, in-game characters/loadouts, and user-generated content such as in-game worlds and areas.
Imagine being able to take full advantage of your character build and sell it online to someone else. Or that you created an awesome Elder Scrolls mod that adds new lands to the game. You can also sell the mod directly to others as a digital asset, or license it as a rental.
One thing that probably won’t catch on is the sale of digital assets as a medium. The patent states that videos and screenshots can also be converted into blockchain assets so they can be sold (or rented) on the market. I’ve never seen anyone paying for an in-game clip that someone made.
The rest of the patent is a fairly technical discussion of how ledgers and blockchain systems work, with direct references to digital asset creation and authentication engines.
Please note that this is just a patent and does not represent the final product.
