Worms NFTs Canceled by Team17 After Fan and Developer Backlash

Team17 announced yesterday they were collaborating with Reality Gaming Group to create a series of NFTs based on their Worms franchise. However, in an extremely rapid u-turn, the publisher has now announced they are canceling the limited edition ‘MetaWorms’ NFTs after a backlash from fans, their developer partners, and even their own staff members.

Why were the MetaWorms NFTs canceled?

Team17 claimed the MetaWorms NFTs substantially reduced the amount of energy used per transaction, therefore they would be “environmentally friendly”. Unfortunately this was a claim many of their developer partners didn’t believe. Overcooked developer Ghost Town Games confirmed they didn’t support NFTs and they believed they carried “too great an environmental and social cost”. Yooka-Laylee developer Playtonic followed up with a statement that they didn’t endorse the use of NFTs in “any aspect of their business”. Others to condemn the move included Going Under developer Aggro Crab who even went as far as declaring they would not be working with Team17 on further titles unless the decision was reversed.

The statements caused Team17 to confirm to Eurogamer they had “no plans to introduce NFTs or play-to-earn NFT mechanics into any of its indie games label titles.” Despite this, further criticism from fans and Team17 team members led to the cancellation of the project today. Team17 said:

Team17 is today announcing an end to the MetaWorms NFT project. We have listened to our teamsters, development partners, and our games’ communities, and the concerns they’ve expressed, and have therefore taken the decision to step back from the NFT space.

The project would instead have seen the creation of independent MetaWorms NFTs based on artwork from the entire 26 years of the Worms franchise. A partnership with Coin 4 Planet would also have seen a portion of each sale redirected to Refeed Farms, who use vertical worm beds to replenish soil in the place of fertilizers. However, none of this will be taking place anymore.

In other news, the second free crossover mission has arrived in Far Cry 6 today, taking Dani on a vendetta against the military alongside a Rambo superfan. Elsewhere, four games have been added to PlayStation Now today with Grand Theft Auto Vice City – The Definitive Edition headlining the selection.

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