Atari celebrates 50th anniversary by combining NFTs with lootboxes

Atari teamed up with Republic Realm to sell off their collection 'GFTs' which contains giftable NFTs in gift boxes.

Atari is teaming up with Republic Realm to sell off a collection dubbed 'GFTs' containing giftable NFTs which appear as surprise gift-wrapped boxes. Atari thinks not knowing what's inside the box makes them ideal for gifting. The anniversary honors the Atari 2600 console and popular games like Combat.

Republic Realm is 'one of the most active developers of the metaverse and NFT ecosystem'. On a particular date, the NFTs will be unwrapped to show various different NFTs based on titles from Atari's 50-year history. Buyers of gifts will discover, once unwrapped, if their gifts are 'common, rare or epic'. Their website promises that there is less than a 5% chance that a person may receive a 'rare' NFT and a less than 1% chance that it would be 'epic'.

The scheme encourages people to buy multiple GFTs, promising a surprise fifth gift if a person buys four or more. GFT holders will be able to compete in game competitions, offering special rewards for top scores. They will presumably also have access to "more to come in the metaverse".

Wade Rosen, CEO of Atari said, "The Atari brand is synonymous with video games, and video gaming is the backbone of the metaverse. What better way to commemorate Atari’s 50th anniversary than by ushering in a new era of technological innovation while also honoring the brand that launched the modern video game industry?"

Gaming companies have begun selling digital items such as NFTs, like Ubisoft and Konami. President of Square Enix, Yosuke Matsuda also committed to making NFTs and blockchains a part of their games.