Neopets Metaverse, a mobile game based on the popular 1999 pet simulator, Neopets, was recently canceled after being in development for two years. The team behind the project, however, is repurposing some of the assets for a new mobile game called World of Neopets, which will not incorporate any cryptocurrency elements.

The decision to cancel the NFT game was influenced by market and community sentiment towards crypto. Neopets CEO Dominic Law explained that negative connotations associated with Web3 and the prevalence of scams have caused Neopets fans to have doubts about blockchain gaming. With the goal of bringing back the game’s 150 million users, Law aims to change this perception.

Law believes that the release of high-quality NFT games could help change public sentiment and reduce the stigma surrounding the industry. However, he noted that there currently aren’t enough good NFT games in the market.

Neopets recently raised $4 million in funding from pro-crypto investors, but Law clarified that they are currently focused on addressing the site’s fundamental issues and have only limited resources available. This includes fixing bugs and updating over 50 classic Neopets minigames after Adobe Flash was discontinued in 2020.

Although Neopets has experimented with NFTs in the past, Law stated that their current priority is fixing the site and meeting the fans’ expectations. However, he did not rule out the possibility of Neopets incorporating blockchain technology in the future, as certain aspects of Web3 could bring new gaming experiences to users and enable player ownership.

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