The Walking Dead: Empires is shuffling off this mortal coil. New technology platform Gala Games has announced plans to wind down operations. Billions of people, especially deep in emerging markets, were just dealt a body blow by this move. Is this simply another example of an unfortunate game closure, or something more nefarious?
Promises Broken, Trust Shattered?
The Web3 dream—that we’ve all been sold, hook line and sinker—is ownership. It’s about returning sovereignty over innovation to the players, the artists, the ecosystem. NFTs were the vehicle that was going to take us into this new paradigm. You own your assets. They're permanent. They’re yours.
Except, when Gala Games shuts down The Walking Dead: Empires in July 2025, it seems like those NFTs aren't so permanent after all. Deeds that used to go for an unbelievable $67,000, revolvers that could be acquired for nearly $30k? Now, they’re simply NFTs like digital mementoes traded back and forth for other NFTs within the Gala Games ecosystem. But is that true ownership, or just a glittery new type of digital sharecropping?
Just consider the signal this sends, particularly for folks in Southeast Asia and other emerging markets. These at risk communities become the willing test beds for developing new technologies, seduced by the hope of economic uplift and potential new opportunity. They saw The Walking Dead: Empires as a potential gateway to Web3, a chance to earn and participate in a new digital economy. Gala Games dangled the carrot of NFT ownership in front of players, and now they’re yanking the carrot out of reach, replacing it with… potatoes?
So is it any surprise that users are now claiming that Gala Games is going back on its word? This isn’t simply the lament of someone who is going to lose one game, this is the fear of losing confidence in the whole Web3 promise. It’s as if your bank promised you gold bars and then delivered you Monopoly money, instead of cash.
Art Devalued, Creators Disenfranchised?
Beyond the players, consider the artists. The creators that focused their unique vision into fan art, that hoped one day to have their creations live within the game they love so much. Some of them were convinced that NFTs were about to revolutionize the art world. Beyond establishing new revenue streams ranging from significant to modest, these digital assets provided artists with unprecedented, low-friction access to their audience.
Now, ironically, the game that inspired their beautiful art is being shut down. The value of their work, intrinsically tied to The Walking Dead: Empires, is diminished. We can hope that this makes a strong reminder. Even in our new, magical decentralized world of Web3, artists are still at risk of being held hostage by centralizing platforms. The promise of creative empowerment is starting to ring a bit hollow, no? This is more than simply a major game shutting down. It would be a tremendous blow to artistic freedom in the Web3 ecosystem.
Are "Ecosystem NFTs" Good Enough?
Gala Games is proposing to compensate players with NFTs from other games. They say that will give the same kind of in-game utility. Is this truly equivalent? Are we seriously arguing that doing a quest in a zombie apocalypse simulator could be equivalent to equipping an outfit in a vastly different genre? That’s not logical at all! It's like trading a car for a bicycle and saying they both get you from point A to point B.
And what about the precedent this sets? Gala Games would have the right, unilaterally, to shut down a game, and would be able to replace NFTs with “equivalent” assets. This leads to another important question: What’s stopping all the other companies from following suit? Where does it end? Is this what it means to own in a digital age—just renting our bits from tech companies? This is the antithesis of all that Web3 is meant to be.
The Walking Dead: Empires shutdown isn't just a business decision. It is a symptom of a larger problem within the Web3 space. We require much stronger regulations, much greater transparency, and a complete paradigm change. Now it’s time that we hold these companies accountable for the promises they’re making. It’s important that we not only safeguard the rights of players but creators as well.
This isn't just about The Walking Dead: Empires. It's about the future of Web3. Yet we are at a pivotal moment. Are we going to build a genuinely decentralized and empowering ecosystem, or will we just wrap a new centralized control in blockchain speak? It's time to demand better. It's time to hold Gala Games accountable. It’s high time we reclaimed the promise of Web3. Are you with me?
