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The Wax blockchain has been going from strength to strength recently as a wave of new digital collectibles hit the primary and secondary markets. The self-proclaimed ‘King of NFTs’ has been keeping a relatively low profile amidst weekly million-dollar NFT sales on Ethereum. Instead, Wax has been going about its business in a very planned way. They have even diversified away from brand-affiliated digital collectibles into music, with a collaboration with the indie band Weezer.
As a result, metrics across the premier NFT marketplaces such as Atomic Assets and newly released collections on Wax are surging, along with the token price. At the time of writing, the Wax token has increased 18% in the last 24-hours.
Say it ain’t so
Rarez, a new organization aiming to bring scarce digital collectibles, digital music, and other blockchain-based assets to the music industry, is bringing Weezer to the blockchain on April 28th, 2021. Collectors and fans will be able to buy, sell, gift, and trade Weezer digital collectible NFTs inspired by their tech-themed album OK Human. The parody titled “OK Crypto” features digital trading cards that represent each song on the album and include different rarities.
In addition, hidden in the packs will be 12 unique”Ultra Rare” golden tickets that can be redeemed for the corresponding one-of-a-kind Weezer x Death By Toys physical toy.
Up and away
Leading blockchain game Upland recently expanded its offer with the addition of an NFT marketplace on Wax which allows players to trade, buy and sell the official Upland game cards.
In the last 7-days, the Upland Collectibles marketplace has seen a 133% increase in the number of sales, up to almost 12,000. Traders have surged by almost 90% to just over 1,900 while transaction volume has increased 74% to over $54,000. Interestingly, the average sale price of an Upland digital collectible is around $4.50.
The Kogs keep turning
Another brand-affiliated release through Wax in 2020 was the Kogs collection. Kogs is a clever play on the 1990s physical collectible POGS. Collectible, colorful, and often full of nostalgia, POGS are one of those things that really only hold value to 90’s kids. Nearly everyone had a huge stack of these things, never remembering how they acquired them or even how to play with them. Nowadays, while many are worthless, there are a few that have significant value.
Moreover, Kogs isn’t just another NFT app. Users can collect and trade them as with other NFTs but these digital collectibles can also be used as playable game pieces in the beta Kogs game. They are also usable within the RFOX games ecosystem to unlock special features and functions. Furthermore, a staking program has been established to reward the community members with a small incentive for collecting sets. A 4 million RFOX prize pool was formed, valued at 100K USD, and launched to allow the community to stake their completed tubes for 90 days in return for RFOX tokens.
The staking opportunity and the mechanic utilized by the dapp to get people sharing and inviting their friends to Kogs is one factor in the surge observed. Second could be players already involved topping up on Kogs to complete their tubes and stake their NFTs.
In the last 7-days, KOGS digital collectibles have seen a surge in sales, traders, and transaction volume. Sales have increased almost 60% to over 43,000 whilst transaction volume has surged 46% to $109,340. The average sale price of a Kog is around $2.50.
Collect and earn
As previously mentioned, the Atomic Assets marketplace is really the go-to marketplace for Wax NFTs. But another entrant that grabbed our attention on Wax is an NFT marketplace called Collect. The platform actually launched in mid-February but didn’t gain any traction until the end of March. In the last 30-days, the digital collectibles marketplace has had a massive influx of users and transactions as they employ interesting retention and user incentive mechanics.
Collect is the first “Collect to Earn” platform on Wax and is in essence a social platform for collectors to track their progress, collect and collaborate. Similar to the Rarible marketplace on Ethereum. Users can choose NFTs to purchase from the growing selection available including Atari Base Heroes, Blockchain Heroes, and Street Fighter NFTs. Users complete tasks, gain XP points, and Racoon Coins via Achievements. 1 Racoon Coin = 1 XP, which in the short run could be spent to buy NFTs, participate in private sales, or take part in the VIP program.
Wax has had an impressive month. So much so that at the time of writing 3 of the top 5 dapps ranked by users run on Wax. As reported, Alien Worlds, an NFT and crypto mining game has been a big hit, eclipsing the user numbers of the previous leading blockchain game Upland. Although the growth hasn’t come without controversy.
Wax’s approach of low-value, high-volume NFT collectibles appears to be starting to make waves to a wider audience. The appeal of affordable, and in some cases familiar collectibles is resonating and it will be interesting to see if Wax can continue to build on this success and add more high-flying dapps to their arsenal.
Useful Links:
- Is Wax King of NFTs?
- What is Alien Worlds
- Explore Wax Dapps
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