Are you brimming with excitement trying to find the next Crypto Punk?
You’re not alone. We all have hopes and dreams of finding the next forever NFT. The truth is, it’s possible. You can find a gold status NFT which you can show with pride, one with a community of passionate enthusiasts.
In this article, we will be looking at three NFT projects which you should be paying attention to. This is based on countless hours of research scrolling through Open Sea and crypto Twitter. On that note let’s get right in.
The three projects:
Pudgy Penguins
Pudgy penguins are an adorable set of 8888 penguins composed of 173 randomly generated traits. These NFTs were a fan favorite in 2021 and are making a surprising comeback. At the time of writing, they have reached a peak floor price of 8.7 Ethereum.
However, this project has not been without its fair share of controversy. Most notably this project was led by co-founder Villiam who consistently failed to deliver and even led undisclosed paid NFT promotions.
But this unethical behavior doesn’t stop there. RiceFamer.eth stated that the project launched a bogus hiring campaign to market the project and even bribed a team member to stay quiet. This hurts the community and interest waned.
So what Changed? Well since April it has had a new breath of life in the form of an acquisition. It was sold to a fan of the project Luca Schnetzler for over $2 million. Since then it has launched its own merch, NFT store, and has completely revitalized its media image. With this new lease on life, I feel optimistic about this project.
Azuki
What are Azukis? like many other projects, they are a set of algorithmically generated avatar pictures which launched on January 12, 2022, by Chiru Labs.
As you can see they are heavily inspired by anime which has caught the attention of NFT enthusiasts. At launch, the collection sold out in a mind-blowing three minutes netting the creators 8700 Ethereum.
So what utility do they have? like Pudgy penguins. Holding Azukis provides many perks. These include exclusive access to “streetwear collabs, NFT drops, live events, and much”.
That is all well and good but this project has had a few rough patches. First of all the founder named Zagabond has a reputation for abandoning projects. As detailed on his website he left projects CryptoPhunks, Tendies and CryptoZunks in the span of a year. Although he states they were learning experiences I feel like they are nothing more than rug pulls.
So why do I like this collection? This isn’t a one-man team. Despite the controversy from the founder the team has continued to deliver. Moreover, this niche is the perfect fit for the internet community. Anime is hugely popular and this unique collection is a blue chip in that category.
Fidenza by Tyler Hobbs
Tired of 10k profile pictures and their unoriginality. Look no further. Fidenza by Tyler Hobbs is a beautiful collection of 999 artificially generated art pieces by the artist Tyler Hobbs. It is described as “Striking the right balance of unpredictability and quality”. This unique art set was inspired by Francis Klein and named after a small town in Italy.
So what are the traits? The line traits can be sharp or spiral, they can be dense or overlap. These images are simply beautiful and it is all down to Tyler Hobbs.
Who is Tyler Hobbs? he is an artist based in Texas who specializes in algorithmic generated art and painting. He is well renowned for his artwork being displayed all over the world.
Selling for over 90 Ethereum there is no doubt these are hot items and in my opinion, that’s not going to change.
Final Thoughts
Overall I think these are all solid NFTs. Pudgy Penguins and Azuki’s both have strong communities with upwards of 70k followers on Twitter alone. They continue to innovate, with developments in the metaverse, and by dropping exclusive items to keep the community excited. And despite their controversies, if they continue to innovate I think they can stand with the likes of Bored Ape Yacht Club or Crypto Punks.
On the other hand, Fidenzas are pure artistic triumphs. They are unlike anything I have ever seen. The pastel colors with varying degrees of turbulence or density create some truly unique pieces. While the community or utility is not a match to the others that’s alright. It is a collector’s item for people who appreciate the art, it’s that simple.
