NFT Communities

The following is an overview of the famous NFT communities that have evolved and explains in brief how different communities interact. It also explains how to interact with an NFT community and how NFT communities connect with each other and grow.

People can collect tokens that double as their membership to exclusive clubs with member-exclusive perks. So think about one question. What do NFT communities now expect from these membership “clubs”? What is a good community experience?

What Are the Most Famous NFT Communities?

The top NFT communities have the most activities around them. They can be arranged for different projects, such as NFT games or collectibles. Knowing about the top communities is particularly important for creators and investors to create a business plan or an investment thesis around this nascent world of NFTs.

The list includes:

Cryptopunks

Known for: Being the first mover Created by: Larvalabs

Developed by Larva Labs, this project launched in 2017. Cryptopunks is powered by Ethereum, and it includes 10,000 unique characters mainly depicting male and female humans. There are also NFTs in the forms of Apes, Zombies, and Aliens.

Initially, those items were freely available for holders of Ethereum wallets. Hence, it is a famous project in the eyes of the open source crypto community. They were designed to onboard people to crypto and educate people about the power of blockchains.

According to their website: The Cryptopunks are one of the earliest examples of a “Non-Fungible Token” on Ethereum, and were inspiration for the ERC-721 standard that powers most digital art and collectibles.

Today, Cryptopunks enthusiasts must purchase the works from their owners.

Bored Ape Yacht Club (“BAYC”)

Known for: The hyped collection Created by: Yuga Labs

BAYC is arguably the most famous project among crypto enthusiasts. The club includes a collection of 10,000 NFTs on Ethereum. Each NFT represents an ape with certain traits and visual attributes.

Importantly, those avatars were marketed as serving as tickets to an online social club. Today, it is one of the most prestigious collections in the world. With many celebrities having bought into the community, flexing their newly acquired Bored Apes as their profile pictures on Twitter. Examples such as this highlight the power of hype and the perception of exclusivity in the NFT world.

Obsessed BAYC NFT communities camp on Discord with tens of thousands of users. Further, Twitter users with a bored ape profile pic have immediately earned thousands of followers for perhaps being seen as early adopters and smart crypto investors. They were also rewarded with an airdrop of Apecoin in March 2022.

In May 2022, BAYC began selling Metaverse land causing Ethereum gas prices to surge and crash.

Axie Infinity

Known for: gaming royalty Created by: SKY Mavis PTE. Ltd.

NFT communities inspired by Axie Infinity are all about growing a network dedicated to a particular game. Building a community around a beloved online game, powered by NFTs.

The first Axie game came out in 2018. The game was developed by Sky Mavis on Ethereum. This start up quickly attracted lots of fans of NFT gaming. While it is not the biggest NFT community found on the market today, it is growing quickly with legions of dedicated fans. It is popular across Asia, particularly in the Philippines, where many workers were furloughed during COVID-19 and have used the game as a source of income. Community success is based on a popular game and tokenised income.

The participants of this community can create, buy, and sell creatures called Axies. Also, they can participate in various battles. While the game is labelled “18+ age”, it is highly appealing to children thanks to an apparently unclear age verification process.

Pudgy Penguins

Known for: Bad community management Created by: Cole Villemain, known as “ColeThereum.

The Collection of 8,888 super cute Penguins on the Ethereum ETH blockchain was launched in July 2021. It’s a story of how not to run an NFT community.

The beloved and oh-so-cute NFT project Pudgy Penguins voted out its founders in January 2021 after they allegedly failed to deliver on stated goals for the community and drained the treasury of funds.

Part of their community wrapped their NFTs so that they weren’t associated with the founder anymore and plan to build out their own vision of the community.

Moonbirds

Known for: Digital identities

This is a good example of how to build a community due a perceived utility of the NFT. In early 2022, even after the NFT hype has passed, Moonbirds (randomly generated owls) have become a major NFT collection according to sales volume. According to their website: “Moonbirds are more than just an avatar. They’re a collection of 10,000 utility-enabled PFPs that feature a richly diverse and unique pool of rarity-powered traits. What’s more, each Moonbird unlocks private club membership and additional benefits the longer you hold them. We call it nesting – because, obviously.” In other words, users can also “nest” or stake their tokens.

But the real value is because PROOF Collective built the collection. Interest in the collection of 10,000 birds was high partly because of the people behind it: the PROOF Collective, a group of 1,000 NFT collectors. Members include well-known NFT figures, including artist Mike Winkelmann, known as Beeple, and investor Gary Vaynerchuk.

Azuki

Known for: Building on Anime pop culture Created by: Zagabond

Launched in January 2022, the Azuki skateboarder crew became very popular very quickly.

One key takeaway according to Andrew Steinwold, who runs a $100 million Chicago-based NFT investment fund that owns some Azukis, thinks the quality of Azuki’s art is “comparatively high.”

It certainly provides some solid nostalgia value for those who like anime.

Azukis also capture “the rebellious culture of skateboarders,” which connects well with those into crypto and NFTs. See the full story of this popular collection here.

World of Women

Known for: Being the change maker Created by: Yam Karkai

Their mission is built on a mission to empower female artists. According to their website:

“WoW owners are contributors and investors in our mission, which comes with unique benefits.

BENEFITS OF WOW OWNERSHIP INCLUDE: – Ownership of the underlying artwork and IP – Original monthly ArtDrops from select NFT artists – Exclusive access to your WoW 4k x 4k file – Curated pre-sales and mint pass for high potential collections vetted by the DAWoW – Holders-only raffles and discounts – Invite to annual gala for holders and IRL events”

And generative Art projects such as Art Blocks

Art Blocks

Known for: Generative art Created by: Erick Calderon

What is art? The art is in the code. Art Blocks created programmable on demand generative content. The resulting piece might be a static image, 3D model, or an interactive experience. Each output is different and there are endless possibilities for the types of content that can be created on the platform.

Content is stored immutably on the Ethereum Blockchain. You pick a style that you like, pay for the work, and a randomly generated version of the content is created by an algorithm and sent to your Ethereum account.

Now it’s your turn

Which of these communities sounds the most interesting to you? How might you go about finding out more about that community? Share your thoughts in the comments.