Understanding CryptoPunks Helps You Perceive What NFT Marketplace Is

When talking about non-fungible tokens, many people go heedless on NFT marketplaces as they think it’s an investor-only field of play, neglecting the underlying trading in it. However, understanding how the CryptoPunks project is tailored helps you know the trading mechanism of NFT marketplaces. 

One can either sell their NFTs in the marketplace's auction or to a buyer of their choice. An NFT marketplace is a digital pool facilitating hassle-free NFT trading by integrating a crypto/fiat wallet. 

CryptoPunks - Facilitating The Pixelated ArtPunk Revolution

Released through Larva Labs, the CryptoPunks project kindled a crypto art revolution, courtesy of the Canadian developers - Matt Hall and John Watkinson. Talking about their uniqueness, the project comprised 10,000 unique collectible characters built on the Ethereum blockchain. 

The CryptoPunks Marketplace allows users to buy, sell, and trade NFTs with other community members. In the beginning, anyone with an Ethereum wallet could claim these NFTs for free. Now, CryptoPunks enthusiasts can buy them from other CryptoPunks owners.

Talking about ownership, this research paper from Edward Lee clarified what the punk owners have (with them). To highlight the status of these CryptoPunks NFTs, the portal uses a color-coding system. A purple background is used to indicate NFTs that have an active bid. The ones with a blue background are claimed to be NFTs, while those with a red background have been put up for sale by their owners.

Mastering A Close-knit Community

Beyond the headlines, the CryptoPunks have forged a close-knit global community that sees the project and the broader crypto art space as much more than a means to achieve record-breaking sales and red-carpet moments.

Just as  CryptoPunks like NFT Marketplace, share content with a small (& targeted) group of people, I’m hearing that Twitter is working on something similar (too). More such examples - and many research papers since - highlight a key facet: close-knit communities help NFT marketplaces thrive. 

Ironically, the CryptoPunks project owners never intended to create/build a community. On top of that, it didn’t even have a project roadmap. But then, what propelled such a vast project-specific community? I believe it was CryptoPunks’ decision to go on-chain because buying and storing stuff on-chain was considered valuable (by most). 

Driving Unparalleled Value With These Attributes

First and foremost, there is a lack of quantity. There will only ever be 10,000 CryptoPunks, just as there will be 21 million Bitcoin and no more. It is up to the NFT creator to decide whether they want their NFT to be a rare collectible or have multiple versions. Regardless, the NFT's authenticity can be verified in both cases thanks to their unique IDs and metadata.

Beauty, like physical art, is in the eye of the beholder, and each piece of art has a different value to different people. When it comes to valuing any art, including NFTs, there is also hedonic value, which refers to how much pleasure one gets from their work.

There are also distinct differences that make specific CryptoPunks more appealing and valuable to collectors. Alien CryptoPunks are among the most expensive NFTs ever sold because alien avatars are the most unusual randomized pictures. Ape and zombie designs are also popular. The majority of CryptoPunks, on the other hand, resemble people with various features and accessories, and the plainer-looking ones are priced around the NFT market floor.

Replicating The Extraordinary

The Larva Labs Studio has launched its next project in the form of meetbits. However, an NFT platform like CryptoPunks is still driving traction and going circles around the NFT space. 

What’s more exciting - it propels young & dynamic entrepreneurs to leverage their open-source platform. As a result, even before starting, they enjoy a brand identity, at least half of CryptoPunks’.