Pixelmon is among the most controversial NFT collections to drop in 2022. However, it’s still ranking high up the DappRadar Top NFT Collections charts. Why are these disappointing game characters raking in millions in trading volume? Where is the project headed? Read on to find out what happens with the notorious Pixelmon project in the weeks following the disappointing NFT drop.
Pixelmon was one of the most hyped gaming and NFT projects at the beginning of 2022. The Pokemon-inspired game dropped its Generation 1 NFT collection earlier this year. The art design reveal was held at the end of February.
Unfortunately, the reveal turned out to be more of a meme fest than a successful event. You can read all about the disappointing artwork in this DappRadar coverage. For illustration purposes, here is one of the more notorious designs, which has now turned into a meme in its own right:
Why are collectors still investing in Pixelmon?
At first glance, it looked like the anticlimactic design reveal was going to level the Pixelmon project to the ground completely. However, crypto Twitter took to having fun with the disappointing designs, keeping the buzz going for Pixelmon.
In the meantime, Syber, the leading powerhouse behind the game, worked hard to figure out a way to bring Pixelmon back to life. The creator was busy pushing roadmap updates and plans to the Pixelmon Discord server. Most importantly, he focused on shedding light on some treasury spending brought up as concerning on Twitter.
One of the most important goals for Syber and the Pixelmon community right now is the complete redesign of the collection. On March 21st, Syber released this concept of a redesign in the common chat on Discord:
It seems that these concept sketches have returned some of the hype and faith in the project after the misfortunate initial reveal. Consequently, traders are looking to get in on the project while prices are low.
Trading volume shoots through the roof
When the collection dropped, generating over $70 million in minting volume, a single NFT cost as high as 3 ETH, or around $10,000. At the time of writing, the floor price for a Pixelmon NFT is about $702. A considerably lower entry point and the promise of a complete redesign seem to be pushing activity for the project.
According to DappRadar data, the Pixelmon Generation 1 collection has seen a significant boost in activity in the past seven days. The floor price increased by more than 35%, while the number of sales skyrocketed 265%.
Most impressively, the collection generated over $5.8 million in trading volume in the past week. This is quite the achievement, ranking Pixelmon at 23rd place out of all Top NFT Collections tracked on DappRadar.
What’s next for Pixelmon?
According to the official roadmap for the project, the next big thing Pixelmon fans should expect is a token release. The plan is to reach this milestone by the summer of 2022. However, considering the troublesome start, the team might not be able to meet this deadline.
Currently, Syber is working on assembling an executive team to help him with the management and governance of the Pixelmon project. According to a Discord announcement, from March 11th, the team is now working on building a solid and experienced board to fill the key operational roles a project of this size requires (such as CEO, CFO, COO, etc).
Presumably, work on the Pixelmon roadmap will continue as expected when this team is assembled. The community is eagerly awaiting the Pixelmon token to drop and actual gameplay elements to come to life. For the moment, it is unclear whether a demo or alpha version of the game will be available in 2022.
DappRadar will continue monitoring the Pixelmon project, as it strives to leave the misfortune NFT design reveal in the past. The spike in trading activity in recent weeks can be interpreted as a positive signal, yet the bitter taste remains for many early investors. If you want to keep a close track of Pixelmon’s development, check out the official dapp page. Additionally, you can follow DappRadar on Twitter to get the latest NFT and blockchain gaming news first.
