GM

Mint or Skip will eventually (hopefully) be much more than a newsletter.

But this is the chill era, where it's just you and me, talking about JPEGs. Feelsgoodman.

In today’s edition:

• What NFT Twitter won't tell you

• Updated rankings

• 4 new interesting drops

More info on Mint/Watch lists HERE.

Did you know?

We have a premium pass that gives you access to a directory of every drop we cover, complete with detailed information on how to get on every whitelist (including those underrated ones that aren’t already full).

And for those curatooors out there, you can get free NFTs just by finding drops that end up on the Mint or Watch list.

Lastly, hang with me and the MoS team in a private discord with weekly voice chats. The vibes are great.

What NFT Twitter won't tell you

One of my close friends, who recently took a break from NFTs, logged back into Twitter this week to find this as the most trending project:

They’re Fatzukis. They’re like the real Azukis, but morbidly obese – get it?? Just another classic example of Ye Olde Derivatives with a predictable ending that whips the space into a short frenzy.

He laughed at the never-ending immaturity. But I patiently sat down with him, and as a loyal friend, a true paesano, I gave him the real alpha.

You see, the truth is… NFT Twitter is no longer a good measure of what’s actually happening in NFTs.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s still a good way to find a very specific type of project: mainly speculative limited-edition drops.

But, as time goes by, these are becoming a smaller and less relevant part of the space.

And today, Dear Readers, we’ll go over a perfect example.

NFL Rivals

This is a Web3 mobile title by Mythical Games. And despite getting less than 1% of the Twitter attention as Fatzukis, it’s quietly becoming one of the fastest-growing NFT games ever.

NFL Rivals launched back in April and has already hit 1 million downloads while maintaining a high 4.8 rating, all during the NFL off-season.

I had to try it for myself, which I did for several hours yesterday, and I can safely say that even as someone who doesn’t watch football – it’s addictive AF.

At its core, this is a casual sports game with very simple passing and movement mechanics. You play games, rack up points, use those points to buy packs with players, and then try to build the best team that you can with those cards.

But we’re not here to talk about any ol’ mobile game just because it’s fun.

The twist is NFL Rivals uses NFTs without players even knowing

They do this by (quietly) giving every account its own custodial wallet. Cards bought in-app come with a matching NFT that goes into that wallet and can later be sold via their marketplace.

Here was my experience:

1. Played a couple games to learn the ropes

2. Received a message in my “inbox”

3. Message said something like “psst, hey, you want the good good? Come to our marketplace.”

4. Link took me to a web browser marketplace where I could trade with other players after linking my account.

Very subtle, very clever.

According to cryptoslam, there has already been more than half a million dollars in total sales through this marketplace. And top sales have reached $1,250 – presumably for a card that was bought in a pack for maybe $5-10.

Plus, it’s likely to get crazier. According to John Linden, the Mythical Games CEO, the next two major features they’re working on are:

• The ability to make offers in-app on people’s cards. So imagine logging in and seeing that Timmy Fortnite threw a $100 offer on a random card you had. That’s likely to get more people to try the marketplace.

• Migrating the marketplace into the app itself. This is something they’re “making progress” on in discussions with Apple and Google.

It’s worth noting that the NFTs themselves are on the Mythical Chain on Polkadot, and that as of right now there’s no way to withdraw these NFTs from the Mythical custodial wallet.

However, Linden has stated that this is coming later this year, and prior Mythical titles like Blankos Block Party have already received withdrawal features.

One last point – and friends, I want to be clear: this is not an ad and I have never had any contact with Mythical, but I do recommend people check the game out as a sign of things to come.

Just yesterday Google announced a new clear path for NFT apps to launch on Google Play. There are some (common sense) restrictions in place, like not promoting the ability to make money, and being clear that your game actually has “digital collectibles”.

But overall this is a step in the right direction and should lead to a slew of new games in the coming months.

We’ll keep you in the loop.

NOTE: These drops are lightly curated. Our only requirement is that they have recognizable founders. As usual, DYOR. To learn more go here.

6529 Meme Card #119 – Jarvinart

6529’s Memes Collection has become a staple in the web3 digital art scene, with the platform’s inaugural and closing drops of each season holding a special place in collectors’ minds.

Now the 4th season is upon us, opening with a piece by environmental artist Idil Dursun, a.k.a. Jarvinart, known in the space since 2021 for her futuristic CGI work.

As usual, the release follows the 6529 allowlist model determined by collector holdings, something that might also be true for the platform’s upcoming generative contract 👀

Beauty Supply Is Out of Du-Rags by Ed Balloon

I wrote about Prohibition’s upcoming platform launch yesterday, and now we have some daily artist reveals happening as the second collection has been unveiled.

Artist and musician Ed Balloon presents Beauty Supply Is Out of Du-Rags, a 333-supply celebration of African American culture, a sight unfortunately not seen much in popular generative art releases.

The unique conceptual depiction here is tastefully done and could pique some collectors’ interest.

Necromancer by Andrew Mitchell

”(…)Venture carefully, for they say an ancient terror resides in these woods.”

Except the ancient terror looks like a demonic wassie wearing a top hat.

The third Prohibition project is looking like an exceedingly fun one as Andrew Mitchell (one half of Mitchell & Yun Studios) presents Necromancer.

This might be my personal favorite from Prohibition’s reveals so far. It's engaging, unique, and looks polished.

Level Up Reddit Avatars

👉You get a Reddit Avatar! 👈And you get a Reddit Avatar! 👇And you-

As we await further details on the Gen 4 collection, the social media giant seems to be gearing up for a separate release in the meantime, with leaks of an upcoming free airdrop breaking on Twitter courtesy of usual suspect @JackDaniel8008.

Details are still hazy as Redditors theorize what these entail. But there could be an upgrade mechanic at play here, where collectors are encouraged to take certain actions in order to evolve their PFPs.

The Mint List

1. Taproot Wizards. OG Bitcoin meme inscribed as ordinals

2. Project Animus. RTFKT's biggest launch since Clone-X

3. Symbiogenesis. Square Enix's upcoming gaming NFT

4. Themes and Variations. Sotheby’s showcases pioneer gen artist

5. Acceptable Realities. Fellowship’s 2nd AI photography drop

6. 10KTF PFP. Drop from a team that includes Yuga and Beeple

7. Dimensionals - EVE. Free gaming PFP from doxxed studio

8. Garbage Friends. New PFP from the creator of Invisible Friends

9. Pluto. Polygon’s new flagship access pass project

10. Tony Babel x Typical Friends. Limited edition from the popular artist