🌲 Survival Tip #16: Be Chain Agnostic

gm. there’s a war going on. we are fighting amongst each other for “NFT supremacy”.

everyone thinks they’re right on why *their* NFT is the best. and even worse…everyone just sides with chains and projects they’re most comfortable with.

today, I’m writing to say this: let’s work *together* people.

let’s all get together and sing “Imagine”…like those celebrities who solved the world’s problems by doing the same thing.

let’s sitdown and share a Pepsi like Kendall Jenner…and broker peace between the chains.

each one has its advantages. and it is in this commonground where I will convince you to become more openminded and chain agnostic.

Ethereum ⚓️

you can’t talk NFTs without talking about Ethereum. that’s because they started this whole damn craze (thanks I guess?).

the historic NFTs…CryptoPunks, Mooncats, Rare Pepes, and ENS…all first minted on Ethereum. and getting the headstart on this new technology has consequently given users the legup when it comes to *making* money from NFTs too.

as Ethereum has pumped, so have the value of the art and other NFTs on its chain. thus, creating a sort of self-fulfilling prophecy where projects *must* be on Ethereum in order to appear legitimate.

this means that all the talent, the trends, and yes, the money, has flown into Ethereum first…before moving its way across to other chains.

the Bored Apes are the prototypical NFT and *everyone* else is following their lead…all while playing catchup thanks to Ethereum and its culture.

Solana ⚓️

conversely, it’s been an uphill battle for Solana NFTs to gain the respect and recognition they deserve.

but with y00ts and deGods, Solana is having a moment again, and we’re nearing the point that they get adopted in a *big* way.

I understand the friction between Ethereum and Solana camps. Solana can tend to come off as “knock-off” NFTs as they tend to follow the trends of Ethereum projects.

but there has been a sudden shift. now, Ethereum NFTs are the ones coming off as lazy…and innovations within the Solana community are running rampant.

why? Solana has made it *easy* and *inexpensive* for users to get onboarded.

things are fast on the network and that includes the culture. with their cheap gas fees, people on Solana can jump around to different communities with ease in order to find their tribe.

this means their NFT communities are powerful…which shouldn’t be slept on.

Tezos ⚓️

I’ve written about Tezos a few times and I always say the same thing…but I truly do not understand why this chain’s NFTs are not more popular.

a lot of great artists use Tezos to “test” out there art and their markets. many times, that means you’re getting the same quality work at a *fraction* of the price of a 1/1 on Ethereum.

and while Solana encourages *users* to mint and find their community, Tezos uses low gas fees to encourage the *creators* to experiment on their chain.

this subtle marketing difference has made Tezos my favorite place to shop around for art. there is some fantastic stuff there. unfortunately, it’s not really advantageous (financially that is) for buyers or creators at this point.

maybe one day, Tezos will have its Solana moment. until then, I wait with my Tezzardz, Ottez, and all the cool digital art I have on that chain.

Flow ⚓️

CryptoKitties is an underrated project in the history of NFTs. they were one of the firsts and more importantly one of the most popular NFT projects early on. all the OGs have a CryptoKitty.

the same can be said for NBA Top Shot, which is also built upon Flow and the work of Dapper Labs. it onboarded a lot of noobies to NFTs…myself included.

the problem? no staying power.

I don’t want to call it mismanagement, but Dapper has squandered both of the aforementioned projects due to oversupply. and though they were both immensely popular at one point, they’ve fallen out of the conversation and deep into everyone’s browser history.

could there be a resurgence? anything is possible…and I have my eyes on NFL All Day now too. will it go the same way as NBA Top Shot? probably…but they’ve already implemented some gamification to All Day that Top Shot didn’t have for a *while*.

we just have to keep an eye on that supply 👀

Cardano ⚓️

what would you say…you do here Cardano?

jokes aside, I am excited to see and learn more about NFTs on *other* chains that I haven’t been exposed to yet (yes, Cardano included).

in particular, Arbitrum NFTs have piqued my interest lately, and I hope to dive into them in a later post.