Many individuals believe that the NFTs will soon take over the digital world thanks to the metaverse explosion. According to a report by blockchain specialist site Chainalysis, people spent cryptocurrencies worth $44.2 billion on NFTs alone in 2021.
As individuals become aware of the benefits of investing in NFTs, their popularity will continue to grow in 2022. Many artists are releasing their best work as NFTs. Buyers have been looking for projects that add the most value to their investment portfolio. In this guide, we’ll look at the finest NFT projects with a good return on investment.
While the NFT community has embraced all of the initiatives mentioned, they are vastly different from one another. The launch date, use-case, trading platform or blockchain employed, and other factors can differ from project to project. This guide will go over the top NFT projects and sort them into three categories: existing, new, and upcoming.
Current NFT Projects
These are some of the more notable projects that can be considered ventures that helped develop the NFT market into what it is today. These projects have been active for a while, and several of them are well-known in the crypto industry as NFTs.
Lucky Block NFTs
LBLOCK holders vote in the crypto lottery project’s destiny and receive benefits for holding a portion of the jackpot prize pool – NFT holders are also entered into daily lottery draws.
The Lucky Block Platinum Rollers Club consists of 10,000 limited editions NFTs in video files, including 25 rares, whose holders receive a 2x multiplier on any jackpot won. A Lamborghini will also be given away to one NFT buyer.
CryptoPunks
The CryptoPunks NFT project was started in June 2017 by co-founders John Watkinson and Matt Hall. The developers aimed to reflect the anti-establishment and rowdy atmosphere of the early blockchain period with a punk style as one of the first NFT collections to be successful at this level.
CryptoPunks are 10,000 one-of-a-kind 24X24 pixel skulls created on the Ethereum blockchain. While most punks are male and female humans, the collection includes unusual species such as apes, aliens, and zombies. A bucktooth, a mole, a huge beard, a cigarette, shades, a top hat, and earrings are among the seven distinguishing qualities of these punks. The design of these varies.
Larva Labs, the business behind CryptoPunks, first distributed 9000 NFTs to anyone with an Ethereum wallet that could claim them while keeping 1000 as “Dev punks.” It wasn’t long before the punks gained notoriety and were being traded for large sums of money. Mashable published an article that got so popular that they sold out the available collection in less than 24 hours.
The idea has gathered a lot of traction and is currently trading at a high price. In the NFT or crypto realm, CryptoPunk NFTs are also tempting as a technique for establishing rank or seniority.
Several well-known figures have endorsed the project and have publicly displayed the NFTs they own on social media, creating the impression of an elite crypto society. The most expensive CryptoPunk is CryptoPunk 7523, which sold for a large quantity of Ethereum worth $11.75 million.
BAYC
These well-dressed monkeys with stylish accessories are a must-see for any NFT piece. The Bored Apes Yacht Club, or BAYC, was created and introduced by Yuga Labs in April 2021, with a minting cost of only 0.08 ETH. One of the project’s co-founders explained that they chose apes to reference crypto slang.
They came up with the concept of basing the enterprise around apes after hearing the expression “to ape in,” which indicates hastily investing money into many initiatives. The crew was also inspired by CryptoPunks, the only top NFT project at the time.
BAYC comprises 10,000 apes with different facial expressions, fur types, clothing, accessories, etc. One can use these features to determine the axis’ rarity in the Opensea marketplace, the BAYC’s main marketplace. They’re also pricey, with The Bored Ape #8817 being the most expensive at $3.4 million.
The BAYC’s value has skyrocketed, and for all the right reasons. Holders of NFTs felt a sense of elevated status due to their exorbitant cost; this aided in bringing in well-known figures, which helped BAYC gain prominence. BAYC reached a 100 ETH floor price in January 2022.
Eminem, Steph Curry, Jimmy Fallon, and Post Malone wear their Apes on social media in the entertainment and sports worlds. As if that wasn’t enough, Adidas also included BAYC as one of the top names in its Into the Metaverse NFT program. The corporation also purchased an ape of its own.
Once they released a mutant serum, it grew in popularity, allowing owners to mutate their apes. The project has aspired to be more than just an NFT by establishing itself as an “off-chain” brand. In conjunction with Animoca Brands, the club announced a P2E game for 2022.
On March 12th, 2022, Yuga Labs (the inventors of BAYC) acquired CryptoPunks and Meebits from Larva Labs, causing the floor price of all three NFT collections to rise.
Axie Infinity
Axie Infinity, a blockchain-based battle game with NFTs called Axies, was founded in 2018 by Sky Mavis, Trung Nguyen, and Aleksander Larsen. The game made headlines in 2021 when its native token, AXS, skyrocketed in value. However, the value of the characters, namely Axies, increased in tandem.
At one point, someone traded the most costly Axie monster for roughly 115 ETH. However, the same Axie is now valued at more than $1.5 million.
In this situation, the NFTs are not only a work of art or a collectible but also a tool in the Axie Infinity Game. The Axies are traded on the Axie Marketplace and are based on the Ethereum blockchain. Players can exchange items or land for NFTs in the marketplace within the game.
Art Blocks Curated
Consider a piece of art made by an autonomous system utilizing parameters provided by a person rather than an artist. That is what Artblocks is about. Generative art is the name given to this approach to making stunning masterpieces.
Erick Calderon’s desire to capture the actual essence of digital art prompted him to take his pastime more seriously, resulting in one of the most spectacular NFT projects. Erick Calderon, the founder of Artblocks, sold a number of his CryptoPunks at low prices to fund his initiative.
Erick didn’t like the notion of generating profile pic pixel heads in the same way. He also saw an abundance of art that people could not appreciate due to the large sums of money earned by creators.
As a result, Art Blocks Curated was implemented. Among others offered by Artblock, this collection is the most meticulously picked of the bunch. An individual must submit their work to a panel of curators, who will decide whether or not to post the NFT on Artblock.
Several well-known artists have embraced Artblock, resulting in increased visibility. Furthermore, when the NFT verse matures, it will seek magnificent artworks. Artblock might be the place for an art aficionado who isn’t fond of pixel head jpeg files.
New NFT Projects
These few initiatives have recently gained a lot of attention and are doing well. Due to their popularity, they are now being minted or are in the news. These NFTs are among the best picks of investors in recent times, with the highest level of community interaction.
Ghozali Every day
This may seem overwhelming, but it’s true. As part of a school movie, this 22-year-old Indonesian boy took selfies of himself for about four years. Ghozali, on the other hand, decided to sell them on the Opensea marketplace, describing them as “truly a picture of me standing in front of the computer day by day.”
Ghozali’s first photograph was priced at $3 when he launched on January 9, 2022. As of right now, the current volume traded is roughly 370 ETH, with a floor price of 0.25 ETH. While this does not necessarily imply that the project is worth investing in as a community or has potential, it is one to keep an eye on.
This demonstrates how NFTs could play a part in displaying our full personality in a virtual world. And collectors don’t have to miss out on the buying chance because this is, and always will be, the first NFT collection of a genuine person; this could lead to higher bids for the collection in the future.
Doodles NFTs
Doodles, which debuted on October 17th, 2021, is led by two highly wealthy figures in the NFT business. Since 2018, Evan Keast, one of the co-founders, has worked at Dapper Labs; this is the same company that brought Cryptokitties and NBA Topshot to life.
Scott Martin, a Canadian artist who created the collection, is a fan favorite because of the style he has developed. He has received a lot of appreciation from the audience for his simple yet appealing painting style. Previously, the creator collaborated with Google and Snapchat.
Jordan Castro, the platform’s other co-founder, previously worked at Dapper labs and was known to manage the Cryptokitties development team. Doodles acquired a lot of traction when it was launched, thanks to a group of pros like these. Since then, the number of purchases has continued to rise, with the most expensive doodle fetching 296.69 ETH.
Despite being only a few months old, Doodles has climbed the NFT charts. These vivid, clear-line drawings should be on your watchlist, with a multilayer feature.
Phanta Bear
Phanta Bears has gone viral with partnerships, sales, celebrity backing, and much more since its inception on January 1, 2022. The project, founded by Ezek Club, an Asian digital club, garnered a record number of members in its Discord community in just five days.
A prominent Taiwanese performer known as the King of Mandipop, Jay Chou, is one of the founders. His fashion label PHANTACi supports the initiative.
The owners of a Phanta Bear NFT gain entry to the exclusive Ezek Club and the Matrix World. Matrix World is a Matrix Labs metaverse project. The Phanta Bear collection’s roadmap takes an ambitious approach.
Phanta bears have a lot planned, including virtual concerts and interactions between the bears as the owners’ personalities within the virtual world. In the previous week, the 10,000 NFT collection sold more than BAYC; this demonstrates the project’s rapid development.
Phanta Bears intends to build for the long term and give owners perks and fair value for their investments, with a current floor price of roughly 3 ETH.
Azuki NFTs
The town has been buzzing about this anime-inspired art collection. Simple lines or animals with pixel heads are part of the conventional appearance of an NFT collection. This project, on the other hand, is a very another story.
The art is nothing short of incredible, and the project is optimized for the metaverse and created by the community. The owners will have access to The G as part of the project. Several partially doxxed developers founded the project. Engineers with experience from businesses like Facebook, however, are among them. They launched the project on January 13th, 2022, and it sold out in minutes.
To get the NFTs, you’ll have to go to a third-party marketplace. To become not only an NFT project but also a Metaverse brand in the future, this Ethereum smart chain project will be one to watch. Arden is a virtual space where innovators may come together and work to construct a decentralized future.
Upcoming NFT Projects
These are some of the most talked-about initiatives in the field, with much community support and interest. The projects have not yet been launched, but many are aware that even a whitelist slot could result in a quick windfall. These initiatives will be unveiled in the following weeks or months.
Dogami
Since the early Dogecoin days, NFT creators have attempted to incorporate the dog meme into their artworks to make a quick buck. But a plain JPG of a Dog did not appeal to the public.
With Dogami, however, this is not the case. Dogami is already being embraced by NFT collectors and other community members, with over 50,000 members on Discord and 30,000 followers on Twitter.
Dogami is a mobile-optimized crypto game with Dog avatars as NFTs set to launch in January. Users can collect or sell NFTs, play, earn, and socialize in their “Petaverse” metaverse. It is based on the Tezos network and is one of the first AAA crypto games to be released. The project’s creators are well-known for their work in Marvel and DC comics, among other things.
Dogami was considered a likely triumph when it began, thanks to a funding round that saw the company secure roughly $6 million from top gaming and tech businesses like Ubisoft and Animoca Brands.
Invisible Friends NFT
Last but not least, Invisible Friends is one of those initiatives that everyone hopes will be approved. Due to numerous considerations, the initiative is already being deemed a great success with a collection of 5000 Invisible Friends.
The project’s lead artist Markus Magnusson is a talented artist with over ten years of expertise who has worked for various clients, including Google doodles and Dropbox sticker packs. Invisible Friends is supported by Random Character Collective, which has already produced two successful NFT initiatives.
With nearly 70K followers, the community is massive. The release date has not been determined but it was expected to be in February. The presale was completely sold out, and public minting is now available. The clean and refreshing aesthetic may appeal to the public.
With many celebrities and content creators assisting with the project’s promotion, it won’t be long before we see Invisible Friends among the top NFTs.