Frequently, the next great thing in NFTs turns out to be a project that has existed for months or even years. Considering the proliferation of CryptoPunks, Curio Cards, MoonCats, Ghxsts, and even Ether Rocks, it is evident that collections with historical significance encounter a revival at some point.
Now, what we have often observed with legacy projects has begun to occur with CryptoSkulls. The NFT community has rediscovered interest in this collection of 10,000 pixel-art skulls several years after this OG project was initiated. Today, CryptoSkulls topped OpenSea’s 24-hour sales volume chart with over 5,000 ETH ($16 million) in sales and a record 10,206 individual sales, driving many to awaken and seek information on the revived project.
Alex Slayer, a programmer, and an artist-designed CryptoSkulls. This collection was released in May 2019, among creative projects such as Plasma Bears and Autoglyphs. Its 10,000 supply and pixel-art design were a unique nod to Larva Labs’ pioneering 2017 project CryptoPunks.
Similar to the modern PFP (profile-picture) projects that have emerged over the last year, each NFT in the CryptoSkulls collection possesses a unique set of characteristics, with some being more uncommon than others. This set of CryptoSkulls properties is known as the Uniqueness Index. On the Uniqueness Index, a Skull is rarer the fewer characteristics it possesses.
In addition to the main supply of CryptoSkulls, the founding team of the project distributed ten Skull Lords. These legendary-level NFTs were hand-drawn, named, and given a Uniqueness Index of 1.
While the majority of Skull Lords (#9, #24, #27, #36, #41, #43, and #70) display static pixel pictures, the artwork for CryptoSkull #19, CryptoSkull #20, and CryptoSkull #42 connects to short, animated YouTube films with accompanying music.
Aside from aesthetics and rarity, CryptoSkulls had a very sluggish beginning. In light of the fact that the NFT market had not yet reached even a quarter of the user numbers we’ve witnessed over the last year, a substantial quantity of the collection was actually coined and retained within the official CryptoSkulls account. The final minting of the collection did not occur until August 2019, some months after the series debuted and began building a fanbase.
In October 2020, CryptoSkulls announced intentions to integrate the project with the Gold of Skulls gamified experience. Each CryptoSkull NFT will be a playable token in Gold of Skulls, which was initially scheduled for release in the winter of 2021.
To facilitate game development, 1,000 CryptoSkulls were issued the additional identification of Game Token and were supposed to have additional capabilities in the upcoming game. Gold of Skulls, which is advertised as the “first game where the uniqueness of the collection token would effect the uniqueness of the player,” has yet to be released, although interest in the project appears to have grown.
In connection with the Gold of Skulls game announcement, the CryptoSkulls team created and released a limited number of 10,000,000 Gold of Skulls ($GSK) ERC-20 standard coins. Currently, it is still possible to purchase $GSK via ShibaSwap.
$GSK is now tradable and may be used to acquire CryptoSkulls NFTs from the official CryptoSkulls account on OpenSea. Future uses for $GSK include in-game incentives for the game Gold of Skulls, development funding, and more.
Overall, CryptoSkulls outperforms many legacy projects since it is perhaps the second 10,000-supply PFP collection on the Ethereum blockchain after CryptoPunks. However, this distinction is contingent on one’s definition of a PFP project, as some 10,000-supply gaming collectible ventures predate it. In any event, the rediscovery of an OG initiative at such a low price usually generates enthusiasm in the area. This, along with the fact that the project creators are still actively trading CryptoSkulls and creating Gold of Skulls, has caused the amount of trade to surge in 2022.
While some may have believed CryptoSkulls would see increased secondary markets in the fall of 2021 as a spooky NFT to collect for Halloween, on January 11, sales began to significantly increase as a result of key figures such as GaryVee, Steve Aoki, GMoney, FVCKRENDER, ThankYouX, Matt Medved, Leonidas, and many others joining the project.
With Alex Slayer still at the helm and as active as ever on NFT Twitter, CryptoSkulls might become a key competitor in the 2022 NFT avatar market.
With all that said, if you want to learn about how NFTs are made and sold, click here.