NFT collection Azuki plans to produce animation and update works ── Respond to criticism when new collection is issued | CoinDesk JAPAN | Coin Desk Japan

The new collection “Elementals” of the popular NFT collection “Azuki”, which collected 38 million dollars (approximately 5.51 billion yen, equivalent to 145 yen per dollar) in just 15 minutes, caused a community backlash. In response to this, the Azuki team is said to have a plan to update the work of animation production and Elementals.

Some of the 20,000 copies of Elementals were sold in a sale format, but there was a backlash from some collectors who could not issue NFTs due to technical problems and a short publication period. Shortly after, Azuki released the Elementals piece, but owners commented that it was virtually indistinguishable from the original Azuki collection, and rumors of dilution due to increased supply circulated. Within hours, the floor price of the original Azuki collection dropped 44%.

A plan to distinguish from the original collection

Anonymous Azuki owner Arcanic took to Twitter on the 29th to detail what was discussed in a private call between the Azuki team and the community. According to Arcanic, anonymous Azuki co-founder Zagabond and other “core” team members have clarified next steps for the project.

The Azuki team held a call with the community in the discord today.

Zagabond, Steamboy, and other core members came on to address the situation on Elementals, and give clarity on their next steps.

Here is a mega-thread of everything that was discussed pic.twitter.com/zQ80JJmmVw

—Arcanic (@ArcanicNFT) June 30, 2023

Arcanic tweeted, “The team hoped to capture the same feeling people have when looking at the original Azuki collection. The intention was ‘give more of what they love’ but failed.” bottom.

AZUKI ALPHA LEAK BY @steamboy33:

THIS IS CONCEPT ART.

The team is working on creating backgrounds for Elementals that show a noticeable difference between the OG collection.

*Work shown is NOT final and subject to change* pic.twitter.com/eBMWdUe8nY

—Arcanic (@ArcanicNFT) June 30, 2023

The Azuki team said they plan to update the pieces in the Elementals collection to further distinguish them from the original collection. Arcanic shared, as leaked, works by Azuki co-creator Arnold Tsang, featuring various backgrounds.

Anime plan concretely

Azuki has previously hinted that he is working on an anime series featuring the character world. Arcanic said the Azuki team took the project further in a call with the community, revealing it would be self-funded as an animated short film incorporating Web3 technology. The Green Bean, which was recently airdropped to an Azuki owner, is also reportedly making an appearance in the series.

“Imagine watching an anime and then being able to interact with NPCs in the anime through Twitter or a web app,” Zagabond said in a call. “NPCs can issue tokens that you can interact with.”

Arcanic said Azuki is also working on other ways to reward holders, such as showing “collector status” to long-term holders and those who own tokens with rare properties.

Some optimism about the project

Arcanic told CoinDesk that while he is frustrated with Elementals’ issuance and publication of his work, he is optimistic about Azuki’s future and how the project will learn from its mistakes.

“The team has proven to be highly capable and passionate,” Arcanic said. “As long as they continue to work with the core community, I believe they can start regaining the trust of the wider community,” he said.

According to OpenSea, a major NFT marketplace, at the time of writing this article, the floor price of Elementals is 1.29 ETH (about 360,000 yen), and the trading volume is about 11,930 ETH (about 3,335 million yen). Azuki’s floor price is hovering at 8.19 ETH (about 2.29 million yen), and the trading volume exceeds 596,900 ETH (about 159.5 billion yen).

｜Translation: CoinDeskJAPAN
｜Editing: Rinan Hayashi
｜Image: OpenSea
｜Original: Azuki Teases Anime Series, New Artwork After Missing the Mark on Elementals Mint