The GameStop NFT launch strategy was unlike competition, and it worked to bring over $4,000,000 in volume in just three days. Here’s how.

In April of 2021, GameStop Chief Technology Officer Matt Francis stated the company’s transformation will be studied in every business school for the next decade. 

We’re witnessing this transformation in real-time. Why wait to study? Let’s dive into GameStop NFT’s marketplace launch strategy. It’s both counter-intuitive and simple.

GameStop’s strategy is involves building in silence and putting the community first. Stay tuned for exclusive insights from top GameStop NFT marketplace launch creators Ordinary Adam and Cyber Crew. 

Liftoff!

GameStop dropped their beta NFT Marketplace without warning on 7/11 at 4:20pm EST. 

In the crypto market, enthusiasts are used to new ventures spending weeks promoting and driving as much hype as possible prior to a launch.

But GameStop didn’t hype the marketplace in advance, and their official beta launch announcement was only a single paragraph press release. The gaming retailer didn’t even tweet about it until 20 hours later. 

The discreet release of the GameStop NFT launch was intentional. Even today, everyday people outside of retail investing circles have little knowledge that the “left for dead retailer,” launched something new, as stated by Chairman Ryan Cohen.

This is a completely different approach from how Coinbase, the leading centralized crypto exchange, launched their NFT Marketplace with mass marketing.

Why would GameStop do this?

The Rise and Fall of Coinbase NFT

Let’s first dive deeper into Coinbase’s NFT marketing strategy to understand why GameStop NFT took a different approach. 

Coinbase started promoting its NFT marketplace back in October 2021, when its VP of Product published a medium article encouraging people to join a waitlist.

Coinbase had decided to build in the open, providing updates and previews along the way. 

Coinbase NFT promoted their waitlist on October 12, 2021.

Four months later, in February 2022, Coinbase had over 3.7 million people on its waitlist. The crypto exchange also had a viral superbowl commercial which increased app downloads by 279%.

Coinbase NFT’s success seemed inevitable. If they just convert 2 to 5% of those 3.7 million people into users, the crypto exchange would have 74,000 to 185,000 users on day one, beating OpenSea’s daily users of 40,000 to 50,000 immediately.

At the time, the NFT-sphere on Twitter couldn’t stop talking about how Coinbase NFT’s launch would pump their bags and make them rich by onboarding hundreds of thousands of new users that’ll want to buy their NFTs.

Tweet from 570kyle on July 12, 2022.

On April 20, 2022, the beta version of Coinbase NFT finally launched, but only a select few that Coinbase invited via email could use the marketplace.

Coinbase claimed the marketplace was being rolled out in the order of the waiting list, but suspicion rose over the platform’s gated entrance.

It appeared that big NFT influencers were given priority access to beta test the Coinbase NFT marketplace. 

TechCrunch on April 20, 2022

Two weeks later, when Coinbase NFT was out of beta and available for everyone, Coinbase only had 150 transactions on its first official day. Few expected this massive failure, but it was dead on arrival

Coinbase NFT’s botched launch demonstrates failure to captivate an audience. Coinbase had the customers, but it didn’t have a community. The exchange had millions of existing crypto customers, but lacked a tight-knit community strong enough to support new business ventures. 

the GameStop NFT Community

GameStop Board Member Larry Cheng, who was also the first investor in Chairman Ryan Cohen’s Chewy, understands that communities are the key value drivers for businesses. 

Communities are created by people; so a genuine community isn’t easy to build. It’s about those with similar interests building relationships amongst one another and fostering a sense of belonging. 

GameStop didn’t need marketing for their NFT Marketplace because their community of individual investors is doing it for them.

When GameStop first published their NFT landing page, the gaming retailer didn’t announce anything. Still, retail investors quickly noticed the website contained a form where artists can request to be a creator on the GameStop NFT Marketplace. 

GMEdd.com’s 12/28/2021 article ‘GameStop Confirms NFT Marketplace, Calls on Creators to Request Minting Access Now.

In an interview with GMEdd.com, Ordinary Adam, a top GameStop NFT Launch Creator with $735,849 volume in one week, said he heard about the upcoming Marketplace thanks to the Reddit community and GMEdd.com. 

“I had a lot of fun following the bread crumb trail and hints left around that it was happening on Loopring technology,” Ordinary Adam says. “I had applied to the GameStop marketplace after I was heavily encouraged by the community to do so, I honestly thought I wouldn’t get in.”

After Ordinary Adam received word that he was approved for the marketplace, he shared that his experience with the GameStop blockchain team was “unbelievably positive.” 

“Admittedly I was nervous during our first conversation, but the moment we started chatting it felt like I was talking to old friends,” Ordinary Adam says. “The team is very receptive to feedback and really just wants to create the best experience for everybody. I couldn’t gush more about the team they’ve put together, just great people all around.”

Since the launch of the Marketplace, Ordinary Adam has sold out of his collection of animated trading cards full of inside jokes referencing GameStop’s retail investor community. 

Ordinary NFT Cards on GameStop NFT.

GameStop’s fanbase formed slowly and gradually, starting with a small group of individual retail investors who saw value in the company. When the buy button was turned off in late January of 2021 and the stock price dropped, investors were outraged and interest grew.

With various GameStop discussions forming on Reddit, Discord, and Twitter, GameStop began embracing their newfound fame.

The company formed a social media response team, SMRT, which would both help customers with order issues and engage with the community. The brand also started selling GameStop hoodies with small rockets on them as a subtle nod to the stock “going to the moon.” 

GameStop NFT developers are in on the fun as well, as the team hid a “secret.txt” file in the marketplace. When the community discovered it, it was quickly decoded and a secret message saying, “Power to the Puzzlers” was revealed. 

GameStop knows their fanbase loves to decode and investigate. Through hidden puzzles and easter eggs, the company directly engages with its community in a way that is authentic.

GameStop NFT Launch Strategy & Results

Back in October, when Coinbase was collecting emails, GameStop was building their marketplace in silence and dropping breadcrumbs that suggested the “left for dead retailer” was building something new.

Ryan Cohen’s tweet on July 11th, 2022.

Rather than spoon feeding the bigger picture to the community, GameStop helped the collective grow even stronger by giving them just enough hints to piece things together

Even with NFT trading volume in the broader market down 66% in the last 3 months, the strong retail base brought GameStop’s marketplace to 45,000 transactions on the platform’s first day

And in less than 48 hours, GameStop NFT trading volume surpassed Coinbase NFT’s lifetime trading volume.

Within 24 hours of launching, the GameStop NFT Beta had just over $2,000,000 in volume. Coinbase NFT had just over $100,000 in volume within 24 hours of launching.

GameStop had underpromised and overdelivered, executing on one of Ryan Cohen’s core business beliefs

“It’s just a JPEG Marketplace.”

Leading NFT Marketplace OpenSea asserts that crypto-winter is here, and naysayers claim that non-fungible tokens are nothing more than tradable jpegs. What NFTs are now, though, is just the beginning of a larger shift to what web3 aspires to be: a decentralized internet. 

The centralized internet vs the decentralized internet.

Today’s internet, often referred to as web2, is centralized. Tech companies control everyone’s data through a centrally owned server resulting in little transparency and accountability. 

By owning everyone’s data, tech companies profit from selling information that shouldn’t be theirs to sell in the first place. Facebook might not charge you, but it is far from being free. Facebook has made you its product.

In web3, all user data is stored securely on decentralized blockchain networks such as Ethereum, enabling users to own their digital life while reducing vulnerability to attacks and censorship.

Phase Zero

A fully-featured web3 is a long way out, and GameStop NFT partner Immutable claims that the Marketplace is similarly currently in phase zero.

Immutable’s GameStop Marketplace Rollout Strategy

According to Immutable, phase zero of GameStop NFT features a limited selection of art from the community, helping small creators sell their work without middlemen.

Creators can set a royalty fee, such as 5%, and continue to earn from each resale. 

Brett and Ana Karina, two musicians from Boston who go by “The Derevolutions”, have been selling their music on the GameStop NFT Marketplace, and in 3 days the duo has made 3 years worth of Spotify streaming revenue. 

The Derevolutions made a comment on Reddit, “fuck the antiquated middlemen.”

GameStop is now fulfilling their promise to bring power to the players with the NFT Marketplace.

Cybercrew, one of the top GameStop NFT launch creators who created the GameStop astronaut art, shares why NFTs are redefining ownership. 

“Too many corporations just milk you with microtransactions. If they decide on a whim to remove access to a skin or item you purchased, it’s gone. No repercussions, no back and forth,” Cybercrew said. 

Cybercrew, made up of Engwind and Brenden, collaborated with GameStop to create the astronaut that’s featured on the marketplace site. 

But NFTs aren’t just about trading, and Cybercrew has big plans for their collections. 

“As we build out the cross platform interoperability and show that you can kind of standardize equipment and avatars, more and more platforms will work on making it easy to access so it’s a win win.”

Cybercrew envisions a future where your NFT avatar is playable in many different games and virtual environments, and believes that the team’s innovation is going to “rock the foundation of video games and metaverses for years to come.”

Web3 Games Coming Soon To GameStop NFT

GameStop’s partnership with Immutable, an Australian blockchain company leading the industry with their NFT game development studio, seeks to bring AAA-quality blockchain games to the Marketplace. 

Robbie Ferguson, co-founder of Immutable, said in a recent Twitter Space that large game studios will likely be the last to adopt NFTs. 

Established publishers are watching the space closely, but have too much to risk, leaving mid-market and indie studios to be the pioneers perfecting the formula for web3 play-and-earn gaming.

The Immutable Games Studio Site

Ferguson believes that once millions of gamers have a taste of just one web3 title with more rewarding metrics than traditional games, established gaming studios will be forced to invest in web3 gaming

Ultimately, NFTs in games shouldn’t be the selling point for web3 games. The web3 tech should be invisible to the players, and the games need to be fun enough to provide value for the players.

In web3, gaming studios will give up ownership of their in-game assets as it will align incentives with their audiences. If a publisher earns a small fee for each in-game transaction between players, then the incentive becomes to create the best games so that the player-driven economy grows. The more fun the game is, the more time players will spend growing that economy.

Gods Unchained states that “players deserve better.”

In 2020, gamers spent over $74 billion on in-game items, and they received $0 back. The money all went to the studios who are only incentivized by squeezing every last cent from its player base with DLCs or microtransactions. 

Goodbye gas fees, forever! 

Rather than rush out a marketplace, GameStop took the time to study one of the biggest obstacles plaguing NFT mass adoption: High gas fees.

For more on gas fees, read GMEdd.com’s GameStop’s NFT Marketplace Will Feature Gas-Free, Instant Transactions  from October 28th.

To eliminate gas, GameStop partnered with Loopring, an Ethereum layer-2 scaling protocol, to power the marketplace. As a result, GameStop’s NFT Marketplace is the only major marketplace with zero gas fees. 

Instead, GameStop collects a 2.25% fee from sellers. Loopring collects a minimum 2% fee from buyers.

GameStop NFT’s Checkout Page

If GameStop is only collecting 2.25% in fees, then they only earned ~$90,000 in fees in the first 3 days – how does that help the business? 

In web2, middlemen often take more profits than the artists themselves. These middlemen try to extract as much money as possible from artists rather than help them be successful in the long term. 

Mark Zuckerberg’s web2 giant Meta, for example, is trying to create a metaverse in which they charge creators up to 47.5% transaction fees.

Iosbel Asher Hamilton for Insider on April 12, 2022.

The public was justifiably outraged at this “pretty competitive rate,” demonstrating a need for a low-cost marketplace for creators and consumers to trade assets. 

Lower fees help artists grow. 

When the GameStop NFT collection “MetaBoy” sold out of 10,000 NFTs for $54 each, GameStop earned $6,750 while the MetaBoy creators earned $526,500. Now, MetaBoy is using these profits to build a GameStop NFT video game with MetaBoy sprites – this wouldn’t have been possible if GameStop took lofty fees.

The more successful the artists are, the more successful GameStop will be. It’s win-win. GameStop continues to onboard new artists everyday, which will grow the community and network effect overtime. 

While the GameStop NFT Marketplace is in beta, the foundation for gas-free trading is here and the community is growing. Demand for web3 is revealed by the success of launch projects such as Ordinary Adam, Cyber Crew, and MetaBoy, and GameStop’s partnership with Immutable hopes to soon bring AAA-quality games to the blockchain.

joecomotion guest wrote this article exclusively for GMEdd, Toast contributed and edited.


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Sources: GameStop Investor Relations, Coinbase Blog, Themetav3rse on Twitter, TechCrunch, Dappradar, Coinbase Blog, Gods Unchained, Frankenberg on Tableau 

GameStop has announced the long-awaited debut of its online marketplace for non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

Video game retailer GameStop has spent the last year undergoing a tech-centric transformation, with a premium NFT marketplace being at the core of this transition. This newfound interest for the brick-and-mortar was initially revealed through job postings alluding to blockchain developments at the company dating back to April of 2021.

GMEdd.com first unearthed the existence of GameStop’s Official NFT project one month later, in May 2021, upon discovering a website that didn’t detail much besides a potential slogan for the project, and ever since then investors have speculated what GameStop NFT entails.

By October 27th, 2021, GMEdd.com published source code that revealed Loopring, an Ethereum Layer 2 Protocol, had been hard at work building GameStop an NFT Marketplace of their own.

Loopring’s GitHub Code from October 2021.

Prior to this, digital breadcrumbs had led us to that same point, detailing how Loopring’s technology could power a bridge of traditional e-commerce and blockchain and engineer the revolution of gaming.

Power to the Players 

On Monday, GameStop launched a feature-packed NFT Marketplace. The platform, which is now open to the public for beta testing, allows users to connect their own digital asset wallets, including the recently launched GameStop Wallet, the company said in a press release. 

GameStop NFT’s wallet selection page.

Users will now be able to buy, sell and trade NFTs of virtual goods with near-zero fees. Over time, the marketplace will expand to offer other features such as Web3 gaming, GameStop said.

Since the GameStop Wallet and NFT Marketplace is still in beta, users might find performance issues or bugs which they can report to the blockchain team.

Creators can apply to sell their art on the NFT Marketplace by clicking the “create” button on the homepage. GameStop states the team typically replies to applicants within 2 weeks, and if not, creators can re-apply.

For beginners, the GameStop NFT marketplace has a detailed learn page with FAQs & video tutorials. 

GameStop NFT’s Frequently Asked Questions Page

The marketplace currently features 239 NFT collections and 53.3k NFTs, which were manually approved in advance by GameStop’s blockchain department to ensure originality and quality.

When exploring the newly-released marketplace, users can filter by four NFT types: html, image, model, or video. 

The html category includes NFTs that are interactive. For example, art that changes color or makes sounds when clicked, interactive story books, and mini-games.

GameStop NFT’s selection of interactive NFTs

The image category is what most NFTs are right now, featuring art that people can buy, sell, and trade, while supporting the creators. 

The model category features 3D art and provides all the files you will need to use them with AR software, while the video category is more self-explanatory.

To celebrate the launch, GameStop NFT gave a commemorative NFT to the 34 blockchain team members designed by Spike.

GameStop NFT’s commemorative NFT to mark the beta release.

The numbers

Within 24 hours of launching, GameStop NFT achieved over $1,500,000 in volume across 45,000 transactions. 

GameStop NFT’s top 10 collections are MetaBoy, Ordinary NFT Cards, Power 2 The Apes!, CYBER CREW, Genesis, Player Gloves, PXL Toys, The Roaring 20s, Bombatomics, and Animal Arcade.

GameStop NFT’s Stats Page

The most popular collection has been “MetaBoy,” a collection of 10,000 unique algorithmically generated characters that bring the love of gaming, pixel art and technology together.

Similar to trading cards, MetaBoys are pixel figures with differing traits that merge together to create unique avatars.

Since launch, MetaBoy has sold over $600,000 in volume, selling out of the initial primary price of ~$55. Now, MetaBoys are trading with a $250 floor as gamers and collectors alike join in on the craze.

GameStop NFT’s MetaBoy Page

Explore

GameStop NFT is finally here, and readers should explore the platform themselves to see what the wait has all been for. 

With more integration to come, the GameStop blockchain group’s work is far from over, and GMEdd will continue to cover the latest news and research.


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Sources: GameStop NFT

GameStop’s crypto wallet is here, marking the company’s realization of the transition from a retailer into a technology company.

GameStop has announced the company’s much-anticipated release of the GameStop Wallet, a digital asset wallet that allows gamers and others to store, send, receive and use cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens across decentralized apps without having to leave their web browsers.

GMEdd.com’s Discord was first to notice the release of the GameStop Wallet at 7:05 PM EST on Sunday, thanks to a bot that searched the Chrome Extension Store every 5 minutes for new search results under ‘GameStop’. Readers can join the GMEdd.com chatroom to be at the forefront of crowdsourced research by visiting GMEdd.com/chatroom.

The GameStop Wallet is a self-custodial Ethereum wallet. The wallet extension, which can be downloaded from the Chrome Web Store, will also enable transactions on GameStop’s NFT marketplace, which is expected to launch in the second quarter of GameStop’s fiscal year.

The GameStop Wallet Beta allows users to trade and transfer digital assets on both Loopring Layer 2 (L2) and Ethereum Layer 1 (L1) under the same wallet address. L2 offers users transaction fees as low as 0.1% of Ethereum L1’s exorbitant gas fees.

What does the GameStop Wallet do?

The GameStop Wallet isn’t just an ordinary crypto wallet.

Harnessing the power of Loopring’s zkRollup – an Ethereum Layer 2 scaling protocol – GameStop gives users low cost and fast transactions, with Ethereum security, opportunity, and global reach. This allows users to reduce gas fees and network congestion, while always remaining in control of their funds.

Images from GameStop Wallet’s Chrome Extension Store page

GameStop states that the Wallet is “great for n00bs and power-users alike,” and that GameStop Wallet can be your homebase and portal into the world of Ethereum.

The wallet is also connectable to the wide ecosystem of Ethereum dApps, “including GameStop NFT – a marketplace to buy digital goods!”

Available now at wallet.gamestop.com, users are prompted to create a new wallet or recover an existing wallet with their 12 word seed phrase.

Screenshot of GameStop Wallet Beta’s launch screen as of May 23rd 2022.

During the four step wallet creation process that involves writing down a 12 word seed phrase and setting a password, the Wallet states that “Loopring Layer 2 is preferred for higher transaction speeds and lower fees.”

In October 2021, GMEdd.com first followed digital breadcrumbs to conclude that GameStop was partnering with crypto technology company Loopring to power a bridge of traditional e-commerce and blockchain. Days later, GMEdd.com published source code that revealed Loopring was in-fact hard at work building GameStop an NFT Marketplace of their own.

Now, the speculation becomes reality.

Screenshots of the wallet creation process from the GameStop Wallet Beta Google Chrome extension.

Once the wallet is set up, users are prompted to deposit funds by buying with a card or transferring funds from an existing L1 or L2 wallet.

GameStop Wallet is GameStop’s Metamask replacement, currently the most popular hot wallet. GameStop’s offering, though, is much more complete than it’s rival’s, as GameStop recognized the value in creating a blockchain ecosystem where users don’t need to rely on third-party services.

The GameStop Wallet enables anyone to easily swap fiat into crypto and then use that crypto to purchase digital assets on GameStop NFT, all in one place, making it easier for newcomers to adopt the technology.

GameStop’s wallet and Metamask’s wallet side by side.

A quick analysis of the user interface and design of the two wallets reveals why GameStop is advertising their wallet as “easy-to-use.”

While Metamask’s wallet shows all of its features on one screen, GameStop’s wallet has an intuitive navigation bar that allows each of its four main features to have their own screen. This includes viewing of NFTs, which isn’t available in Metamask.

Two of the biggest barriers of NFT mass adoption is the complicated wallet set up process and high gas fees; GameStop’s new wallet solves both of these problems with its user friendly onboarding design and native L2 integration that eliminates gas fees.

A comparison of fees on GameStop Wallet versus MetaMask.

At the time of publication, an $11 transaction executed on Layer 2 through GameStop Wallet only costs the user $0.22 in fees, while the same transaction on Layer 1 through MetaMask costs the user between $10.07 and $19.75 in gas fees.

While MetaMask’s gas fees translate to a 91% to 179% transaction fee in this instance, GameStop is charging only 2% to complete that same transaction on Layer 2, with 1% going to Loopring and 1% to GameStop.

The development

Cyberhorsey, GameStop’s lead engineer for the GameStop Wallet, states that the app has been his baby and he’s so glad everyone loves the beautiful UX that simplifies “complicated L2 shit,” into several easy-to-follow buttons.

Tweet from Cyberhorsey on May 23rd, 2022.

GameStop had teased their Google Chrome wallet and their yet to be released iOS wallet on May 5th, when the wallet’s landing page first went live.

Prior to the wallet extension’s launch, GameStop tweeted from their new Twitter account GameStopNFT to educate their audience on the purpose of wallets, stating that “wallets are where your crypto journey begins.”

GameStop NFT’s tweet from May 22, 2022.

On Monday morning, the official GameStop Twitter account promoted the new wallet alongside GameStop’s new Twitter handle, and the announcement was met with positive responses from the GameStop community.

In preparation of the wallet’s launch, GameStop had released a new blockchain support site that contains educational articles about web3 and a contact form to open an official support ticket for questions about the new wallet.

Screenshot from support.blockchain.gamestop.com

The site answers questions such as, “What is a browser extension wallet,” and “How do I activate Layer 2?” written by GameStop Blockchain Community Manager Ryan Kagy.

GameStop also notifies users to beware of impostor profiles and websites setup to mimic GameStop Support. GameStop will only ever offer support via their Zendesk Help Center and will NEVER ask users for their Secret Phrase.

I’m new here. What is Layer 2?

If you’re wondering what all the talk about L1 and L2 is about, here’s a simple metaphor that avoids technical terms such as “zero knowledge roll ups.”

Imagine that layer 1 blockchains, such as Ethereum, are digital cities. Imagine that blockchain transactions are persons sitting in cars trying to go somewhere in the Ethereum city. Cars reaching their destination represent verified transactions.

If there’s lots of cars, congestion and traffic starts building up, so the city starts increasing gas prices to discourage people from driving. During high congestion, buying a $50 Ethereum NFT on layer 1 might cost you an additional $200 in gas fees.

Then, imagine an Ethereum layer 2 scaling solution, such as Loopring, building an elevated bullet train above the city. This elevated bullet train represents layer 2 scaling solutions which are built atop layer 1 blockchains. Individuals who were previously stuck in traffic on layer 1 can now choose to ride the bullet train that can fit thousands of people instead.

Loopring is the bullet train above the blockchain city

Since the train is fast and experiences no traffic, they all reach their destinations faster. Plus, multiple people can fit inside the bullet train, so everyone shares the costs of the ride resulting in each individual paying significantly less in fees.

There’s also the added benefit that the more people who use layer 2 scaling solutions, the less congested layer 1 becomes as well.

What now?

GameStop investors should consider downloading the chrome extension and trying it themselves. As the platform is still in beta, users are encouraged to only put in funds they are comfortable with, and consider using a ledger.

With only 69 days left for GameStop keep their promise of launching their highly anticipated NFT Marketplace by the end of Q2 on July 31, investors shouldn’t have to wait long to see the result of a year of building the most innovative offering the company has ever released.

joecomotion wrote this piece for GMEdd.com. Toast edited and contributed.


The new GameStop NFT Beta landing page now states the marketplace is almost here, and invites users to beta test now.

Video game retailer GameStop has spent the last year undergoing a tech-centric transformation, with a premium NFT marketplace being at the core of this transition. This newfound interest for the brick-and-mortar was initially revealed through job postings alluding to blockchain developments at the company dating back to April of 2021.

GMEdd.com first unearthed the existence of GameStop’s Official NFT project one month later, in May 2021, upon discovering a website that didn’t detail much besides a potential slogan for the project, and ever since then investors have speculated what GameStop NFT entails.

By October 27th, 2021, GMEdd.com published source code that revealed Loopring, an Ethereum Layer 2 Protocol, had been hard at work building GameStop an NFT Marketplace of their own.

Loopring’s GitHub Code from October 2021.

Prior to this, digital breadcrumbs had led us to that same point, detailing how Loopring’s technology could power a bridge of traditional e-commerce and blockchain and engineer the revolution of gaming.

With Immutable, another Ethereum Layer 2 NFT Marketplace provider, announced as a preferred partner in January 2022, GameStop investors were uncertain what role Loopring still held in this deal.

Now, GameStop has launched a new beta page for the incoming NFT Marketplace. Alongside this, an announcement by Loopring answers some questions, as well as allows users to connect their wallets and beta test features for a launch that is coming soon.

Loopring Does the Honors

In a Medium.com post on March 23, 2022, at 4:29 AM EST, the Loopring Protocol announced that the future of NFTs are here and they’re powered by Ethereum’s second layer.

Loopring states that they are thrilled to announce that the long-awaited GameStop NFT Marketplace (beta) is now LIVE, with the full NFT Marketplace coming shortly, built atop none other than Loopring L2.

Loopring Protocol’s Medium Post on March 23rd, 2022.

“GameStop, in partnership with Loopring, has the opportunity to cement itself at the forefront of this new NFT + gaming paradigm and become THE destination for new global digital economies.”

To accomplish this, the new GameStop NFT Marketplace is reportedly built atop the second layer of Ethereum, specifically Loopring L2, to ensure that users receive the strongest digital property rights, anchored by a secure, decentralized, and a credibly neutral environment, like Ethereum. 

Loopring L2 inherits Ethereum’s self-custodial security while abstracting away costly gas-fees, leaving no one priced out.

Loopring also acknowledges that GameStop choosing to build on L2 first, bypassing L1 altogether, marks a huge step forward for the future of NFTs and an important moment for Ethereum scaling.

“Loopring has built the rails for creators to deliver high performance applications that rival the speeds and scalability of Web2, while also empowering users to receive provable ownership and control over their assets in Web3. These massive speed improvements and lower costs open up the design space to create all sorts of new use-cases for NFTs + gaming that were unimaginable prior.”

To wrap up the announcement, Loopring invites fans to get early beta access at beta.nft.gamestop.com, to set up usernames + profiles, make deposits, and be prepared for the full launch of the official marketplace coming soon.

Daniel Wang’s tweet on March 23rd at 4:57 AM EST.

The founder of Loopring, Daniel Wang, also took the opportunity to thank GameStop for the opportunity to work on multiple blockchain products. He states that this is certainly not the end of the partnership, and Loopring will continue to help GME polish their user experience.

A first look

GameStop, rockets, and the moon are three things very well-known to retail investors and GME aficionados alike. The GameStop NFT Beta landing page begins by marking three key elements that have become staples in the minds of traders across meme stocks and crypto for years. 

Upon first glance, the user is hinted towards a “Connect” button highlighting the opportunity to link a cryptocurrency wallet, which is fairly typical of existing NFT platforms such as OpenSea and Coinbase.

Following a wallet connection (we opted for MetaMask), users are invited to customize their profiles and make deposits.

GameStop NFT’s profile page.

The profile customization page allows users to set a username, choose an NFT profile picture, write a short bio, and attach an email address along with Twitter and Reddit usernames.

Users can also navigate to their owned, liked, and hidden NFT collections.

When depositing funds, the options are to buy ETH with a card, deposit ETH from your wallet, or ask a friend to transfer to your account.

The process of starting a deposit on the GameStop NFT Beta

Notably, deposits from Ethereum L1 are converted into Loopring L2 by default.

“Once on Layer 2, there are no more gas fees to transact!”

When users visit their account history, they will likely see a screen that shows “Nothing here yet,” we can assume this will display transaction history in the future.

GameStop NFT Beta’s Account History page

With over 1 million NFTs minted on Loopring L2 since early 2022, the page invites users to check the Loopring Layer 2 Explorer, further indicating the involvement of Loopring in this NFT Marketplace. 

Besides this, no other notable features are currently visible in the beta.

While the marketplace itself remains hidden, digital sleuths can tweak the code a bit to start showing listings, revealing what the final product may look like.

GameStop NFT’s hidden Explore page on March 23rd.

Some NFTs by Miguelgarest are displayed, an NFT artist who has been quietly working on new projects, alongside the GameStop NFT Arcade Machine, all of which are listed as not for sale.

some things aren’t so immutable

With nods to Loopring all over the GameStop NFT Beta, investors are left in the dark on Immutable’s role, as many thought the Australia-based Ethereum Layer 2 NFT Marketplace would be taking over the project entirely.

On the issue, Byron Wiebe, Loopring’s Head of Community, has again shared his personal thoughts on Loopring’s Official Discord server.

Byron Wiebe on Discord on March 23rd at 6:02 AM EST.

Byron states that Loopring has been working with GameStop for almost a year now to build and integrate this marketplace, fully built on Loopring L2.

“No IMX.”

Byron goes as far as to share that he believes Immutable (IMX) has been a little disingenuous with their marketing.

Byron Wiebe on Discord on March 23rd at 6:11 AM EST.

The Loopring Head of Community believes that Immutable’s marketing materials were “pretty shitty” and not true at all.

“Their marketing materials where they tried to position this upcoming announcement of ours to just be an “alpha” was pretty shitty on their part to be honest.”

According to Byron, as far as he is aware, there has been zero “technical work” done with IMX to this point, and it has just all been marketing, with GameStop doing “something” with them after the Loopring L2-based marketplace is fully live.

Byron Wiebe on Discord on March 23rd at 6:37 AM EST.

Byron also states that while he does not want to speak on behalf of GameStop, the marketplace was “genuinely supposed to be Q4, but had some unfortunate delays at the last minute.”

Over on the Immutable Discord, investors in the Ethereum Layer2 with 88% of it’s supply uncirculated are demanding the truth. 

Nigel Lee, Immutable’s Strategy and Operations Lead, is trying to fan the flames, stating that Immutable has never denied that Loopring was involved.

Nigel Lee on Discord on March 23rd at 6:20 AM EST.

Nigel even asks the naysayers, “Where’s the value talking about competitors?” in regards to questioning over Loopring’s clear involvement in GameStop NFT. 

Immutable’s Strategy and Operations Lead claims that IMX brings a network of games and partners they are working with to the table, and that the team has never denied Loopring’s involvement.

In a Discord Stage hosted at 7:45 AM EST, Robbie Ferguson, the Co-Founder and President of Immutable, was quick to insist that GameStop approved all of their marketing materials and nothing nefarious was at play.

GMEdd.com did not have any overpriced consultants available to ask whether this was the right strategy for Immutable.

What now?

GameStop’s retail investors will almost certainly spend the remainder of the week scouring through the GameStop NFT Beta, searching for clues as to what the marketplace will be like.

Some are even speculating that the website’s code may have accidentally revealed the launch date for GameStop NFT as “Astronaut day,” a national holiday on May 5th.

Code revealed on the GameStop NFT Beta on March 23rd, 2021.

Although this date does fall within with the recently announced launch before the close of Q2 2022, veteran GameStop investors are experienced enough to know to not rely on dates hidden within code.

While GameStop’s NFT Beta only allows users to create accounts, deposit funds, and claim usernames at the moment, we urge those curious to check the platform out themselves, as GameStop gears up to soon deliver power to the players.


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Source: Loopring on MediumGameStop NFT Beta, Loopring on Discord, Immutable on Discord

Included in the release of today’s GameStop Q4 2021 financial results was the reveal of GameStop’s intended launch deadline for the incoming GameStop NFT Marketplace.

GMEdd.com first unearthed the existence of GameStop’s Official NFT project in May 2021 upon discovering a website that didn’t detail much besides a potential slogan for the project, and ever since then investors have speculated what GameStop NFT entails.

Prior to this, digital breadcrumbs had led us to that same point, detailing how Loopring’s technology could power a bridge of traditional e-commerce and blockchain and engineer the revolution of gaming.

With Immutable revealed as a technology partner in the potentially groundbreaking gaming marketplace in February, progress has undoubtedly been expedited.

GameStop has announced an expected launch date of the NFT Marketplace by close of Q2 2022 (July 31, 2022).

Business strategy

GameStop reported they are on a strategic path to fully leverage the company’s unique position and brand in gaming. The strategic plan is designed to optimize the core business while at the same time, pursuing strategic initiatives to transform GameStop for the future by expanding the company’s addressable market and product offerings to drive growth in the gaming and entertainment industries.

GameStop states their focus is on transforming into a customer-obsessed technology company to delight gamers, and is actively focused on:

Establishing ecommerce excellence.

GameStop aims to be the leading destination for games and entertainment across all channels and will scale up ecommerce operations to make the most convenient solution for customers. This includes app & site redesigns, improvements in fulfillment and delivery times, better product availability across all channels, and a further improved customer service experience.

Expanding selection to deliver a market-leading offering in gaming & entertainment.

Continue investing in expanding product offering to relevant categories for our customers, including becoming a leader in PC gaming, virtual reality, and other gaming products.

Leveraging existing strengths and assets.

Grow GameStop’s presence in the gaming community and increase market share through enhancing the value of the loyalty program and Game Informer assets while also expanding the scope of the buy, sell, and trade business to support expanded offerings.

Investing in new growth opportunities.

As the company scales and expands core offerings, GameStop will simultaneously invest in additional growth, including blockchain, digital assets (including non-fungible tokens, Web 3.0 technology, and new destination formats for retail stores. 

GameStop states they believe these future transformation efforts are an important aspect of the company’s continued business to enable long-term value creation for company shareholders.

Rollout Strategy

With Ryan Cohen insistent on not talking a big game, little remains known about GameStop’s NFT Marketplace rollout strategy.

“We know some people want us to lay out a whole detailed plan today, but that’s not gonna happen.You won’t find us talking a big game, making a bunch of lofty promises, or telegraphing our strategy to the competition. That’s the philosophy we adopted at Chewy.” — Ryan Cohen in June 2021

On March 4th, Robbie Ferguson, the Co Founder and President of Immutable, shared the first phase of the intended rollout on Reddit.

Robbie shared this graphic on Reddit.

Robbie also stated that Immutable is going to be dropping content over the next few weeks diving into what integration will look like, details on Immutable and GameStop’s vision for the space, and answering questions fans and investors and might have.

FOR MORE, READ GAMESTOP’S March 17, 2022 10-K FILING.

Who’s going to be the host for all these files?

It’s no secret that GameStop has been building a premium NFT marketplace, with job postings alluding to blockchain developments at the company dating back to April of 2021.

After a year of cat and mouse chases searching for clues as to who GameStop is working with, the aspiring technology company’s latest known technology vendor has been uncovered in what could be seen as an intentional Freudian slip. 

The Pinata Broke

Pinata’s very own Head of Product, Justin Hunter, confirmed that Pinata is providing backend distributed storage for the emerging retailer turned-NFT Powerhouse during a speaking event with Texas Blockchain.

The Head of Product at Pinata commented that the shadow vendor-client relationship hadn’t been intended for public scrutiny, but that Twitter had spread the message after a user dug into GameStop source code.

“[GameStop] is using us both for the storage of the assets and then serving the content back.” — Justin Hunter

Before this spill, investors were already clued into the relationship between GameStop and Pinata.

The DNS records of ipfs.nft.gamestop.com

GameStop’s own DNS records have long referenced gamestop.mypinata.cloud, revealing that the gaming retailer has been using their hosting services for some time now.

So what is Pinata?

Pinata claims they’re “the home for NFT media”, and trusted by well-known non-fungible pioneers such as Rarible, Autograph, Protocol Labs, and sorare.

Screenshot of pinata.cloud’s homepage as of March 5th 2021.

Pinata is a cloud based InterPlanetary File System (IPFS) service provider offering users the ability to host their NFT content on the decentralized Web 3.0. 

The company is currently a leading service provider for dedicated public IPFS gateways, which allows creators to upload their NFT content onto the peer-to-peer distributed file system where it will no longer need to rely on a centralized service provider such as Amazon S3, Google Cloud, and Microsoft Azure, who currently lead the Web 2.0 services sector.

A visualization of HTTP vs IPFS

Due to the decentralized nature of blockchain technologies, in order to have true ownership of NFT content users cannot rely on a centralized server. 

In the centralized world of Web 2.0, users must trust the data provider as well as the data. Contrary to this, in Web 3.0 users only need to trust the data itself thanks to the decentralized nature of IPFS and its use of cryptographic hashing. 

By using Pinata and their IPFS services, GameStop can securely host NFT content on behalf of its users in a decentralized manner which enables players, creators, and collectors to have complete ownership of their content. 

IPFS provides both reliability and resiliency to attacks. When a traditional content provider goes offline, whether due to maintenance, software bugs, a cyber attack, or even censorship, users are left unable to access their data, games, media, or other files. With IPFS, users can rely on the many peers of the system to continue hosting content while some nodes may be offline. 

To put it simply, GameStop powers the players, creators, and collectors; Pinata powers the underlying NFTs. 

Pinata’s Roots

Established in 2018, Pinata offers professional services for NFT file management, allowing users to upload files of any type and size to the peer-to-peer distributed file system known as IPFS.

“Our mission is to help creators provide an experience worth paying for.” – Pinata

Pinata by the numbers, according to pinata.cloud/about

Pinata works via storing content, such as games, media, or files, within a hash of an NFT’s verified URL. This verification takes place with an access token that is only generated by the NFT owner. 

Think of a DNA strand: it’s tiny and works with others to make up a whole asset, but if destroyed, the next strand can reproduce the entire product! 

Pinata’s distributed storage creates DNA strands of digital assets, enhancing security and decentralized goodness. 

Pinata’s Submarining, explained.

One of Pinata’s distinct features is Submarining, which allows users to make an IPFS file they upload private from the public IPFS network. This capability allows people to attach data to an NFT and control who can view it based on ownership of the NFT.

It’s a Party

In essence, Pinata allows applications, end users, and creators to interact with the Blockchain to create trustless, decentralized verification between themselves and others.

GameStop using Pinata’s offerings to host and serve their NFTs indicates that the video game retailer is committed to the future of digital, pinning themselves at the forefront of the internet’s transition to Web 3.0.

Vice and kmsully contributed to this piece. Toast edited and contributed.


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Sources: IPFS Draft 3, What is IPFS, Pinata FAQ, Pinata Features, The Block Crypto

GameStop has found another partner for their venture into the future, and this one is from the land down under.

GameStop has entered into a Protocol Services and License Agreement with Immutable X Pty Limited, also known as Immutable X, pursuant to which Immutable X will become a technology partner and platform for GameStop’s non-fungible token (“NFT”) marketplace. 

GameStop has also entered into a Grant Agreement with Digital Worlds NFTs Ltd. (“Digital Worlds”), which encourages the development of projects using technology of Immutable X by issuing grants of IMX tokens.

The Grant Agreement establishes a commitment to provide up to $100 million in grants of IMX tokens to support creators of NFT content and technology, and also provides for the grant of up to $150 million in IMX tokens to the Company upon the achievement of certain milestones. 

additional obligations

Immutable will commit a reasonable level of design & scoping support to Gamestop, including access to Immutable CTO, the company’s Product team, and Integration Engineers to help with integration architecture and scoping.

Immutable will co-design the entire solution with the GameStop team. Immutable will introduce a third-party integrator to help with the integration between GameStop and Immutable X. Any engagement by that integrator will be at GameStop’s cost.

Marketing and other commitments

GameStop will use Immutable X as their first layer-2 NFT integration for trading and minting, other than Loopring;

GameStop will not integrate any blockchain protocol, other than Ethereum Layer 1 and Loopring into their NFT marketplace without first having integrated Immutable;

GameStop will commit & dedicate resources to co-pitching to gaming studios as reasonably requested by Immutable during the Term, including the Vice President of Business Development – Blockchain and the Vice President of Corporate Strategy for the first four months after contract execution, which can be extended and expanded upon mutual agreement by both parties.

GameStop will use reasonable commercial efforts to support marketing efforts for the NFT marketplace, and will feature Immutable X protocol displayed prominently on the Gamestop NFT marketplace using mutually agreed upon methods (e.g. a site strip).

GameStop will prominently feature on the Gamestop NFT Marketplace the additional grants Digital Worlds is committing to make in connection with Gamestop NFT Marketplace for such time as the grants are being offered using mutually agreed upon methods (e.g. badging on the home page that re-directs to a dedicated landing page).

GameStop will dedicate resources to support engineering efforts for the NFT marketplace and will cover the costs of any third party development needed for the launch and upkeep of the project.

GameStop will announce Immutable partnership/GameStop NFT marketplace in a shareholder company filing (either 10-K or 10-Q) if approved by GameStop investor relations team, legal team, and the Board of Directors.

GameStop will make reasonable efforts to include Immutable in a quarterly earnings update if approved by the GameStop investor relations team, legal team, and the Board of Directors.

GameStop will commit to quarterly meetings with applicable GameStop team members to review the program & strategy for future.

GameStop will provide two dedicated Immutable X press releases:

one after contract execution which will be focused on the grant; and

the other at the integration launch, which will be focused on the integration.

GameStop will use reasonable commercial efforts to refer Immutable X to game studios, and to support pitches where appropriate. GameStop will commit to twice a week meeting and pipeline / lead review for the first 4 months, to co-ordinate co-pitching to those leads, which may be extended if mutually agreed to.

feature/promotion placement

GameStop will have a dedicated landing page linked from the home page using a prominent badging image, which will be a page to promote the grants, and will include a sign-up form.

GameStop and Immutable X will leverage the Immutable X grants pool to incentivize gaming studios, developers and artists to create pre-sale and/or special in-game items promotion using Immutable X minting through the GameStop NFT Marketplace, with any such promotion being as agreed between the parties.

GameStop will provide a site stripe mid-page for grant promotion, for the duration between signing and integration of the grant application framework, that will include a promotional banner at the top indicating that Immutable X will be available soon.

GameStop will provide placement and marketing text on Immutable X minting option and will provide order options dynamically by usage.

What is Immutable?

Immutable X works on top of the Ethereum blockchain and is designed specifically for token-driven video games and NFT-based projects. It inherits the security of the Ethereum mainnet, but it can handle a much larger volume of transactions at much lower costs, with a significantly smaller environmental footprint in the process.

Immutable prides themselves in the fact that all NFTs that are created or traded on Immutable X are 100% carbon neutral.‍

GameStop has also partnered with Trace and Cool Effect to “offset its remaining carbon footprint,” in what could be a bid to avoid the backlash that’s become commonplace with mainstream NFT involvement, per Eli Tan of CoinDesk.

Similar to the layer-2 technology at Loopring, Immutable X takes upwards of hundreds of thousands of transactions handled on its own blockchain and then rolls them up and commits them to Ethereum’s mainnet. Immutable X has not developed their own zero-knowledge proof technology, and instead uses StarkWare’s.

“The GameStop mission is literally power to the players, and that is exactly what we’re trying to do here,” Robbie Ferguson, co-founder of Immutable, told CoinDesk in an interview. “The $100 million is a minimum of what we’re doing.”

In a tweet at 7:30 AM EST, Ferguson shares the expression, WAGMI, a meme in the crypto-community meaning “we’re all gonna make it,” alongside a video announcing the partnership.

 

The $100M Fund

Ferguson told Decrypt that the $100M fund will provide grants of Immutable X’s IMX token to studios that build on the platform and use GameStop’s marketplace—to “attract the best developers and studios and accelerate mass adoption,” said Ferguson.

“Immutable and GameStop are focused on incentivizing long-term gaming projects, where AAA or high-quality studios are trying to build games that are enjoyable to both play and earn,” he explained. “The future of gaming is one where digital property rights are inherent—but the games still have to be fun.”

GameStop’s NFT landing page has been updated with a new form for builders and creators to apply for grant consideration.

The wider NFT market generated $23 billion in trading volume last year, per data from DappRadar, and is already yielding record-breaking sales in 2022.

Immutable’s Robbie Ferguson will be live on the Bankless HQ YouTube channel at 4:30 PM EST to explore GameStop’s Partnership with the Australian-based blockchain company.

For more, read GameStop’s February 3rd, 2022 8-K Filing.

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Sources: GameStop 8-K, Coindesk, Robbie Ferguson on Twitter, Decrypt