Rebuilding a Web3 Brand: The First Step of 0N1 Force's Entertainment Landscape
The first bear market in the NFT sector is a time for the reshuffling of blue-chip NFTs.Author: Kathy, Old Fashion Research
It has been a long time since a new blue-chip series has emerged in the NFT space.
Recently, Blur has siphoned off trading volume in the NFT market with its combination of "Blur incentives + bidding + Blend," but in the absence of liquidity and new narratives, the trading volume and floor prices of blue-chip NFTs have been quite sluggish. BAYC, MAYC, and Punk have seen their prices halved compared to their peaks; Moonbirds and Doodles have seen their floor prices drop to 2 ETH, while CoolCats has fallen below 1 ETH.
The first bear market in the NFT space is a time for the reshuffling of blue-chip NFTs.
In the past month, 0N1 Force — an OG NFT project — has consistently appeared on Blur's Trending list, with its floor price steadily rising from 0.5 ETH to a peak of 1.97 ETH over 30 days, and a trading volume of 1700 ETH (approximately 3.4 million USD) in that time.
As the first anime-themed PFP project, 0N1 Force is striving to return to the ranks of blue-chip NFTs.
The return of 0N1 Force can be traced back to its acquisition by the Web 3 fund Old Fashion Research (OFR) in February of this year.
Brand Value Assessment of NFTs
0N1 Force (pronounced Oni force, with "Oni" meaning demon in Japanese) was born in the summer of NFTs in August 2021, and its anime avatar style, infused with Japanese cultural elements, garnered fervent community support upon launch. Notable holders include famous DJ Steve Aoki and American actor Logan Paul.
It is worth mentioning that 0N1 Force was also the first project to launch a whitelist minting and innovatively introduced the reveal of avatars after minting. These operational methods later became standard practices for NFT projects.
The minting price of 0N1 Force was 0.0777 ETH, and before the avatar reveal, the price soared to 2 ETH, with the floor price once reaching 7 ETH. Logan Paul even spent 188 ETH (approximately 623,000 USD at the time) to purchase 0N1 #717, setting a new record in NFT trading history.
Logan Paul spent 188 ETH on 0N1 Force
0N1 Force had a strong start, but in 2022 it suffered a setback due to the original team's inaction, repeatedly delaying and failing to fulfill the promised roadmap to the community. This eroded holders' confidence, leading to sell-offs, and the floor price dropped to 0.2 ETH.
Some early large holders still hoped to save the 0N1 brand and sought help from VCs. One major holder, Goltra, contacted Wei Zhou (former CFO of Binance and also a strategic advisor and LP of OFR). After a four-month assessment and investigation, OFR decided to acquire 0N1 Force at the beginning of this year and deeply engage in the brand's reconstruction.
Brand Value Assessment of NFTs
First and foremost, we firmly believe that NFTs and gaming are crucial tracks for driving the large-scale application of blockchain technology and Web 3. NFTs are among the earliest non-financial applications in the blockchain industry, possessing strong out-of-circle energy. The explosion of NFTs has attracted a large group of people from outside the finance and technology sectors into the industry.
NFTs represent a cultural movement, and an outstanding NFT series often spreads widely on social media and forms active communities. In addition to creators enjoying royalty income from secondary sales of NFTs, holders may also share the IP of the NFT brand, engage in secondary creations, and enjoy the benefits. PFP NFTs are truly native Web 3 brands.
We believe that 0N1 Force is a valuable Web 3 brand with immense potential. As the first original anime-themed PFP project, its brand recognition is high, providing 0N1 Force with strong scalability in areas such as anime, gaming, fashion, and lifestyle.
Although the original team was inactive, community manager Starlordy proactively stepped up during the crisis, actively communicating with the community on Discord, easing conflicts between the project and the community, and earning the community's trust. Starlordy (originally named Henry Finn) has a background in media and comics and previously ran an art website; two creators, IMCMLPX and Cromagnus, are also passionate fans of Japanese anime and well-versed in Japanese culture, with Cromagnus being a creator of the 10KTF series. We decided to continue collaborating with Starlordy and the two creators, and before the official announcement of the acquisition, Starlordy was elected as CEO during a community town hall.
0N1 core team exhibition in the Japanese community
0N1 Force protects and respects the rights of its holders, having launched the 0N1 Frames series, where holders can obtain customized frames that follow avatar features to prevent counterfeit holders from impersonating them. Additionally, when an avatar is sold, the new holder can revoke the original holder's frames. 0N1 Force holders can unlock the 0N1 comic series on the website.
Similar to BAYC, 0N1 Force holders can create derivative products using the 0N1 IP after obtaining authorization and earn profits. This also provides freedom for community co-creation, further enhancing the brand's extensibility.
Our research also revealed that 0N1 Force holders have a high overlap with BAYC and Azuki holders (nearly 20%), with about 5% of long-term holders being NFT whales who wield significant influence in the NFT space. This indicates that 0N1 Force has a high-quality holder group with strong purchasing power.
Therefore, we believe that the brand value of 0N1 Force is severely underestimated, with its IP having strong extensibility, and we have decided to embrace the challenge, utilizing the resources of Wei, OFR, and the community to explore and reshape the 0N1 Force brand together.
Reconstruction and Return of 0N1 Force
The Web 3 industry is not short of new hotspots; compared to launching an entirely new NFT series to generate hype, rebuilding a brand is much more challenging.
After the news of OFR's acquisition of 0N1 Force was made public, it received a warm response, with the floor price rising to around 1.3 ETH, but this was just the beginning.
In the past two years, leading NFT projects have completed their original capitalization and expanded their brand routes. For example, Yuga Labs has connected its blue-chip NFT series to build a gaming metaverse, Azuki has collaborated with streetwear brands, and PudgyPenguins has launched toys to tap into the mass market. It is especially important to reasonably plan and manage the IP of 0N1 Force with community recognition at this critical juncture.
We unanimously agree that the most unique aspect of 0N1 Force lies in its storytelling, which is a manga narrative rich in Japanese culture. The creative team possesses the strength and resources to create manga and should focus on manga while developing towards a broader entertainment direction in the long term.
The first step in reshaping an NFT brand is to consolidate the community's confidence. After Starlordy took office as CEO, he mobilized community managers to hold weekly AMAs or Twitter Spaces to gather community ideas and discuss the roadmap together, frequently visiting NFT whales and core practitioners to seek support.
In the past quarter, OFR and the 0N1 team have traveled to the United States, Paris, Japan, and Hong Kong to hold offline 0N1 Force community gatherings and consult with seasoned professionals in the entertainment industry in these regions. We are confident that 0N1 Force can become a bridge between Web 3 and the entertainment industry, expanding extensive IP collaborations in gaming and fashion beyond original anime.
In terms of team personnel, 0N1 Force has gained more professional strength:
Announced that Horizen Labs Ventures (HLV) will become an advisor to 0N1 Force. HLV has heavily invested in 0N1 Force NFT, designed the economic model for ApeCoin for Yuga Labs, and is also an advisor for The Sandbox, Jam City, Dust Protocol, and Animoca Brands. HLV will design a points system for 0N1 Force, expected to launch in June.
Announced David Uslan as an advisor for 0N1 Force. The Uslan family owns the rights to Batman, and Uslan's involvement will assist 0N1 in expanding into the comic and film industries.
Appointed Helen Peng as the BD head for the Asia-Pacific region. Helen has over 10 years of experience and rich resources in the film and entertainment industry and will be responsible for IP business development for 0N1 Force in the Asia-Pacific region.
Appointed Hicham Habchi as the creative director and advisor. Habchi is a former director at Riot Games and has participated in the development of several well-known IPs, including the shooting games "Valorant," "Overwatch," Batman, and "Love, Death & Robots." Hicham will work with IMCLPX to develop the 0N1 Force comic series.
At the same time, 0N1 Force has also launched the R0N1N franchise, brand ambassador, and 0N1 World Club programs, where 0N1 holders can apply to join through the official website and participate in franchising or related activities after obtaining authorization, enjoying corresponding rights.
0N1 Force Franchise Program
The First Step in the Entertainment Landscape: Building 0N1 Verse in Fortnite
In the early hours of June 1, Starlordy held the latest edition of the 0N1Force community Twitter Space and announced a significant piece of news — the construction of the 0N1 Force Enclave in Fortnite, making it the first NFT project to have a metaverse in Fortnite. This collaboration with FortniteGame was made possible thanks to Theia Interactive, which will build the metaverse world 0N1 Verse for 0N1 Force, providing the community and players with a new experience that satisfies visual and auditory needs.
Theia Interactive is a well-known creative solutions studio in the United States and one of the three official partners of Unreal Engine, having served over 200 corporate projects and collaborated with industry giants such as Epic Games, HP, and NVIDIA. 0N1 Verse is a new attempt by 0N1 Force to expand into gaming, offering a highly interactive gaming experience.
In July of this year, 0N1 Force will also make an appearance at Comic-Con, the largest film and television exhibition in the United States, to release a new season of comic books. 0N1 Force also plans to issue Bitcoin Ordinals.
The journey of 0N1 Force's return has just begun.
