Pokémon NFT Card Packs Are Being Opened On-Chain

This week, Polygon (MATIC) experienced a whirlwind sale of Pokémon NFT card packs, causing a surge in the blockchain’s trading volume as users actively opened their Pokémon NFT card packs on-chain.

While buyers weren’t purchasing specific cards directly, they instead purchased “mystery boxes” – virtual packs that potentially contained any of the advertised Pokémon-themed cards. Similar to NBA Topshot and “Moments,” holders engage in “pack rips” to discover what cards they get.

The sale followed a two-phase model and saw all 175 Pokémon Cards claimed almost instantaneously. In selecting the PSA-Graded cards that would be offered on-chain, Courtyard.io helped facilitate the mechanism. 

Backed by a number of consumer-trusted brands, including BRINKS Security, MoonPay, and VaynerFund, Courtyard serves as a different kind of digital assets marketplace that offers physical vaulting through Brink’s. 

Dubbed the “Stress Test: Break Courtyard.io,” the sale offered one pack of virtual Pokémon cards for $5.00 USD, which afforded buyers the chance of receiving one of any of the pre-disclosed cards, including PSA9 graded cards from 2000 with valuations of around $500. 

Users were required to set up an account and then use Google to connect, automatically creating a custodial wallet. For Pokémon fans galore, purchasing the digital card packs wasn’t restricted to cryptocurrency – instead, making it easy for buyers to use their credit cards. 

Once the digital cards were purchased, Courtyard enabled all the purchased packs to be opened 24 hours later, on Sept. 21. From there, the platform allows for them to be exported off the platform and into a user’s own self-custody wallet on Polygon. 

The analyst also noted it resembled a “Rollbit-style loot box, but for existing RWA collectibles.” After the purchase, there’s a waiting period: buyers can unveil their cards after 24 hours, but any unopened packs will automatically reveal their contents after 48 hours. Right now, unopened 2000 Base Set booster boxes are selling for more than $15,000. 

As for why it may make more sense to open a digital pack online, rather than opening a physical booster box, @S4mmy.eth pointed to liquidity. 

 Last month, Polygon outpaced Solana (SOL), cementing its position as the second most active blockchain for NFT transactions. This is most likely attributed to the SEC’s recent accusations of naming Solana as one of 18 other cryptocurrencies that it believes are “securities.”

Editor’s note: This article was written by an nft now staff member in collaboration with OpenAI’s GPT-4.