The uniqueness of NFT circles in Japan: Regionalism and Japanese Culture

Different countries have different cultures, and cultural differences make NFT player groups in different countries have different characteristics. These characteristics vary from project type preferences to aesthetic preferences to the motivation of the Diamond Hand to the perception of NFT.

In the general Discord channel of each NFT project Discord server, it is not easy for us to feel the group characteristics caused by cultural differences due to differences in our native language. However, if we observe the chat content of different native language channels, we will have a more direct feeling. This time, Rhythmic BlockBeats had an in-depth conversation with some NFT players from Japan. These interviewed Japanese NFT players range from the founders of the Chain Gaming Association to Bitcoin OG, which has invested in Crypto for more than 8 years. A mix of veteran Discord mods and regular, younger players. By talking to these Japanese NFT players, we got a glimpse into the characteristics of the Japanese NFT community.

"Prudent"

Investing in NFT has a high learning barrier, which has always been one of the constraints for new players to enter the world of NFT. Japanese "prudence" makes many Japanese still stay on the sidelines of NFT:

"I'm sure there are a lot of Japanese people who say, 'This is cool, I want to buy this!' But what is MetaMask? What is OpenSea?

At the same time, the main information flow in the NFT circle is mainly in English, which makes it difficult for Japanese players to obtain information. The "local community" is therefore very important to Japanese NFT players, which is one of the reasons why NinjaDAO is so successful -- it's both easy for Japanese players to get information to make decisions about what they're investing in, and it allows them to "enjoy the community" in their communication.

NinjaDAO's CryptoNinja Partners is Japan's No.1 NFT, apart from Murakami Flowers, whose influence is mainly overseas. The total order rate of 22222 is only 0.8%, and the floor price is close to 3 ETH, which is a very excellent market performance

"Enjoy the Community" requires Discord to be more than just an information center for a particular NFT project -- it's a platform for players to interact, like a large BBS with multiple and complex structures that remove "individual discretion" between "group interactions." In the case of NinjaDAO, non-Japanese NFT players are confused when they first get in:

Low prices, and even Free Mint, are also a way of defusing discretion. It is quite common for Japanese NFT projects to sell for less than 0.005 ETH (for example, CryptoNinja Partners, mentioned above, sells for as little as 0.001 ETH), and new projects are often whitellists based on the NFT of old projects. Some respondents explained the effectiveness of this strategy in a rather novel way, calling it "trial" and citing Japan's unique "otaku culture" :

"In Japan, there is a culture of buying paintings by amateur artists who are good at painting, which is called otaku culture. For collectors who are interested in this, the only difference between buying NFT and physical paintings may be paying in yen or ETH. However, NFT is a novelty, and there are many money-making consumers who buy NFT, so it is quite attractive to test the waters at a low cost on the premise of loving the painting, just like buying a small sample of a strange new brand of cereal in the supermarket and tasting it. If the experience after this NFT is good in every way, players will keep investing."

In addition, Japan's NFT project attaches great importance to the development of offline activities and the display of offline influence. Respondents said that while it was not clear that this was the right approach for the project, it did have a good effect on "prudence" :

ShikibuWorld mentioned that his IP was appointed "Crime prevention Ambassador" by Nagasaki Prefecture police in 2021. Currently, the floor of the series is priced at 0.5 ETH, and the order rate is only 1 percent

NinjaDAO's offline activity, CryptoNinja Festival 2022, is diverse, with regular events like merchandising and creator meets, as well as a card competition, Nintendo Smash Bros. tournament, and an extensive live show. Children's play Spaces, changing rooms and even baby-sitters have been set up to encourage parent-child participation

"Preference"

Most respondents said they started to contact NFT because of StepN. Japanese players' enthusiasm for XX To Earn projects remains high even after StepN's money-making effect wanes. "Play To Earn", "Move To Earn" and even "Sleep To Earn", Japanese gamers are looking for the next Stepn-like phenomenon of "XX To Earn". One interviewee said that at the height of Japanese enthusiasm for XX To Earn, even some minors were involved.

That enthusiasm has been tempered somewhat by the disappointment of some players with new projects of mixed quality. A common attitude among respondents was:

"There are so many beautiful stories out there that are unable or unwilling to deliver. I'm not averse to the Ponzi stage at the beginning of a project, but I need to see if the project has a clear vision of what it can and should deliver in the short term and what it wants to achieve in the long term. Now, I want to see a good product made with heart, judged by many aspects such as UI/UX beauty, ease of use, etc. As long as I have fun using it, I'm willing to make a long-term investment that needs to wait."

When it comes to PFP, more respondents expressed no great interest in it. In addition, the concept of "stir-fry" is relatively new to them. They are more interested in collecting. They are willing to buy works they like as long as the price is right. Despite the lack of data, the majority of respondents are fairly certain that Japanese NFT players are more "XX To Earn" enthusiasts than PFP enthusiasts, and PFP enthusiasts are more willing To spend money, while "XX To Earn" enthusiasts tend to "zero masturbate".

Japanese players also have a preference for PFP aesthetics. Most respondents have no interest in CryptoPunks and Bored Ape Yacht Club, and one of them is even more blunt:

"I haven't met a Japanese NFT player who likes CryptoPunks or Bored Ape Yacht Club... Of course there are still people who buy them for money purposes, but the art style is not really my cup of tea, or if you like, the Japanese. "

If respondents were asked to pick one of the blue-chip projects in the existing market, Azuki was the choice of the vast majority of respondents. From the historical transaction volume ranking of Japanese NFT projects, Japanese manman-style NFT is indeed the majority:

In addition, the NFT series produced in Japan is more popular among Japanese gamers. Seventy percent of respondents bought their first NFT from Japan, and another 30 percent bought only from Japan. They say they feel more at ease and like the Japanese version. The reason for the relief is that having Japanese members of the management team can give them a feeling of familiarity and familiarity, and there is no language problem, so they can understand more deeply. Fondness is the painting style preference described above.

"Buddhist system"

In the community, I was impressed by the Japanese players' "Buddha system". I have seen statements like this:

"Making $10 a day at StepN is also pretty good. It's satisfying to get healthy and have some income at the same time."

I thought such a statement might be an exception, but in my conversations with interviewees, I found that there are quite a few interviewees who hold such a view, but they have different preconditions. Some believe that $10 a day is enough to satisfy them, as long as the project is credible and they can see it as a solid long-term investment. Others believe that this view is based on the low cost/cost recovery basis. But despite these preconditions, I think Japanese players are more "Buddhist".

Another "Buddhist" point is that the Japanese community is less FUD and more often shows support for the project. On this point, some respondents think it may be a "national issue" :

"Japanese gamers do tend to be more supportive of a project, at least not outright critical of a project. "This may have something to do with Japanese personality -- unless someone takes the lead in bringing out a general grievance, there is a reticence to criticize, a reluctance to be a bad person or a fear of expressing an unsociable opinion, and this tendency is more pronounced among new NFT members and less influential community members."

So, is this the reason why Japanese players are so "diamond players"? Not really. At least, based on the answers given by some of the interviewees, their "Buddha-system" is more pure than I thought:

"You mentioned NinjaDAO's low engagement rate to me. It's the consensus in their community that they're doing it at a level that's impressive to NFT players outside of Japan, and it's great for NFT to expand its reach overseas. However, I don't really like being surrounded by voices that I have to HOLD. Buy and sell what you like whenever you like. It's your freedom -- NFT should be, why HOLD? If I'm interested, I'll buy it and enjoy holding it. If I lose interest, I'll walk away. Such consensus building, of course, is inseparable from their Founder Ikehaya's own influence and credibility, and he has a loyal following."

Another interesting point is that the Japanese members of Discord don't like being @everyone too much, but they're upset that turning off Discord notifications might cause them to miss out on important new messages. The solution is as simple as giving them a dedicated role to receive notifications and making them feel comfortable.

conclusion

zenryoku_eth published a tally in June last year that estimated the number of Japanese PFP buyers at around 8, 000, after the owner's address was de-duplicated. Talking to Japanese NFT players has convinced me that there is still plenty of room for development in the Japanese NFT market. The success of CryptoNinja Partners has taken the first step of the Japanese NFT to the sea, and more and more people are paying attention to the burgeoning Japanese NFT market because of this highly successful project. Publisher NinjaDAO currently dominates the PFP circuit, but with more incremental money coming in, there may be a lot more to come. But it is likely that an even bigger wave will emerge from Japan's homegrown NFT. For NFT markets in different countries, only by developing appropriate "local taste" operation strategies according to their cultures can they be better loved and trusted by users.

I was also inspired by the community strategy of the NFT project in Japan. In the past, we focused more on the success of individual NFT projects. However, after the sale is completed, it is often a big problem to maintain the "cohesion" within the community and the "attention" outside the community. Because the realization of the long-term vision does not give users direct and frequent feelings to enhance confidence, it is difficult to get users to buy into NFT "long-term investment" at a time when incremental funds are insufficient and narrative appeal is reduced. If it was "buy narrative" during the bull market, now it is more "buy community", and the NFT project in Japan is showing us the solution of diluting "speculation consciousness" through low cost, large community size and the construction of "friends". There are a lot of details in this solution that are worth figuring out. After all, it's still hard to build a "friend relationship" just by frequent chats or simple, traditional community activities.

At the end of the article, I would like to express my deep gratitude to all the interviewees who talked with me, and also to borrow a sentence that one respondent said to me at the end of the interview:

"I am grateful for our shared love of NFT for bringing us together."

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