In the world of film and television, adaptations produce high returns over long periods, which makes them “cash cows.” Think Harry Potter. Lovers of J.K. Rowling’s wizarding books flocked to see films, purchase merchandise, visit shows, exhibitions, and more. A pre-existing audience equals guaranteed buyers.

Enter Gossamer, a television show, and Gossamer Seed, an NFT tie-in from award-winning producers, Bron Studios. Both are based on Lois Lowry’s 2006 novel Gossamer. Lowry’s stories have been popular across North America since the 1990s, having been classroom texts for many children. It’s a lot like Harry Potter for the U.K. kids. 

And those children now? By my calculations, many of them will be old enough to be wondering what to do with their disposable income or how to please their kids. A pre-existing audience that is ready to put money into NFT merch related to their favorite story.

Lowry’s Gossamer is a fantasy novel set in a world of fairy-like creatures that collect memories and travel into the human world to bestow dreams upon people. Bron’s adaptation of the novel will feature household Hollywood names designed to attract the audience.

Source: Twitter

Complimenting the television show is the NFT tie-in Gossamer Seed. The NFTs will act as avatars in a play-to-earn game set in The Heap, the fairies’ home. 

The game is built using Unreal Engine, looks fantastic, and invites you to ‘follow a dream’ but warns you must ‘learn to slay a nightmare.’ These are the same kind of powerful themes with universal appeal that underpin many fantasy novels.

Fantasy is one of the most lucrative genres.

The project’s details are largely secret at the moment. However, from its Twitter accounts, we can tell that alongside the Gossamer Seed avatars, there will also be ‘steeds’ used to fly around the fantasy world and ‘carry back useful treasure.’ This seems like a crypto metaphor for in-game rewards, meaning steeds have utility and most likely unlock value.

At the moment, there is no word on how steeds will be distributed, but considering the quality of everything else in the project, an airdrop to Gossamer Seed holders rather than a tasteless cash grab would make sense.

Building value for holders of original NFTs by providing ongoing giveaways, as Yuga Labs does for Bored Ape owners, has proven to be how to build lasting value. This fits Gossamer Seed which will likely be hoping for multiple seasons of the Gossamer television series.

The Gossamer Seed NFTs will also grow and evolve as part of the gameplay. Gossamers began as cocoons, then emerged from them as small grey bugs. Some are evolving into glowing fireflies, perhaps in response to being named. It seems that breeding may be introduced somewhere down the line.

Bron says that the naming of the NFTs can lead them to develop or perhaps reveal unique features. You can imagine the kind of value this builds for owners if their cute NFTs have not just algorithmically generated qualities but almost a sense of identity derived from the name chosen by the owner.

Despite few details being available, the project screams quality, and has a tried and tested trick up its sleeve that will enable it to build value and last the test of time.

This trick is mystery, often used in NFT launches, as the artist Pak does. While anonymous teams hinting at and withholding information to create a fear of missing out can be a worrying sign, when a public team with a reputation to protect makes use of the technique, it’s much more reliable.

The ongoing upgrades to the Gossamer Seed avatars are part of the mystery, functioning as reveals, which we know generate lots of excitement in NFT communities. Bron also have the reveal of steeds, and many details about the game are yet to follow.

In the meantime, the television series will function as a great advert. We can safely assume that the story will hook people because we know the books it was based on already achieved that. While I wouldn’t claim that the franchise will achieve Harry Potter levels of demand, if it can achieve just a tiny fraction of it, owning one of the NFTs could be a profitable investment.

The NFTs were free mints that were quickly claimed. However, they are still trading at ~0.35 $ETH on OpenSea, and you can buy them here.

As well as this, the floor price looks like it is rising and sustaining value beyond the short-lived pump-and-dump free-mint campaigns I’ve written about recently. 

Source: OpenSea

Owning and holding one or more Gossamer Seeds long-term would be a bet on the success of the overall franchise, arguably a risky approach. Alternatively, watch out for big reveals relating to characters, the game world, or gameplay. Events such as these can raise demand and become good times to sell.

An alternative mechanic that may emerge later, and would most likely be dependent on good gameplay, is renting out the NFTs to earn passive income from those that will play the game for you for a share of the revenue. This option doesn’t exist yet, but as with successful franchises such as Axie Infinity, where the demand exists, these models can develop.

Overall, it is early days for Gossamer Seed, and the project is not without risks. The story could be poor, the game world could be bugged, or the gameplay mechanics broken. But at this stage, in this current market, Gossamer Seed’s credentials point in the direction of this being a cash cow worth milking for a while, at least.

Until next time

Disclosure: At the time of writing, the author held a number of NFTs, ETH, and several other cryptocurrencies. Read our trading policy to see how SIMETRI protects its members against insider trading.