- The Pixelmon creator has admitted to a “horrible mistake” in revealing the range on OpenSea
- The Pixelmon artwork drew immediate criticism, followed by allegations of copyright theft
- The collection’s creator, Syber, admitted that it had been a mistake to hype the collection so much
The creator of the Pixelmon NFT range, which collected $70 million through its minting last week, has admitted to a “horrible mistake” in revealing the collection on OpenSea following fierce backlash. Criticism of the Pixelmon NFT collection came thick and fast following the Dutch auction, which saw early buyers hand over 3 ETH ($7,840) per NFT, with many mocking the quality of the ‘artwork’. Allegations then emerged that the Pixelmons were simply pixelated versions of existing animations that Pixelmon creators had ripped off, but this was denied by the project’s creator, known as Syber, who said that the final versions would be much better.
Pixelmon Hype Could Only Disappoint
Syber had been hyping Pixelmon since late last year, to the point where the excitement around the launch meant that it could only disappoint. This it did, but not in the way that everyone expected, as what was revealed was reminiscent of something done by a fifth grader in Microsoft Paint:
Welp, @Pixelmon just made over $70 million dollars and when reveal happened, this is what everyone got. pic.twitter.com/3v6euOIdkT
— Hustler (@0xHustler) February 26, 2022
The fact that some had handed over 3 ETH ($7,840) for the NFTs was immediately mocked, with accusations soon following that Pixelmons were simply voxel versions of off the shelf animations:
Update in the pixelmon saga and it is not looking good lmao pic.twitter.com/FB4Ed7nexN
— Cobie (@cobie) February 26, 2022
Syber defended the criticism of the designs, saying that they were imitations of what the end product would look like and were in no way reflective of the final product. He added that the launch designs were made on a shoestring budget in order to attract investment, which would then be used on the real thing. He also urged users not to focus on the looks but the utility, which was the main feature of the Pixelmon range:
I think lots of people need to understand that @Pixelmon isn’t just about the models.
Unlike other projects we’re a video game and utility NFT, not a profile picture NFT. You aren’t buying a model, you’re buying the utility that comes with it.
So, what’s the utility? 👇
— Syber | Pixelmon (@Syberer) February 21, 2022
Syber Insists End Product Will be Worth $70 Million
Over the weekend however, Syber seemed to realize why the reveal had garnered so much hate, calling the Pixelmon reveal on OpenSea “unacceptable”, posting images of what the NFTs will actually look like in-game:
The Pixelmon reveal was unacceptable. This is what our Pixelmon look like in-game. Our NFT art failed to reflect this.
Despite the fud I will not go anywhere. The goal hasn’t changed. The funds will still be used to build our game. I will see this project through. pic.twitter.com/ViFzyKhbqL
— Syber | Pixelmon (@Syberer) February 26, 2022
Syber reinforced that no images were stolen as had been accused by some, but that the initial models were contracted out to a studio using the pre-mint budget. He later admitted to his Discord group that revealing such an objectively poor-looking collection on OpenSea after all the hype did the brand more harm than good, but confirmed on Twitter that he would stay on and prove the doubters wrong – doubters that, thanks to that ridiculous launch, now number in the thousands.
