The Walking Dead media franchise is one of the most popular media franchises of the past decade. Throughout its 11 seasons, the show’s ratings have been impressive, with more than 17 million people watching the show’s fifth season premiere in 2014, for example. Those numbers made it the most-watched scripted show for 18-49-year-olds, not just on cable, but of all TV shows at the time. While the show’s ratings did decline after that notable peak, The Walking Dead still retains a dedicated and passionate fanbase that has enthusiastically welcomed the IP to Web3 in this year’s NFT drop. In February, Striker Entertainment (the company representing AMC’s The Walking Dead) announced a partnership with digital collectibles maker Orange Comet to release the show’s genesis NFT drop. The Walking Dead Walker Pass series launches on March 3, 2022, and features 5,000 “walkers,” each with more than 30 traits. Access Pass holders get exclusive perks like access to future items, autographed merchandise and live events, and the collection sells out in less than 24 hours. The company released another collection on April 14, 2022 called Daryl’s Motorcycles: a collection of 5,000 motorcycles and 50 NFT model kit bikes that pay homage to Daryl Dixon’s iconic bikes.
Through Orange Comet Now, Orange Comet will release the Degeneration Walkers series on July 28, 2022, according to a press release shared with nft now. Walker Access Pass holders will be able to mint 1 of 5,000 or 1 Zombie NFT, and will then receive an airdrop of three additional NFT versions of Zombies with increasing rot status. Each NFT airdropped to the holder will have the same physical characteristics as the original NFT, but look more decomposed and aged than the last. Those who purchase Degeneration Walker NFTs at any stage of the secondary market will inherit the remainder of the airdrop. Starting at 5,000, the series will grow to 20,000 degenerate walkers in a few months.
Building The Walking Dead
“The response from the fan base has been incredible,” Orange Comet CEO Dave Bloom said in an email exchange with nft. “We hope we can reach NFT collectors who are not fans of the show by doing the highest quality work in the field, while also attracting The Walking Dead fans who have never bought an NFT but are excited about what they have seen from us .” Orange Comet is using these NFT drops to help build the show’s virtual world, The Walking Dead, a “post-apocalyptic open-world build-and-earn experience based on the Walking Dead universe.” Users will be able to buy land, build structures and earn virtual world rewards for doing so. “The creative context for the series really refers to the fact that these walkers have been captured for research and experimentation,” Dante Ferrarini, chief creative officer and co-founder of Orange Comet, now explains in an email exchange with nft. “So, it’s likely that there will be some interesting changes in the later stages.” As part of its ambitious plan, the company aims to release five The Walking Dead-related NFT drops each year. One upcoming product that the company has released with little information so far is its line of Avatars. Orange Comet said it modeled and hand-painted these avatars in great detail to create something akin to the digital twins of the show’s actors.
Danai Gurira’s Michonne’s digital avatar from Orange Comet “Together with the walkers, the human avatar will play a major role in The Walking Dead,” says Ferrarini. “We’ll be doing multiple human avatar drops, the first of which will be later this year, [which is] A detailed 3D rendition of a set of the most famous actors. Next year, we plan to release avatars that collectors can customize at minting. In all cases, these characters will be converted into The Walking Dead virtual world assets. The main goal of The Walking Dead’s virtual world is to rebuild the world after the Walker apocalypse. Users will be able to build structures and defenses, use tools and vehicles to explore various biomes, and forage for materials and rare resources. They will also be able to “create their own Factions”, which are unique abilities given to landowners who can craft “fully realized” lands that generate excess resources. In addition to all the characters and tool assets that come with them, users can even sell their “Factions” NFTs”. “There is a lot to discover and we will reveal more about this experience in the coming months,” added Ferrarini.
