An Early Peek at OpenSea's New OS2 Platform

This week, NFT marketplace giant OpenSea just added nearly 50,000 new users to its OS2 private beta.

I was one of these new additions, so I wanted to run through the basics of the platform so you can know what to expect once OpenSea rolls out access to everyone.

If you're out of the loop here, OS2 is the next version of the OpenSea platform that has been reimagined "from the ground up," per CEO Devin Finzer.

I've previously speculated on what this launch might entail, but in any case OpenSea has been adding waitlisted users to the OS2 private beta since November 2024 ahead of its grand opening at some point later in 2025.

That said, what are things like on the inside?

First things first, when you sign into OS2 with your wallet, you'll be prompted to choose a UI mode, reminiscent of Blur. "Collector Mode" emphasizes the visuals of NFTs, while "Pro Mode" emphasizes trading data.

Next, the platform introduces you to the basics of its new XP system—collect it, and its value will reveal itself, the site explains.

As you'd expect for an NFT marketplace, the main ways to earn XP on OS2 are by 1) listing NFTs you own for sale, and 2) making collection-wide offers on top collections.

At this point, you'll be brought into the main platform, and its aesthetics will be defined by whichever mode you selected. For instance, this is the OS2 homepage in Collector Mode:

It looks similar to the traditional OpenSea homepage, except top and trending collections are displayed on the right side of the page. On the left, you'll see a sidebar featuring shortcut tabs like "Stats," "Activity," "Profile," and "Leaderboard."

The Stats, Activity, and Profile hubs have been redone and boast more info now but are generally familiar. The newest addition here is the Leaderboard page, which shows your current XP, loyalty, and boost multiplier levels, along with the global OS2 XP standings.

In the screenshot above, you'll also notice a locked "Retro" category. This suggests OpenSea will do a retroactive XP distribution to past users of its marketplace.

The grand question for now, then, is how far will that retroactive eligibility stretch back? Devin Finzer has hinted that it will go all the way to "day 0," i.e. the very beginning of OpenSea!

Zooming back in, the collecting experience on OS2 is also familiar. No need to reinvent the wheel here, right. You can click into a collection, search across various attributes or parameters, and make offers, create a cart, or "buy now," etc. You can also easily list or sell NFTs from your "Portfolio" page.

All in all, OS2 does have the feel of a souped-up, expanded OpenSea. While some of its changes are subtle, altogether I find the new platform easier to navigate and with better analytics, so that's a win in my book.

Full disclosure, too. Personally I've always done the majority of my NFT trading on OpenSea, so I do think the XP and Leaderboard system is a nice added benefit for using an app I'd already be using anyways.

That said, the big implicit takeaway here with the XP system is that OpenSea seems to be obviously angling toward the launch of its own token.

Of course, I've seen some criticisms floating around on social media that OS2 is copying the Blur and $BLUR playbook.

Yet OpenSea has stayed relevant all these years while still having the airdrop card in its deck, so to speak—a card Blur used long ago in its own bid to vampire attack activity from OpenSea. So why not use this playbook now to reassert dominance and consolidate the OpenSea community anew?

Sure, the OS2 UI experience could've gone in a more differentiated direction than Blur, that's fair enough. But visually it's like a blend between the traditional OpenSea platform and the OpenSea Pro marketplace aggregator (previously Gem), so it's not like the builders didn't have their own in-house inspiration.

Plus, there may be other announcements in store for the OS2 grand opening. Could an OpenSea Wallet be coming? Or an OpenSea L2? These possibilities would be opportunities for OS2 to further branch out in unique directions, so we'll see what happens from here.

In the meantime, keep an eye on OpenSea's comms for news on when the OS2 beta will get opened up to everyone. It's clearly got the potential to become a major hub of NFT activity in 2025.