Dear Bankless Nation,

Earlier this year we saw Larva Labs unveil Meebits as a sort of expansion collection for CryptoPunks holders and beyond.

Then Yuga Labs, creators of the Bored Ape Yacht Club, followed suit with the Mutant Ape Yacht Club release.

Next up to watch? Cool Cats, whose team is slated to release the Cool Pets collection in January 2022.

This expansionary collection is going to introduce a range of new gamified elements to the Cool Cats ecosystem, so think Pokemon-like creatures ownable as NFTs with play-to-earn tokenomics. I’ll get you up to speed on all the basics below!

-WMP

Intro to Cool Cats Pets NFTs

The news: Last week, the Cool Cats project confirmed the Pets collection will launch in January 2022.

That amounts to a slight delay from the team’s original Q4 2021 release plans for Pets, which were initially dubbed “Creatures.” The creators opted to push back the launch timeline to avoid stretching themselves too thin over the holidays.

The big picture: The Meebits and MAYC releases served as boons to CryptoPunks and BAYC projects, respectively. Similarly, Cool Pets may serve as a considerable driver of attention, interest, and money to the wider Cool Cats ecosystem in 2022. Moreover, the launch will see Cool Cats evolve from a mere NFT collection into an NFT game with DeFi elements.

What we know right now:

• Cool Pets will be Ethereum NFTs (ERC-721s) and begin as eggs. Holders will use items (ERC-1155s) to interact with their eggs and develop them into their ultimate forms. Water, air, fire, or grass types and many millions of potential combinations are possible.
• Eggs will be claimable on a 1:1 basis for Cool Cats owners, so we know there will be a minimum of 9,999. The project is also hosting allowlist events and a public mint so people who don’t already own Cool Cats can join the ecosystem. Additional minting info hasn’t been released for now.
• The gaming elements debuted by the Pets launch will occur on Polygon, which offers low gas costs. For performing in quests, Pets players will earn GOLD on Polygon, and GOLD can be used to claim MILK tokens on Ethereum. This process is to avoid expensive bridging woes for users.
• Players will be able to purchase items and item chests with GOLD from the Cool Cats project or OpenSea.
• Cool Cat holders will also generate daily MILK/GOLD rewards, which to a certain extent will be based upon a Cat’s tier, e.g. Cool 1, Cool 2, Wild 1, Wild 2, etc.

What’s next: Over time the Cool Cats creators will fine-tune their gameplay mechanics, as well as add new elements; the project’s V1 roadmap pointed to possibilities like an Adventurers Guild, a story system called The Fractures, and a mysterious Myno Mayhem project.

What they’re saying: In the final Cool Cats Town Hall of 2021, the team said:

“We are really excited to launch the Cool Pets, but we want to do it right rather than rushed. Once the ecosystem is launched, it will add permanent long lasting utility to all Cool Cat and Cool Pet holders.”

Why Pets matters: It’s too early to know how the wider NFT space and the Cool Pets release will fare in 2022. That said, this launch could end up vaulting the Cool Cats ecosystem into becoming one of the top NFT gaming projects behind Axie Infinity in the months ahead. Only time will tell for now!

Action steps

• Follow the Cool Cats on Twitter to stay current on Pets updates
• Check out the project’s roadmap