One of the more creative and avant garde projects in the NFT space is Mythical Beings, a blockchain based card collection game from Tarasca Art & Games. Mythical Beings was built on the Ardor blockchain, and while transactions/purchases are conducted primarily in IGNIS tokens, the game has evolved to become multichain, with users gaining the option to bridge to Polygon. As you might have surmised from the title, Mythical Beings consists of a unique set of collectible cards, with each individual card representing an “actual” creature from ancient mythological lore. By utilizing mythical beings from all over the world and a host of different cultures, and including the backstory of each creature, the cards offer an educational component as well.
From an artistic standpoint, the cards themselves are aesthetically beautiful enough to stand on their own, probably worthy of collecting even if they weren’t essential components of an elaborate, fun and potentially lucrative NFT game. Seriously, these cards are visually captivating. The best way I can describe the style is that it reminds me of the enchanting, professional illustrations one would commonly see in “golden age” children’s and folklore books. For those interested, there’s a fascinating interview with Ana Santiso, the artist primarily responsible for crafting the appearance of these creatures.
The actual game is comprehensively constructed, and well thought out, yet it’s simple enough for the average person to understand and get in on the action. The object is to collect all 38 cards, at which point you’re eligible to claim a share of the current jackpot (which at the time of this writing stands at just over 20,000 IGNIS). Based on their level of rarity, cards are mainly divided into three different types: common, rare, and epic. Players have a number of options to obtain cards, such as purchasing packs directly from the Mythical Beings site, buying from NFT marketplaces like OpenSea and NFT Magic, trading multiple duplicate cards up for a random rare card, seeking out other holders direcly for independent transactions, etc. Part of the genius of the game’s construct is that if you decide to claim the jackpot, you must sacrifice all your cards, which are then “recycled” back into circulation. This keeps the game fresh and prevents a need for some inflation mechanism that might limit the project’s long term viability. In this sense, Mythical Beings operates much like a real deck of cards. To paraphrase Francis 7 from the iconic science fiction film Logan’s Run, “That’s exactly how everything works. It keeps everything in balance….It’s simple, logical, perfect. Do you have a better system?” You can read more about the detailed mechanics of the game on the site’s refreshingly informative (by crypto standards) FAQ. Oh, and there are even additional games (!) such as BATTLEGROUNDS and Elyxir which utilize the Mythical Beings card universe.
Also worth mentioning is that—outside of the standard jackpot game—there are “special” cards, which pay generous dividends to the holder. These cards are highly coveted and extremely rare. There are a few available to purchase on the secondary market, but be prepared to pay. Of course, you don’t actually need to play the game. You can always just collect a few cards as you would normal NFTs and sell them individually on the open market, without ever trying for the jackpot. As far as my own experience, the developers were kind enough to gift me a few packs and some Ignis to experiment with the gameplay. So far, out of about 14 packs that I purchased, I’ve obtained 22 (including several rare cards and one epic) out of the 38 cards but haven’t been lucky enough to score any of the “special” cards just yet. I did end up successfully buying a couple of common cards I needed from other users.
More than an entertaining and rewarding little NFT game, Mythical Beings is one of the more artistically impressive NFT projects out there. There’s also something pure and almost wholesome about it. The passion and sentiment behind the game feels very genuine. On the business side of things, if Mythical Beings really takes off, its popularity could potentially be a catalyst for wider adoption of IGNIS (and by extension, increased recognition of its parent chain, Ardor). What Ardor lacks in memetic hype it has always made up for in quality and substance. The projects on Ardor have always struck me as being a little classier or a cut above what one typically encounters in the cryptosphere, and Mythical Beings is no exception. It will be interesting to see what future developments are in the cards for this enchanting endeavor.
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