The Rotation Game Pitch

A card game to pass the time, get to know friends, and explore new music.
Getting This Part Out of the Way

I’ve been pretty busy the last two years. I was orange-pilled. And then I was DeFi’d. I worked for a crypto tax software firm. I helped out at VegaX Holdings, doing research for a while. I work for Unchained podcast. I’m about to start my journey doing Biz. Development at Li.Finance.

However, I have about two weeks between gigs, and I would LOVE to mess by starting an NFT project.

NFTs break my brain.

Like any self-described degen, I became enamored with NFTs in 2021. I bought a PFP. I purchased way too many ENS domain names. I bought my avatar a few spiffy outfits to walk around in Decentraland with.

Right now, digital assets are scattered across thousands of digitally walled gardens. Your Instagram username is actually owned by Instagram, your Fortnite skin is actually owned by Epic, your email address is actually owned by Google, etc. I think that when/if web3 hits mainstream, all of the digital assets listed above will be minted as NFTs onto a public blockchain.

Once NFT’d, these digital assets can be traded on an open marketplace for the first time. I don’t have the gigabrain to understand what sort of crazy ripples this could have on the economy… but I think it could unlock a gargantuan amount of retail money into the digital asset space.

I think NFTs are cool for three reasons:

  1. I’m in love with the idea of NFTs because they make art and collectibles natively digital, programmable, and approachable to the average milllenial (and younger).
  2. I’m in love with the idea of NFTs as a digital wrapper for data. I think NFTs will end up being more important for digital identity solutions, real estate, and finance (hello Uniswap LP tokens).
  3. I’m in love with the idea of NFTs as a way to easily and quickly fundraise money for a badass idea. NFT drops for artists are essentially Kickstarters without having to use a bank, pay a fee to Kickstarter, or go through KYC.

It’s this last idea that has my brain working on overdrive. More than enough people have dropped a cool art collection. NFTs as useful tools still feels like a nascent concept.

However, with point number three, it just feels tantalizing. Why are we not disrupting Kickstarter? Even Kickstarter has realized that crypto should disrupt Kickstarter. Seriously, Kickstarter is one of the biggest crowdfunded platforms in the world, it takes a 5% cut from all fees collected, and requires everyone to complete KYC/AML to participate… and crypto hasn’t attempted to circumvent the middleman? (Have we become too enamored with defining web3 to actually build web3?)

ConstitutionDAO was a good start at attempting to disrupt Kickstarter. LinksDAO is also interesting. Even CryptoLand is cool. These DAOs have all attempted to raise money to make a huge purchase (be it the Constitution, golf course, or an island in Fiji).

However, it feels like these DAOs are biting off more than they can chew. The issues with securities laws are worrisome. Figuring out how to build a decentralized business model has never really been done before. And, well, running a golf course seems like a lot of work.

In my opinion, crypto crowdfunding via NFTs doesn’t need to lead to decentralization of ownership. NFT crowdfunding could also be an easier way to launch a Kickstarter-type product — like a physical card game.

Let’s Talk About The Rotation Game

The Rotation Game is a deck of cards with a song prompt written on each one. The Rotation Game doesn’t really have rules.

I usually play it with a group of friends, reading a single card and passing the aux around the circle, allowing each player to queue a song related to the prompt printed on a simple black and white card. There are no winners or losers. Just music, flowing from one recommendation to the next.

“Play a song that describes your future (or current) wife.”

“Play a song about rain.”

“Play a song you would want playing whilst pulling off an Ocean’s 11 bank heist.”

The Rotation Game was birthed from long car rides and many a night sitting around listening to music. Imagine a beat-up Volkswagon traversing the barren grounds between Houston and Albuquerque — nothing but music could fill that eleven-hour drive. Picture an old-school boombox tucked into the corner of a garage, endlessly thumping beats into the late whiles of the night as old friends reminisce.

It’s in these moments that I created The Rotation Game.

The first prototype, printed in 2019
Introducing: The Rotation Game NFT Drop

Over the years, I have come up with roughly 150 song prompts that I have meticulously recorded in a Google Doc. At one point, I started to play the rotation game so much that I printed out a physical deck of cards (which is pictured above).

My idea for The Rotation Game is to release a batch of 1,015 NFTs.

Each NFT will come with the same cover art — “The Rotation Game” in white letters atop a block card. In addition to the cover art, each NFT will give access to a CSV file with the 150 song prompts. I will also link a Quizlet with the 150 song prompts.

At the bare minimum, purchasing a Rotation Game NFT will give a user access to the 150 song prompts that I put together over the last decade.

The drop will come in two tiers:

  • 1000 True Fans (.01 ETH)
  • 12 Superfans (1)
  • 3 Artist NFTs (free)

Now, here’s where it gets interesting.

If the entire drop sells out, I will order 1,015 physical boxes of the Rotation Game and mail them out to NFT holders. I will also add an extra 50 crypto-themed cards to the game (ex: Play: a song that lasts longer than a BTC block or Play: the ringtone Vitalik uses for Charles Hoskinson).

For my twelve superfans, if they exist, I will hand-deliver a copy of The Rotation Game anywhere in the US during 2022.

When/if the mint sells out, each Superfan NFT holder will be able to vote on the following:

  • whether or not to drop another batch of NFTs
  • the price point of the new batch
  • how many NFTs will be minted

In addition, ALL NFT holders will gain access to a token-gated Discord server where they can submit suggestions for new song prompts in later drops.

Problems

  • Shipping is going to be burdensome
  • Getting someone’s address is going to be tough
  • Burning NFT once redeemed
  • Minting NFTs is costly + technical?
General Positives
  • If the project does not sell out, the only thing lost is 1) exclusive access to my quizlet and 2) gas fees
  • Purchasers of the NFT should be incentivized to get the project to sell out so they can receive a physical copy
  • Learning experience