Play-to-Earn Squid Token Rockets 35,000% in 3 Days; Some Users Unable to Sell It
The token buys entry to an online game inspired by Netflix’s hit show, “Squid Game,” but Gizmodo noted several suspicious signs about it.
Oct 29, 2021 at 9:35 a.m. UTCUpdated May 11, 2023 at 6:26 p.m. UTC
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The price of squid, a play-to-earn crypto token, has shot up 35,000% since Oct. 26, according to CoinMarketCap data.
- The token buys entry to an online game inspired by hit Korean Netflix show “Squid Game,” one of the streaming platform’s most successful shows of all time, according to the white paper.
- However, Gizmodo noted several suspicious signs about the token, such as grammatical and spelling errors in the white paper, the fact that the project’s website was registered less than a month ago, and users’ inability to reply to its Telegram and Twitter posts.
- Speculators looking to trade the token may face challenges. CoinMarketCap warns that users have been unable to sell the token on decentralized exchange PancakeSwap.
- Squid was at $0.012 on Oct. 26 and is quoted above $4.20 on CoinMarketCap at the time of writing, up more than 35,000% since Tuesday and more than 270% in 24 hours.
- In the online game, as in the show, competitors take part in six contests, with players eliminated in each round. An fee is required to enter each game, starting at 456 squid for the first round and increasing as the tournament progresses. The majority of the fees are pooled together to make up the winner’s reward, while 10% of the funds go to the development team.
- Unlike the 456 debt-ridden players in the TV show, “everyone here in crypto world can participate” by buying the token, the white paper said. On the game’s website, the “Play” button says it’s “COMING SOON.”
- Play-to-earn gaming has surged in popularity in recent months, with Axie Infinity among the most well known. In some countries players have been able to earn more in the game than in their regular jobs, to the extent that local authorities are said to be looking to tax player’s revenue.
UPDATE (Oct. 29, 16:13 UTC): Added information about Gizmodo’s story on the token in second bullet point.
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Eliza Gkritsi is a CoinDesk contributor focused on the intersection of crypto and AI.