The Artist’s Journey
In the early months of 2018, a small team of developers and artists began building what they called a “digital pet universe” on the Ethereum blockchain. Axie Infinity, created by the Vietnamese studio Sky Mavis, allowed players to battle, raise, and trade cute fantasy creatures called Axies — each one a unique non-fungible token stored on-chain. Fast forward to November 2019, and the project announced it had closed a $1,465,000 seed funding round led by Animoca Brands, with participation from Hashed, Pangea Blockchain Fund, ConsenSys, and 500 Startups. It was one of the first significant venture investments in an NFT-based game, and it signaled that blockchain gaming was beginning to attract serious institutional attention.
The Axie team had been working quietly but persistently for nearly two years. They released two games within the Axie universe — a breeding mechanic and an idle battle system — and managed to sell over $1.1 million worth of in-game assets while generating $1.8 million in peer-to-peer trading volume. Their ERC-721 smart contract became one of the most heavily used NFT contracts on Ethereum at the time. The community, though still small by today’s standards, was passionate and deeply engaged.
The founders understood something fundamental: that players wanted more than just a speculative asset. They wanted ownership, creativity, and a sense of belonging. The Axies themselves were lovingly designed with distinct traits and abilities, and the breeding mechanic introduced a layer of genetic complexity that made each creature feel genuinely unique. Artists within the community contributed skins, lore, and fan art, transforming Axie Infinity from a simple game into a vibrant creative ecosystem.
Collection Mechanics
Axie Infinity operates on the ERC-721 standard, meaning every Axie is a one-of-a-kind digital asset with verifiable ownership on the Ethereum blockchain. Players collect Axies by purchasing them from the in-game marketplace or by breeding existing pairs. Each Axie possesses a set of genetic traits — body parts, stats, and abilities — that are partially inherited during breeding, creating a rich system of strategic collection and trade.
By November 2019, the game had already set a world record for the most ETH raised by a blockchain game in a single day: 1,200 ETH. The breeding and trading economy was entirely player-driven, with prices determined by rarity, battle performance, and aesthetic appeal. Axies were not just collectibles — they were functional game pieces with real utility in battles and future game modes.
The project had also established partnerships with major technology companies, including Samsung, which integrated blockchain features into its devices, and Klaytn, the blockchain platform created by Korean tech giant Kakao. Additional partnerships with MakerDAO, Loom Network, and HTC further demonstrated the growing recognition that NFT-based gaming had real commercial potential.
Utility & Perks
Owning Axies was not merely about holding a digital collectible. Each creature served a functional purpose within the game’s ecosystem. Axies could be deployed in turn-based battles against other players, earning experience and in-game rewards. Breeding two Axies produced offspring with a mix of parental traits, creating a dynamic marketplace where strategic breeding could yield highly desirable — and valuable — new creatures.
The Sky Mavis team had ambitious plans for the seed funding. Their top priority was launching a mobile application in the first half of 2020, which would introduce the concept of “play to earn” to a much broader audience. The mobile app promised to deliver a polished, competitive, and immersive experience that could appeal to mainstream gamers, not just cryptocurrency enthusiasts. This vision of play-to-earn would eventually become one of the defining narratives of the 2021 crypto bull run, though at the time it was still a relatively radical idea.
Additionally, the team planned to build technology for practical blockchain-based applications that extended beyond gaming. The funding would allow them to expand their development team, accelerate feature delivery, and attract more attention from press and influencers — all critical steps for growing the Axie community from a passionate niche into a mainstream phenomenon.
Secondary Market Action
By late 2019, the Axie Infinity marketplace was already showing signs of a healthy secondary market. Over $1.8 million in trading volume had been recorded between players, with individual Axies selling for significant sums based on their rarity and battle prowess. The record for a single-day sale — 1,200 ETH — demonstrated that demand for high-quality NFT gaming assets was real and growing.
The broader NFT market in November 2019 was still in its infancy. Bitcoin was trading around $8,800 and Ethereum hovered near $184, with the total cryptocurrency market capitalization at roughly $218 billion. NFTs were a niche curiosity, far from the mainstream awareness they would achieve in 2021. But within this quiet corner of the crypto world, platforms like Axie Infinity, CryptoKitties, and Decentraland were building the infrastructure and communities that would later fuel a multi-billion dollar market.
The trading dynamics within Axie Infinity were particularly notable because they demonstrated a self-sustaining economy. Players were not just buying and holding — they were actively using their assets in gameplay, breeding new creatures, and trading with strategic intent. This was a fundamental departure from the pure speculation that characterized much of the earlier NFT market.
Final Verdict
Axie Infinity’s $1.46 million seed round in November 2019 was a watershed moment for NFT gaming, even if few recognized it at the time. The investment from established names like Animoca Brands, ConsenSys, and 500 Startups validated the thesis that blockchain-based games could attract real users and generate meaningful revenue. Sky Mavis had proven that a small, dedicated team could build a thriving digital economy on Ethereum, complete with functional game mechanics, a passionate community, and genuine secondary market activity.
The partnerships with Samsung, Kakao’s Klaytn, and HTC suggested that the broader technology industry was paying attention. And the team’s ambitious plans for mobile gaming and play-to-earn mechanics would eventually transform Axie Infinity from a niche blockchain experiment into a global phenomenon. For those watching closely in November 2019, the seeds of the NFT revolution were already taking root.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. NFT investments carry significant risk, and past performance is not indicative of future results. Always conduct your own research before making investment decisions.
Axie was selling 1.1M in assets before the seed round even closed. Sky Mavis barely needed the money, they already had product-market fit
hard agree. most ICO projects at the time had zero users and were raising 10x this. animoca got a steal
sky mavis proved product-market fit before raising. thats backwards from the typical web3 playbook of raise first build later
sky mavis had real users spending real money before taking a single VC dollar. thats rare in any market let alone crypto in 2018
Animoca, Hashed, ConsenSys, 500 Startups all in the same seed round. That is a who is who of web3 VC before web3 was even a term
that seed round looks like a bargain in hindsight. animoca probably 100x on that 1.5M when AXS peaked. one of the best VC calls in crypto
animoca 100x is conservative. they bought in at a $1.5m valuation and axie peaked at $3B. the math speaks for itself