NFT Review: Adam Bomb Squad by The Hundreds

NFT Review: Adam Bomb Squad by The Hundreds

Oof. What a night. I along with 3-4 other people from the Adam Bomb Squad Discord decided that we were going to track the number of occurrences that a “sticker” appears on any of the 25,000 released bomb images. We had to do this manually. By Hand. One-At-A-Time. I personally covered Bombs #15000-20,000 and then about another 1K here and there… Why you ask? There is *no* metadata available.

If you had read my prior article, it’s clear that I am a complete novice to this whole space. I saw the Adam Bomb Squad as an interesting way to get experience where a *real* company that has existed for over 15 years starts making NFT’s. So, I am sure that you can imagine some of my surprise when I too found out there was no metadata being released. Quite literally “The one thing that I actually new about NFT’s, being rarities and traits, suddenly didn’t apply!”. Well, Sh*t.

So, back to the whole reason for going through this list. We got confirmation from the team that any bomb with a sticker, was in fact something “rare”:

By this point, the community is aware of the stickers, but if you aren’t, they look like this:

Honestly, based on direct feedback from the founders there may not even be an “official” list released for some time (ala, Ape style). In part this is due to the nature of the beast where the community can dictate what is good vs. not good. Additionally, the team behind this project seems to be passionate about setting a baseline of rarity and appeasing the demographic of NFT trader that like to have a set of constraints to work between IN ADDITION to working the people who see value in the art itself. Totally get it. 

Final count after a team effort and 25K bombs:

What is my takeaway after clicking through more than 5,000 Atom Bombs?

Well, for one, I think I am getting a case of carpel tunnel or tennis elbow or something! Otherwise, I really need to say that all the bombs truly are unique in their own way. I know it sounds pretty cliché but since that was a primary objective of the project, mission accomplished. I tried to look for the ones that were the same. In reality, there is a rarity for not being rare…

Otherwise, I think that I would describe some other traits I think that some people are overlooking…

Registered vs. Not Registered (NOTE: I am not a patent attorney!)

Per Google, “The symbol “R” in a circle signifies that a trademark has been registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for the goods inside the package.” What this means is that if there is an “R” that design is registered in the US and part of the intellectual property of that person or entity.

I suspect that a bomb without an R, could be a collaboration, unique 1 off contribution, etc. I grabbed these 2 examples from the floor price on OpenSea (9/6/21).

Solid Backgrounds vs. Patterns seem about 50/50

I am someone who loves color, patterns and pizzaz. As in, wearing a plain white button-down shirt is my LAST choice in getting dressed for work. That said, I don’t really think I saw as many solid color backgrounds as I would have expected. I think there is a perception that a lack of a background pattern means inherent less valuable. I took a random sample from OS between .5 and .75 eth to try and get an un-biased view and something not at floor level.

Now to some, they may not like what I have to say on this but, there is also discussion on paying premium for solid white & black backgrounds. I really don’t know if I would consider them any rarer than another solid color….

What I think is rarer or in demand over time…

I know I have said this a bunch, but I am still new to this. I’ve been burned in the game when I sold my OG “loot” for .10ETH only to see it skyrocket to 13ETH within days. You learn from mistakes. So, I very well could be making a mistake when I listen to what the creators of this project are saying very literally.

When you listen to the team and you hear or read their excitement and their passion, you can tell that they are here for the long haul. They also have said they are following the model of other successful communities that now are mainstream. That evolution and notoriety is something that didn’t happen overnight and took time to get there. Additionally, over that time we can see that more and more people become interested, and thus, the things that become valuable are suddenly the things that appear to the masses.

What do I mean…?

If I was new, hearing a news article on the street and checked it out…it would be overwhelming. I would naturally be drawn to the things that either didn’t look like all the rest… or…. Something that was familiar to me.

I think the “anything but a classic Hundreds bomb” should be pretty obvious as something rarer. For example, out of 33 bombs on the floor as of 9/8/21, there is only 1 Madam Bomb AND it has a solid background…

When it comes to things that are easy to recognize, it’s directly the backgrounds. I personally suspect it’s less and less about “plaid vs. camo” but more about the backgrounds like Pasley, LV, Sawtooth or even that crazy wallpaper pattern in your kitchen from the 90’s.

Looking at the reference point that it will be inevitable for more and more people to join the community, I think that the real short term (and long term) value is the things that appeal to the masses, are non-threatening to someone new in the space and is something that is still… unique.

Closing Thoughts

I probably could have found some better things to do over this past long US holiday. I thought it was fun and interesting to get closer to a project as a I further my own journey into NFT space. I by no means have any empirical evidence on anything but as someone who work as a professional in my day job – these are the things that stick out to me. Good luck & happy collecting!

For transparency, I do personally own some bombs and have follow my own opinions on what I purchase.