Polkadot Gains New Parachain to Expand NFT Potential

• Polkadot announced the winner of its latest parachain auction – Moonsama. 
• Moonsama is set to become the first blockchain governed by NFTs. 
• Moonsama focuses on bridging the gap between Web2 gaming and Web3. 

On Monday, Polkadot announced the winner of its latest parachain auction. Moonsama network, a project focusing on NFTs, will become Polkadot’s 42nd parachain.  

1/ The winner of #ParachainAuction 42 is confirmed as @MoonsamaNFT

Moonsama accelerates the arrival of NFT-powered applications to the market by developing infrastructure and utility solutions. Congratulations to the team on joining Polkadot’s parachain family! pic.twitter.com/1eajhHAXYW

— Polkadot @ Consensus 2023 (@Polkadot) April 3, 2023

According to Polkadot, Moonsama wants to power NFT utility by “developing infrastructure and utility solutions” for the market. 

Moonsama –  Bridging Web2 Gaming and Web3

Moonsama aims to bridge the gap between Web2 gaming and Web3 ownership. A part of that effort is the Moonsama Multiverse Portal, which enables developers to connect their Web3 dApps to Web2 games. 

“NFTs launched on Moonsama are programmable & composable through both WASM and EVM interfaces. Native projects get access to a large array of utility tools,” Polkadot wrote. 

To catalyze this, Moonsama set up designated servers for popular Web2 games, including Minecraft. The platform’s tools enable integrating Web3 features into these Web2 games. This includes land ownership in Moonsama’s designated servers, NFT galleries, and more. 

First Blockchain Where NFT Owners Are in Charge

The entire Moonsama ecosystem will have a unique governance structure. Instead of being merely token holders, NFT owners will have the final say over the project. 

“Moonsama Network will be the world’s first blockchain governed by NFTs,” Polkadot pointed out. 

Due to the fact that Moonsama started as an NFT collection, the owners of Moonsama NFTs are in charge of the entire ecosystem. This means that NFT owners will also be in charge of the Moonsama parachain. 

What Are Polkadot’s Parachains? 

Parachains are blockchain networks that work in parallel with Polkadot’s main blockchain network. Owners can customize these parachains to fit the specific needs of their applications. At the same time, the Polkadot blockchain takes care of consensus, enabling all parachains to benefit from its security and decentralization. 

The @Polkadot ecosystem just started in Jan 2022 when the first 5 parachains launched, and traction continues to mount 🦾

Acala delivered a DeFi appchain with products that serve the whole ecosystem. We are proud of the progress so far and thankful for all of the support 🧑‍💻 pic.twitter.com/vzWywFdTnI

— Acala (@AcalaNetwork) December 7, 2022

Polkadot now has 42 parachains, with some reaching significant growth. According to Polkadot, parachains Acala Network and Parallel both had about $200 million in TVL (total value locked) in 2022. Moonbeam, the popular platform for cross-chain applications, had $85 million in TVL. 

On the Flipside

• The Moonsama team has not revealed much about its future plans. In fact, the Moonsama website states, “We don’t do roadmaps, we just deliver.” 
• NFT prices have dropped significantly since the highs in 2022, as trading volume plunged a whopping 97%. 

Why You Should Care

Polkadot is an innovative blockchain project with a sizeable ecosystem and community. Its expansion into NFTs could help accelerate innovation in the space. 

Read everything you need to know about Polkadot: 
Polkadot (DOT): A Beginner’s Guide

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