Learn to Earn: An Interview with Sanyika, Founder of NFTGamer.TV
The new user experience for crypto is… pretty bad. One man and his team are setting out to change that – incentivising the learning process and making you a better collector!
MAY 11, 2022. INTERVIEWS. WRITTEN BY JOHN NICHOLS.
One of the major hurdles for the mass adoption of blockchain technology comes right at the start of the journey – the onboarding process.
Taking your first steps into this new world can be a challenge. What is a blockchain? How do cryptocurrencies work? Where do I setup a wallet? Don’t get me started on the lingo – from DeFi to DAO, NFA to NFT, there’s a veritable new language to learn for the crypto curious.
Today’s interviewee is setting out to make onboarding a breeze, and is incentivising the process using the WAX blockchain – Sanyika.
John: Hey Sanyika! Could you tell me a bit about yourself, your background, and how you got into NFTs?
Sanyika: I grew up gaming. I was actually prescribed gaming as a kid to improve my motor skills – my doctor saw that I was behind on my writing, and he told my mom; “get him a Nintendo DS and that should solve the issue”. Ever since, I’ve been obsessed.
As for NFTs, it’s a bit of a funny story. About a year and a half ago, I came across Earth 2. The thought of a digital world always intrigued me – I’d become pretty familiar with blockchain and had heard that Earth 2 was, at the time, not actually on the blockchain. I Googled “Earth 2 on the blockchain”, and sure enough, I found Upland.
After entering their Discord community, my now business partner and close friend TD showed me the ropes and explained the whole concept.
From there, he brought me into the fold and introduced me to the world of WAX. I immediately fell in love. It was a no brainer to me. I could finally really own the skins and in-game items that companies like Epic Games had banned me for selling in the past.
Prior to NFTGamerTV, you were often known as one of WAX’s pre-eminent whales – I’ve tussled with you over auctions a few times! How do you feel about the moniker, and what is your approach to collecting?
Honestly, I’ve never really considered myself a whale, but I’ve always loved that moniker. I’m just the type of person where if I love something, I pour myself into it – which I instantly did when I first discovered Creek‘s artwork. Who doesn’t love cute little astronaut figures?
That’s generally my approach to collecting as well. When I make a decision with a profit mindset, I get burned. I’ve discovered that buying what I love is the best way to go. That way, even if I can’t sell what I’ve bought, I can at least treasure it because I bought it with my heart, not my head.
NFTGamer.TV started exactly one year ago. What is it, how did it come about, and what has the journey been like so far?
NFTGamer.TV was born out of my connection with Trent and both of our connections with other creators and collectors in this amazing space. We’ve met lifelong friends in this space, including each other.
TD walked me through the Upland basics when I first became involved in NFTs. He then introduced me to a close-knit group that showed me the ropes for WAX, and then we decided to help do the same for as many people as possible.
This began with media coverage on upcoming NFT projects that we had discovered and wanted to learn more about. It then grew into the idea for an Learn-To-Earn platform, which will reward members for completing verifiable tasks whilst learning about blockchain, DeFi, and NFT gaming.
The Learn-to-Earn system sounds very interesting! Could you tell us a bit more about that?
The L2E system is currently in development. We have a rather detailed whitepaper, so I won’t bore you with too much detail.
The concept is to gamify the learning and onboarding experience – to help turn the crypto curious, diving head-first into high-risk projects, into knowledgeable members ready to do their own research, and understand why it’s so important to do so.
Outside of NFTGamer.TV, what other activities do you undertake in the space?
Primarily, I’m a collector and P2E NFT gamer.
As I said before, gaming is in my blood. I may not be the best gamer out there, but I love learning new things, and I find that I’m endlessly satisfied in that sense through gaming.
There’s always something new to do.
Your livestreams have become very popular amongst the community! What can new viewers expect to see?
We appreciate that, although we have a lot to learn from you!
As for what’s coming, they should expect a much more regimented schedule. We’re hoping to have at least one stream daily going forward. Also, expect better video content, especially small house-made humourous ads.
What is your mission with NFTGamer.TV?
Our mission is to educate and prepare as many people as we can for the Web3 revolution.
Who are some of your favourite game projects and artists in the space?
This is definitely the toughest question you’ve asked so far. I love so many projects in our amazing space.
My oldest favourite would be Creek, but I met Stuck and Superpuft shortly after, as well as you Hydro. All four of y’all’s projects would definitely make my list of favourites. (<3)
CryptoFlash and Crypto Chibi have always been collections I love to stare at. CryptoFlash does such an amazing job making tattoos come to life.
I’ve also found myself staring lately at some of my Virtual Dream NFTs, which is a collection that I don’t think gets the artistic value it deserves.
MissTeenCrypto’s NFTs are also always fun to collect.
As far as playable games, my list gets a bit shorter.
TAG is one I play usually when out on my phone. I’m super excited for the upcoming Swamp Soldiers’ wave of gameplay, and I’ve been trying to get myself to play Forge Arena, especially after my legendary knife pull – I’m a huge FPS fan!
I also love playing Immersys, and I need to spend more time in there with the new battling updates.
Lastly, I’m very excited to get into the updated Costume Clash metaverse to see what Josh has in store for us.
Do you collect NFTs or play blockchain games outside of WAX? Which are your favourites?
I have a few NFTs on other chains.
Binamon (BSC monster fighting) pending their updates, ForgottenChain (BSC MMORPG), Dash League (ETH MMORPG), and Mini Royale (SOL FPS) are some of my favourites. We also have a team of Axie scholars.
I prefer WAX above all others though. In my mind, constant transaction fees will never scale, no matter how small they may be.
In your opinion, what is the biggest problem in NFTs today, and how do we go about solving it?
Whilst I have met some of my best friends in this space, I would still say the largest threat is people – and by people, I specifically mean bad actors.
Some of the greatest minds exist in this space, but bots, multi-accounting, and simply rude people will continue to be a strain. My solution would just be for everyone to stop doing hurtful things to each other and to the projects, but sadly life isn’t that simple.
Realistically, it will eventually have to come down to some sort of score that holds people accountable for their digital actions.
What are your plans for 2022?
Build. Collect. Have a blast!
Is there anything you’d like to add? Anything you’d like to say to the reader?
Get ready to Learn-to-Earn on WAX!
Time for those quick-fire questions!
What fuels you?
Learning new skills and concepts.
One unusual fact about you?
I had to re-learn how to walk when I was 11.
If you could give one piece of advice, what would it be?
Be yourself.
You can invite three people, real or fictional, to dinner. Who do you choose and why?
William Quigley, Einstein, & Steve Jobs.
What is your purpose in life?
Teaching others and being myself.
How can we follow you and your work?
Check out my Linktree!
Sanyika and the rest of the NFTGamer.TV team have received increasing praise for their contributions to the space, and with praise comes popularity as they recently surpassed 20,000 Twitter followers.
Once their Learn-to-Earn system goes live, it’ll be easier than ever to bring newcomers to the space, and the potential stemming from that could be huge. Watch this space!
