CryptoZoo: scammers or noobs who learn from mistakes?
Like many other celebrities, Logan Paul couldn't resist the temptation to try his hand at Web3. The prominent YouTuber, actor, and wrestler tried to revolutionize the NFT sector, but instead nearly destroyed his reputation.
In 2021 Logan Paul decided to join the crypto space not only as an investor but as a developer. The idea behind the project dubbed CryptoZoo came to an influencer during his Impaulsive podcast back in 2020.
The NFT-based game was supposed to be an entertaining experience with simple mechanics and passive income. The original description stated that CryptoZoo is an autonomous ecosystem with the ability to buy and sell exotic animals and their hybrids.
Ahead of the project launch, announced for September 1, 2021, gamers were offered to purchase NFT eggs. According to devs, animals ready for breeding and creating hybrids were supposed to hatch out of these eggs. Project’s roadmap also included various NFT-based mini-games that reward players with ZOO tokens.
Both investors and gamers showed interest in Paul’s project. This did not come as a surprise, since the blogger was actively promoting CryptoZoo on the Internet, emphasizing the value of unique NFTs. That is why the subsequent events came as a shock to the community and raised a lot of questions.
The NFTs offered by the project turned out to be stock images. Moreover, nobody hatched from the eggs, and investors could not return their money for the game. Amidst this situation, the ZOO token fell to almost zero.
Logan Paul didn't react to this controversy and stopped mentioning CryptoZoo on his social networks. There is no more information about the project on the website, and its visitors are only able to see the announcement about the upcoming infrastructure update.
Source: cryptozoo.co
Coffeezilla’s investigation
Perhaps Paul would be able to keep silent forever, if it weren’t for YouTuber and crypto journalist Stephen Findeisen, aka Coffeezilla. In late 2022, he launched a three-part series in which he called CryptoZoo a scam and accused Logan Paul of malpractice.
Paul could not stand aside. He threatened Coffeezilla with a lawsuit while trying to justify himself to investors, shifting the blame on the people he hired. Shortly afterwards, Logan deleted the video, apologized to Findeisen, and introduced a CryptoZoo recovery plan.
Firstly, Logan and CryptoZoo co-founder Jeff Levin will burn their ZOO token holdings to increase the token price. Then they will launch a reward program for disappointed investors. Blogger will personally commit 1,000 ETH to enable users to burn their NFTs to get the money back. The final stage of the recovery plan is to finish and deliver the game according to the whitepaper.
Paul noted that he is deeply disappointed. Right now an internal investigation is going on to pursue legal action for whoever needs to be held accountable.
