This report is authored by Tiger Research. Moonbirds was launched in 2021 as an NFT project. After being acquired by Orange Cap Games in 2025, its development direction shifted. This raises a core question: where is Moonbirds headed now?
Key Points
- After acquiring Moonbirds, Orange Cap Games announced plans to issue tokens and expand a broader ecosystem.
- To position Moonbirds IP as centered around fan culture rather than speculation, the team is launching various engagement formats, including card games, Blind Box 2.0 plans, and mobile games.
- While the expansion prospects of Moonbirds IP are promising, a clearer and more concrete utility framework for the $BIRB token is still needed.
1. Moonbirds Moving Toward a Larger Ecosystem
Source: Opensea
Moonbirds was a highly anticipated NFT project in 2021, with trading prices once reaching up to 40 ETH. As the NFT market entered a downturn, attention gradually waned. Recently, however, Moonbirds has returned to the spotlight due to its token issuance plans. But viewing Moonbirds solely as an NFT project reflects a perspective stuck in 2021.
In May 2025, after being acquired by Orange Cap Games, Moonbirds entered a new phase. The acquirers’ goal was not to operate Moonbirds as an independent NFT series but to develop it into a broader IP-driven business. This shift requires us to move beyond valuation of a single NFT and evaluate Moonbirds within a larger strategic framework.
2. Moonbirds and the Ambition to Become the Next “Pop Mart”
Source: Solana Youtube
The future envisioned by Orange Cap Games through Moonbirds is to become “the next Pop Mart.”
CEO Spencer Gordon Sand stated that his ambition is to build Orange Cap Games into a Web3 version of Pop Mart, creating a company worth billions of dollars.
This ambition is closely related to Sand’s professional background. He was an early investor in NFT projects like Bored Ape Yacht Club, RTFKT, and Cool Cats, giving him firsthand experience of how NFT projects evolve into IP and how they can fail.
Especially as one of the largest holders of Pudgy Penguins, he witnessed this brand’s expansion into mainstream media, including television, with non-crypto audiences actively engaging with these characters. This experience likely shaped his belief in building “the next Pop Mart.”
In line with this background, Orange Cap Games’ vision for Moonbirds differs markedly from typical NFT sales models. The company is not focused on distributing NFTs within Web3 but sees Moonbirds as a starting point to acquire and expand multiple high-potential IPs, ultimately positioning itself as a diversified, IP-centric consumer business similar to Pop Mart.
What is Pop Mart’s most popular blind box series?
Source: Pop Mart
A representative success story for Pop Mart is the character Labubu. Labubu was not originally created by Pop Mart. In 2019, the company signed an exclusive agreement with an artist from Hong Kong and successfully brought this character to the mass market.
Pop Mart is not just a third-party IP reseller. Its core advantage lies in vertical integration.
Similar to an agency, it manages the entire lifecycle of IP development—from discovering artists, licensing IP, to product design, manufacturing, and direct-to-consumer distribution through its own channels. This integrated structure allows Pop Mart to repeatedly expand new characters using a consistent growth model.
Orange Cap Games appears to be pursuing a similar approach. The goal is not just to create products but to establish a distribution layer capable of delivering multiple IPs.
This system covers physical distribution (such as figurines and trading cards), cultural distribution through offline tournaments and events, and digital distribution via games and NFTs. Its aim is to create a repeatable framework that can support and expand any IP introduced into the ecosystem.
3. To Become Pop Mart, Products Must Be Well-Produced and Well-Distributed
Source: Orange Cap Games
For Orange Cap Games, producing physical toys inspired by Moonbirds NFTs is important. However, trading cards play a more central role in establishing a scalable ecosystem.
To make its trading card game stand out, the company avoided industry-standard blue core cardstock and developed its own orange core material. This proprietary card stock reduces common issues like edge wear and warping. Orange Cap Games controls the material selection and manufacturing process, extending ownership to production details.
These efforts were validated when the cards received a PSA 10 grade (PSA’s highest rating). Subsequently, the company collaborated directly with PSA to launch co-branded promotional cards.
Source: Moonbirds
Merely product quality is not enough. The distribution infrastructure determines whether physical products reach the right audiences. It is crucial to layout in high-traffic locations frequented by target consumers.
To this end, Orange Cap Games has established partnerships with major global distributors:
- GTS Distribution: North America’s largest collectibles distributor
- Star City Games: Core distributor for Magic: The Gathering
- Asmodee: The third-largest global distributor of board games and toys
Therefore, Moonbirds products are no longer limited to crypto-native channels like exchanges. They can now be found in local hobby shops and toy stores, meeting the basic requirements for global expansion.
Currently, Orange Cap Games has secured product quality and distribution channels. The next challenge is retention: whether customers who purchase these products will remain engaged within the broader Moonbirds ecosystem.
4. Persuading Consumers to Choose Moonbirds
Producing high-quality products and ensuring distribution are necessary but not sufficient. The real challenge lies in persuasion. Among countless character products on retail shelves, what makes consumers choose Moonbirds?
The success of Labubu at Pop Mart was not solely driven by visual appeal. Orange Cap Games applies a similar logic, using structured strategies to influence consumer behavior rather than relying solely on design.
4.1 Card Games as a Cultural Entry Point
Cards are not only collectibles but also part of the gameplay. To make cards meaningful collectibles, there must be a playable game. Without active gameplay, even well-designed, high-quality cards are just decorations.
Source: Vibes
The core question is how to attract players to join a new card game.
Orange Cap Games targets participants of large trading card tournaments. These events typically last five days, with about half of the participants eliminated on the first day. The company schedules its own tournaments on the second day, positioning them as alternatives for eliminated players.
From the participants’ perspective, additional competitive opportunities are attractive. Preparation familiarizes them with the game, core players start gathering, and the product begins to operate as a genuine game rather than a niche experiment.
When Moonbirds tournaments are held alongside major established events, players start to associate them with the same competitive standards. This cognitive shift is crucial. The strategy’s focus is not on immediate conversion but on repositioning Moonbirds TCG as a legitimate part of the broader card game ecosystem.
Essentially, this approach is not just about participation but about changing the perception of the product.
Source: scgcon
In practice, Orange Cap Games applied this strategy at SCG Con in 2025 through its Vibes TCG, hosting side events alongside main competitions. Over time, this method steadily expanded the scale and visibility of Vibes TCG activities.
4.2 Blind Box 2.0: From Single Experience to Triple Experience
Source: Moonbirds
Traditional blind boxes from Pop Mart, like the Labubu series, usually contain a single figurine. Once opened and the item revealed, the experience ends. This model is designed around one-time consumption.
Moonbirds adopts a different approach—Blind Box 2.0. Each box contains three different collectibles:
- Plush toy or figurine
- Trading card
- NFT
By purchasing a single box, consumers participate in three separate experiences rather than just one.
Orange Cap Games calls this model “Hybrid.” It’s not just bundling three products. The core idea is cross-channel traffic flow, with each item serving as an entry point into different parts of the ecosystem.
- Buyers focused on toys discover TCG cards and are introduced to gameplay.
- Buyers focused on TCGs receive NFTs and access on-chain assets.
- Buyers focused on NFTs get physical toys and are guided into offline communities.
A single blind box becomes a portal into all three business lines of Orange Cap Games (toys, TCG, and NFTs). Consumers may initially only intend to purchase for the initial experience. However, once curiosity surpasses the original purpose, they are naturally guided into adjacent parts of the ecosystem.
4.3 Mobile Games as an Extension for Daily Engagement
Source: Vibes
Buying trading cards costs money, collecting figurines requires prior interest. In contrast, free mobile games only require downloading. Some users may later invest time or money to improve their decks or progress, but the initial entry barrier remains low.
“Angry Birds” provides a useful reference. The gameplay is simple, but the characters have achieved global recognition. From there, the IP expanded into movies, merchandise, and theme parks. The game became the starting point for broad IP distribution.
Moonbirds’ mobile game aims to play a similar role. Through gameplay, users become familiar with the characters and gradually absorb a broader worldview. Even users without immediate plans to buy cards or figurines are exposed to Moonbirds through the game.
Over time, this familiarity creates awareness. When consumers later encounter Moonbirds products in retail environments, these characters are no longer unfamiliar. The mobile game builds a psychological bridge that transforms passive awareness into potential purchase intent.
5. From Moonbirds to Orange Cap Games: The Role of $BIRB
Orange Cap Games has established the infrastructure and strategy to expand Moonbirds. However, for investors, the key question remains: what does the $BIRB token actually do?
The team describes $BIRB as a “Coordination Layer.” Within this framework, the token aims to accelerate cultural dissemination and make memes spread more effectively. The strategy is to anchor the business in physical consumer products while leveraging crypto-native dynamics to amplify brand influence.
The challenge lies in specificity. It is still unclear what concrete benefits token holders will receive. Revenue sharing from product sales, NFT-related memberships, or other incentive mechanisms have not yet been clearly defined.
Orange Cap Games emphasizes long-term ecosystem growth. Revenue is expected to be reinvested into the business rather than distributed to token holders. The goal is to create a positive feedback loop, channeling attention generated from the non-crypto market back into the crypto community.
A notable advantage is that this is not a business assembled solely for token issuance proof. The company has generated real income through Vibes TCG before introducing the token layer. This approach is fundamentally different from meme coins lacking underlying operations.
However, unresolved questions remain. Whether the “cultural coordination” function proposed by the token can operate in practice, and whether this function can translate into sustained token value, remains to be seen. The strategy of reinvesting for growth may also be less attractive to short-term investors.
Whether Moonbirds can reach the level of success of Pop Mart remains uncertain. Nonetheless, as a real-time experiment on how an NFT-originated IP can monetize in the physical world, the specific design of $BIRB and its early performance will determine the outcome of this experiment.
Related reading: Moonbirds: Birbillions Wealth-Building Narrative.
