The rules of the game in the Web3 world: the intertwining of factions, labels, and dreams.

The rules of the game in the Web3 world are always astonishing. I once heard that the "advertising space" of a certain treasury project could be purchased, with the plan being for the project party to subscribe to a certain number of Tokens, and then the project leader would use a portion of the investment to purchase the Tokens of the other party's project, while the remaining portion would be used to buy mainstream Crypto Assets. At that time, we thought this practice was absurd and laughable, but when a mediator indeed approached us with a proposal, we realized that we were the ones who were naive.

The "bai ma tou" culture in the financing process confuses many newcomers to the industry. During the ICO period in 2017, many people naively believed that it was enough to just create a good product, promote it on forums, and set up an ICO address. We spent a lot of time answering questions on social media platforms and working hard to develop the product. It was later realized that it was also necessary to get to know important figures in the industry, find advisors, seek endorsements from institutions, and collaborate with market makers and exchanges. Joining a certain camp often means keeping a distance from the other party.

In this new field that claims to "reshape the global trading system", factions and alliances are still inevitable. There are rumors that if a project chooses to debut on a certain trading platform, it may affect its listing opportunities on other platforms; if it gains the support of a certain community, it may lose the favor of other investors; accepting investments from a well-known investment institution may influence the decisions of other investors. Although these "either-or" situations still exist, as the industry matures and professionalizes, the considerations of interests have gradually diminished the factional struggles. Faced with the absolute advantages of leading platforms, other platforms can only share the remaining market opportunities through cooperation.

People are accustomed to labeling things, which is particularly evident in the Web3 space. Projects are often categorized by market capitalization, industry, function, investors, or issuance channels. These labels help people quickly form initial impressions and expectations about the projects. For example, projects supported by well-known investment institutions are often considered high-quality, and projects with expectations of going public also receive more attention. Behind these labels lies the reflection of brand premium effects.

The logic of meme dissemination is similar, usually relying on a well-known "narrative" or "IP". These tags or names themselves contain rich information, making it easy to resonate with people and spread. As more and more people start to discuss and participate, the project becomes easier to enter the public eye.

It is human nature; when a few people profit, it may be ignored. However, when more and more people, especially influential individuals, are making profits and constantly promoting it, the public will begin to pay attention and try to participate. This collective behavior often influences individual rational judgment, leading to emotional and impulsive decisions.

Web3 is like a land full of dreams, where people are looking for the next opportunity. The project party works hard to attract the attention and funds of investors. Whether it's the prosperity of on-chain activities or the emergence of new narratives, returning to value is always the ultimate goal. However, many people always hope to go against the trend, experiencing the cycle from doubt to excitement, and then to withdrawal.

The opportunities we see may just be illusions that the project party wants us to see, while the wealth effect is the bait that attracts us. In this continuously repeating cycle, we always seem to find it difficult to break out of this circle.