After months of relative inactivity, the non-fungible token (NFT) sector appears to be on the verge of a revival. Recent data from CryptoSlam.io indicates a significant uptick in weekly trading volume, which has soared to $128 million, while the number of active buyers has surged by over 50%. However, a contrasting report from DappRadar, a web3 tool for decentralized applications, reveals a troubling trend: NFT trading volumes fell sharply in the second quarter of 2025, marking the fifth consecutive quarterly decline.
### NFT Trading Hits New Low
Trading activity for NFTs plummeted by 80% year-over-year, totaling just $823 million, a stark decrease from the $4 billion recorded in Q2 2024. This marks the lowest point for the NFT market since its peak in 2022, as highlighted by DappRadar’s findings. Despite this decline in trading volume, overall NFT sales experienced a remarkable 78% increase, suggesting that while interest in NFTs remains strong, their market prices have significantly decreased. The gaming segment of NFTs led the quarter, with Guild of Guardians taking two positions in the top five collections, outperforming established names like CryptoPunks and Bored Ape Yacht Club. Conversely, profile picture (PFP) NFTs experienced a volume drop of 72%, while Real World Assets (RWAs) saw a 29% increase in ranking. Domain NFTs gained popularity, particularly on the TON blockchain, as Telegram users began purchasing anonymous number-based domains. In the art category, although volume declined by 51%, total sales surged by 400%, indicating broader accessibility at lower price points. Additionally, the total number of monthly NFT traders increased by 20%, reaching 668,598, which reflects growing participation from users exploring various applications beyond traditional collectibles.
### Will There Be an NFT Comeback?
According to a report from insidebitcoins.com, signs of recovery in the NFT market emerged in the first week of July, with total trading volume reaching $128.4 million, representing a 1.84% increase from the previous week. Data from CryptoSlam.io also showed that the number of NFT buyers climbed to over 1.06 million, a rise of 50.56%, while notable increases were seen in the number of sellers and transactions. As of now, the global NFT market continues to exhibit robust upward momentum, with sales volume hitting $18.07 million, up by 23.66%. The number of NFT buyers increased by 21.71% to 96,382, while sellers grew by 4.90% to 6,830. Transactions rose by 9.19%, totaling 216,887. From July 3 to July 9, 2025, Ethereum led the NFT blockchain sales by volume, amassing $23.7 million, a 5.39% increase. Polygon closely followed with $23.6 million, a 12.33% growth, and boasted the highest number of buyers at over 110,600, marking a 35.63% rise. Mythos Chain secured third place with $14.3 million in sales, while Bitcoin achieved a substantial 41.41% increase to $12.7 million, continuing its upward trajectory in the NFT field. BNB Chain also reported $9.3 million in sales, whereas Immutable, a previous top performer, witnessed a decline of 35.08% to $5.9 million in the past week.
In response to BitPinas’ inquiry, Jopet Arias, a prominent Filipino NFT artist and co-founder of TLYR Collective, attributed the recent increase in NFT sales primarily to web3 gaming. “The recent spike in NFT sales appears to be coming mostly from the gaming sector — specifically from collectibles tied to web3 games… After looking into it, some of these games do seem decent. While they’re not AAA-level in terms of polish, there’s something intriguing about them.” Arias noted that many projects display early potential, with previews and websites indicating that teams are actively working on building playable and engaging experiences. He emphasized that if the current sales data reflects genuine interest in gaming NFTs, it could indicate a positive shift in the industry, encouraging the exploration of new formats and economic models. However, he also cautioned that many web3 games are still in the early stages of development, often lacking refined gameplay, cohesive narratives, and strong world-building—essential components that define successful game franchises. While the renewed interest is promising, Arias has yet to personally try these games, as many are still establishing themselves.
### Top NFT Projects
Over the past week, the NFT trading landscape has remained dominated by a few leading collections, as per CryptoSlam.io. The top five collections by sales volume included Courtyard, which took the lead with $17.56 million, despite a slight drop in activity. DMarket followed in second place with $9.13 million and the most transactions, indicating steady user engagement. DNS emerged as the biggest gainer, witnessing a 334% increase to $4.88 million in sales, although it attracted only a handful of buyers. In contrast, PGNFT and Guild of Guardians Heroes experienced significant declines in both sales and user engagement.
### Courtyard
Courtyard is a platform utilizing blockchain technology to convert physical collectibles, such as trading cards and memorabilia, into NFTs. This allows users to buy, sell, and trade these items digitally. Each collectible is securely stored in a vault and is backed 1:1 by a token on the Polygon network, ensuring authenticity and ownership. Collectors have the option to redeem the physical item at any time by burning the NFT or continue trading it online.
### DMarket
DMarket serves as an NFT marketplace tailored for esports and in-game collectibles, such as skins, weapons, and armor from popular multiplayer games like CS:GO, Dota 2, Team Fortress 2, and Rust. The platform enables users to tokenize and trade virtual items as NFTs, offering features like instant sales, bidding, and even face-to-face trading without the need to transfer assets off-platform. With support for over 40 payment methods, DMarket has processed more than 40 million transactions since its inception, appealing primarily to gamers and esports enthusiasts by blending blockchain technology with the gaming economy.
### DNS
DNS NFTs, often referred to as NFT domains, represent a blockchain-based alternative to traditional domain names managed by the Domain Name System (DNS). Unlike conventional domains controlled by centralized registrars, NFT domains are stored on a blockchain and represented as NFTs. This structure grants owners complete control and permanent ownership of the domain, which can serve as a human-readable wallet address or host decentralized websites. Unlike typical DNS domains, NFT domains do not incur renewal fees and are immune to seizure or censorship by third parties.
### PGNFT
PGNFT refers to a large-scale NFT initiative known as PGNFT CLUB, with its most notable collection being the Civilization Rabbit (PCCR) series. Hosted on the BNB Smart Chain, this collection features over 123,000 NFTs inspired by Chinese civilization, drawing from historical landmarks and cultural elements. Each NFT is represented as a BEP-721 token and can be traded on platforms like OpenSea (BNB Chain).
### Guild of Guardians Heroes
Guild of Guardians Heroes NFTs are digital assets representing playable characters in the mobile fantasy RPG Guild of Guardians. Built on the Immutable zkEVM blockchain, these NFTs grant players true ownership of their in-game heroes, which can be utilized in gameplay, traded on marketplaces, or rented to other players. Each hero possesses unique traits, abilities, and rarity levels that contribute to team strategy and performance in dungeon battles.
### Top Collectible Sales
In the realm of collectible sales, the CryptoPunks collection dominated the top NFT sales last week, with all entries in the top 10 coming from this collection. The highest sales were Punk #1831 and Punk #9778, each fetching 150 $ETH. Beyond these top two, there was a noticeable decline in sale prices, with Punk #4868, ranked third, selling for 76.5 $ETH—a nearly 50% decrease in USD value from the top sale. The remaining top 10 sales ranged between 48.5 and 70 $ETH.
