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CryptoZoo

From Invertopedia, the encyclopedia of how things fail

Entry 022. An analysis built from the public record, not an insider account. Spot an error? Tell us.

CryptoZoo was a blockchain game promoted by YouTuber Logan Paul, in which players would buy NFT eggs, hatch them into animals, breed hybrids and earn a token called ZOO[1][5]. The first 10,000 eggs sold out within minutes of the September 3, 2021 launch[2], but the game was never released[6]. In January 2024 Paul offered $2.3 million to buy back eggs and animals from holders who agreed not to sue him[1][6].

Contents
  1. 1The bet
  2. 2What happened
  3. 3The kill shot
  4. 4Red flags ignored
  5. 5The cost
  6. 6The inversion
  7. 7What survived
  8. 8References

The bet

Paul announced the project on his Impaulsive podcast in August 2021 as a "really fun game that makes you money"[1]. Players would buy eggs, hatch them into animals of five rarity levels, breed those into hybrids, and collect ZOO tokens as a daily yield[1][5]. The bet was that people would pay for the animals first, and that the game, the minigames and the token's value would follow.

What happened

Aug 2021Logan Paul announces CryptoZoo on his Impaulsive podcast.[1]
Sep 3, 2021Launch. The first 10,000 Base Eggs sell out within minutes, at 0.1 ETH each.[2][3]
Dec 2022YouTuber Stephen Findeisen (Coffeezilla) publishes a three-part investigation. It reports the game was never playable and that developers said they were not paid.[2][5]
Jan 13, 2023Paul posts a three-step plan: holders can burn base eggs for the 0.1 ETH mint price from a 1,000 ETH pool, and the game will be finished.[1][3]
Feb 2, 2023A Texas police officer who says he lost about $3,000 files a proposed class action in the Western District of Texas, alleging fraud, breach of contract and negligence.[2][7]
Jan 4, 2024Paul offers $2.3 million to buy back base eggs and base animals at 0.1 ETH each, in exchange for a waiver of claims. He says the game will not be released.[1][6]
Jan 4, 2024Paul files a cross-claim alleging co-founders Eduardo Ibanez and Jake Greenbaum defrauded him. Greenbaum calls the allegations "completely false."[1][8]
Oct 29, 2025Judge Alan Albright adopts a magistrate's recommendation and grants Paul's motion to dismiss. All but one claim may be refiled.[7][9][10]
Nov 12, 2025The plaintiffs file an amended complaint. Paul moves to dismiss it on January 30, 2026, and the case is still open in September 2026.[7]

The kill shot

The eggs and the token went on sale before there was a game to use them in. Once the price of the token fell, there was nothing underneath it.

Coffeezilla's investigation reported that the eggs could not be hatched as promised, that the passive yield never worked, and that a former developer said he was never paid[5]. Paul said a developer had left with the source code and demanded $1 million[5]. By February 2023 the ZOO token was worth less than a hundredth of its August 2021 peak[2].

Paul's own court filing blamed his partners. His cross-claim alleges that Greenbaum set up a ZOO trading pool in secret and that Ibanez sold billions of ZOO for an estimated $1.7 million[8]. Greenbaum denies it[8]. Paul says he personally spent $400,000 on development and never made money from the project[1][8].

Red flags ignored

  • The money came before the game. Eggs sold out within minutes of launch, and no playable game ever followed.[2][6]
  • "Makes you money." A game sold as an income stream invites buyers who are there for the yield, not the play.[1]
  • A token held by insiders. The economy ran on ZOO, and Paul's own court filing accuses his co-founders of selling it.[8]
  • A refund with strings. The buyback covered base eggs and animals only, left out hybrids and ZOO holders, and required a waiver of legal claims.[1][8]

The cost

Coffeezilla counted about $2.5 million spent on eggs[5], and the buyback did not cover the ZOO token[1][8]. One buyer told Time he had put in £30,000 of his own money and borrowed £50,000 from his father, and had lost almost all of it[2].

Paul's January 2023 plan committed 1,000 ETH, about $1.4 million at the time[3]. The January 2024 buyback offered $2.3 million at 0.1 ETH per base egg or base animal[1][6].

The inversion

Don't buy pieces of a game that doesn't run yet. If the only working part of a project is the store, the store is the product.

What survived

The lawsuit. In August 2025 a magistrate judge found the buyers had not tied Paul closely enough to their losses, but recommended letting them refile all but one of their 27 claims[9]. Judge Albright called some of Paul's promises "puffery," including the "really fun game that makes you money" line[4]. The buyers refiled in November 2025, and Paul's new motion to dismiss was still pending in 2026[7].

A side case. Paul sued Findeisen for defamation over the coverage in June 2024[11][12]. The parties told the court in July 2026 that it had settled, and Paul filed a stipulation of dismissal with prejudice on July 21, 2026[12].

References

  1. ^ “Logan Paul promises CryptoZoo refunds, as long as you don't sue him”. TechCrunch, January 4, 2024. The Impaulsive announcement and "really fun game" pitch, the egg and hybrid mechanics, the January 2023 plan, the $2.3 million buyback terms and waiver, Paul's $400,000 claim.
  2. ^ “How Logan Paul's Crypto Empire Fell Apart”. Time, February 2, 2023. The September 3, 2021 launch and sell-out, the ZOO token's fall, Coffeezilla's series, the February 2023 class action and a buyer's losses.
  3. ^ “Logan Paul reveals refund plan for dissatisfied CryptoZoo NFT investors”. CryptoSlate, January 14, 2023. The 0.1 ETH mint price and the 1,000 ETH (about $1.4 million) redemption plan.
  4. ^ “Logan Paul's CryptoZoo promises were just "puffery," not fraud, says judge dismissing lawsuit against him”. Tubefilter, November 6, 2025. The 0.1 ETH starting price and the judge's "puffery" ruling. (Its report that the dismissal was with prejudice is contradicted by the docket, which shows an amended complaint.)
  5. ^ “YouTuber: Logan Paul's NFT 'Game' Is A Big Crypto Scam”. Kotaku, December 28, 2022. The ZOO yield model, Coffeezilla's findings (about $2.5 million spent on eggs, unpaid developers, no working game) and Paul's response.
  6. ^ “Logan Paul announces he will buy back NFTs from his failed CryptoZoo project”. NBC News, January 5, 2024. The $2.3 million buyback, 0.1 ETH per NFT, the waiver and the game not being released.
  7. ^ “Holland v. CryptoZoo, Inc., No. 1:23-cv-00110”. U.S. District Court, W.D. Texas, docket via CourtListener (entries through September 2026). Filed February 2, 2023; order granting Paul's motion to dismiss (October 29, 2025); amended complaint (November 12, 2025); new motion to dismiss (January 30, 2026); case not terminated.
  8. ^ “Logan Paul launches CryptoZoo NFT buyback, files countersuit as legal battles rage on”. Decrypt, January 4, 2024. ZOO holders left out of the buyback, the cross-claim's allegations against Ibanez and Greenbaum, Greenbaum's denial, Paul's $400,000 claim.
  9. ^ “CryptoZoo Suit Fails to Tie Logan Paul to Collapse: Judge”. Cointelegraph, August 19, 2025. The magistrate judge's recommendation: dismissal, with 26 of 27 claims open to repleading.
  10. ^ “Logan Paul Beats CryptoZoo Investors' Suit, For Now”. Law360, October 30, 2025. The district judge adopting the recommendation and overruling Paul's objections.
  11. ^ “Logan Paul CryptoZoo Class Action: Where the Case Stands”. OpenClassActions, July 2026. The defamation suit Paul brought over Coffeezilla's CryptoZoo videos (case status cross-checked against the docket).
  12. ^ “Paul v. Findeisen, No. 5:24-cv-00717”. U.S. District Court, W.D. Texas, docket via CourtListener. Filed June 27, 2024; settlement reported July 13, 2026; stipulation of dismissal with prejudice July 21, 2026.
Categories: Games · NFT game · Abandoned in 2024 · Cause of death: no product · From the public record