Worlize Is Building A User-Generated Social Gaming Platform, Raises Funding

Robin Wauters

Robin Wauters is the European Editor of tech blog The Next Web and lead editor of Virtualization.com. He was a senior staff writer at TechCrunch until his departure in February 2012. Aside from his professional blogging activities, he’s an entrepreneur, event organizer, occasional board adviser and angel investor but most importantly an all-round startup champion. Wauters lives and works in... → Learn More

Wednesday, June 16th, 2010

Worlize is kicking off the private beta of what it calls the first user-created social gaming and chat platform for Facebook and other social networks. The service will be kept under wraps until the public launch in Fall 2010, but you can head to the website now to sign up for the public beta release.

The fledgling company has secured about $150,000 in angel funding from private individuals ‘across the gaming and technology spectrum’, including CFO Greg Diller, and is currently raising a more significant Series A round of financing to gear up for launch.

It’s practically impossible to review an app that we can’t get access to, but here’s the official pitch:

Within Worlize, beginners have point-and-click access to customizable plug-and-play games including puzzle, time management / strategy, card and board games, and MMORGs.

For advanced users and game developers, Worlize will release the Worlize API in late Summer 2010 to allow the creation of highly interactive areas and games within the platform.

Worlize was founded by Brian McKelvey, who will serve as the company’s chief exec. McKelvey is said to have designed and deployed applications and casual games for companies like Paramount, Sony Pictures, Lionsgate, TNT, GSN and Live Nation.

Recently named CFO and early investor, Greg Diller, brings over thirty years of corporate financial and technology expertise from companies like The Hollywood Reporter to Canon Pictures, and most recently, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM).

Update: CrunchGear has video:

And here’s a not-so-revealing screenshot of Worlize:

Company: Worlize
Website: worlize.com
Launch Date: 2010
Funding: $150k

Worlize is the first user-generated social gaming platform for Facebook and social networks, including MySpace, Twitter and OpenSocial. Currently in Private Beta, the company will launch the Worlize platform public beta in early Fall 2010. Founded by entertainment technologist Brian McKelvey, Worlize, Inc. is based in Los Angeles.

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