Social gaming company Playdom is definitely on an acquisition spree. Last month it bought Hive 7, this month it is Metaplace, a startup that launched at TechCrunch 40 in 2007.
Metaplace has developed an in-browser virtual-world engine which can be applied to social games. Founders Raph Koster and John Donham previously worked at Sony Online Entertainment, where they helped develop games like Star Wars Galaxies and Everquest II. At Metaplace, they’ve already launched two Facebook games: Island Life (with 457,000 monthly active users) and My Vineyard (with 822,000 monthly active users). A third game is on the way. Playdom will use the virtual world game engine Metaplace has developed to create even more games in that genre and add the game design studio to its growing roster.
The company has raised $9.4 million from Charles River Ventures, Crescendo Ventures, Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz. The acquisition price is not being disclosed.
Playdom just raised $33 million of its own last month from Disney’s Steamboat Ventures and Bessemer. Some of its other recent acquisitions include MMORPG developer Acclaim Games, Facebook game developer Offbeat Creations, Three Melons, and Merscom.
Playdom is a game developer with a focus on social, online games. The company has a number of popular titles on the iPhone, Myspace, and Facebook.
Metaplace is a developer of next generation social games. It originally developed a virtual worlds platform that got shutdown in January 2010. The company changed direction since has been leveraging the platform to build next generation social games.
Seattle, WA
San Diego, CA
Menlo Park, CA
San Francisco, CA
Berlin, Germany
Boston, MA
