PMOG, a multiplayer online game (MOG) that lets users accumulate points while passively surfing the web and then use those points to help or hurt their fellow players, launched out of private beta this morning. We first covered PMOG back in February. To play PMOG you need to install a Firefox add-on that lets you interact with other users asynchronously on websites you visit. You spend points accumulated by surfing the web on things like mines, which you leave on websites and explode when the next player visits the site. Points are deducted for tripping a mine unless the player has spent points on armor. Other users can also attach “St Nicks” to users who leave a lot of mines, which causes their next mine not to work. I spent most of my time and points leaving mines all over the web, and then suggesting that founder Justin Hall to go to those sites. For some reason I never got tired of this. But other players create various missions that direct users, in a StumbleUpon fashion, to topic-specific sites. PMOG has about 15,000 users and the company that created it, GameLayers, says they are ready to open up to everyone that wants to play. The video below give a short tour of the service. More information on their CrunchBase profile. CrunchBase Information GameLayers PMOG Information provided by CrunchBase → Read More
If you read our review of the Firefox based Multiplayer Online Game PMOG last night and want to start playing right away, now you can. The company is allowing every user to invite two other users to the service, which makes it perfect for our InviteShare service. If you want an invitation, go here, sign up and leave your email address. Someone will soon send you an invitation. All we ask is that you confirm the invitation, and use the two invites to get more people in on InviteShare (you can invite people from your PMOG profile page, at the bottom). That way, everyone gets to check it out. CrunchBase Information GameLayers Information provided by CrunchBase → Read More
Want to play a MOG (multiplayer online game) passively while surfing the web all day? Then you’ll like PMOG, the first game developed by California and UK-based GameLayers. PMOG, which is currently in private beta with 150 or so users, is a Firefox add-on that lets you interact with other users asynchronously on websites you visit. In some ways it is like Stumbleupon – users can create “missions” which are groups of websites under a theme (one is called “Laugh, Hard” and is a group of humor sites; another is called “Tech News Tour” and includes links to Engadget, Gizmodo, Digg and Slashdot). When you go on a mission a controller appears in the bottom right of your screen, letting you move from site to site. Users can also be more mischievous, leaving mines on websites that other users stumble onto and cause them to explode. Points are deducted unless you’re wearing armor. Other users can also attach “St Nicks” to users who leave a lot of mines, which causes their next mine not to work. Finally, a user can add a “portal” to any page, which is a link to a new website. Click it if you want, although there very well may be a mine waiting for you at the other end. All in all it’s a lot of fun. While on the phone with CEO Justin Hall, I asked him to go to Google, where I had a mine waiting for him. He tripped it, causing damage to his armor. I thought it was hilarious. You have to rack up points to buy mines and all the other stuff that makes the site fun. Every unique domain that you visit gives you two points, so you get points just from surfing the web. You can also give gifts of mines and other tools to others by leaving “crates” around. Justin’s fiance, Merci Hammon (the company’s CCO), gave me a gift of ten mines while I was testing the service, all of which I am aiming at Justin. Gathering points and completing missions leads you to higher levels, where you eventually choose a character type. There are six characters in all – two are “chaotic” and leave a lot of mines and portals. The rest follow the “torch of order” and focus on protecting others or creating useful missions. All those user created missions create page views for → Read More
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