Mozilla just announced the launch of its GameOn competition for web-based games built on top of HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and other open web technologies like WebGL and WebRTC. Developers can submit their games until February 24, 2013. There are three categories (hackable games, multi-device games and web-only games) and the winners will get an all-expense paid trip to San Francisco for GDC 2013.
In addition, the winners will get the chance to be featured in Mozilla’s new Firefox Marketplace and to present their games to the team at Chillingo for “potential publishing on their network.”
This is the second year Mozilla is hosting this competition. Last year’s winner was Marble Run.
The Web As Console
According to Mozilla Foundation’s Chloe Varelidi, the organization wants game developers to imagine what would happen “if we looked at games as open, creative systems that, like the Web itself, are hackable by design? Games are traditionally at the forefront of tech, continually pushing the envelope of what’s possible,” she says. “Mozilla is inviting you to reimagine the Web as the console, and use the power of the browser to revolutionize the way we make and play games.”
To help developers, Mozilla also put together a site with resources for building browser-based games.
As browser developers continue to push the boundaries of what’s possible on the web, games are quickly becoming the applications of choice for the likes of Mozilla, Google, and Microsoft to show the power of their browsers. Mozilla, for example, launched its massively multiplayer game BrowserQuest earlier this year. Microsoft has been working with the likes of Atari and Cut The Rope developer Zeptolab to bring a number of popular games to Internet Explorer, and Google has long hosted and promoted ambitious experiments like Cirque de Soleil’s Movi.Kanti.Revo online experience.