Kabam, publisher of hard-core social games, is partnering with Kongregate, the leading destination for browser-based gaming, to bring Kabam's massively multiplayer social titles to Kongregate's non-Facebook based portal. The first title to be released under this agreement is Dragons of Atlantis, which is already live on Kongregate. The agreement provides Kabam with a new way to reach core gamers outside of Facebook, while giving Kongregate users access to massively multiplayer games without having to venture into Facebook.
“Kongregate is a great addition to our rapidly expanding mix of distribution partners,” said Chris Carvalho, Chief Operating Officer of Kabam. “Kabam games provide the immersive and feature-rich experience Kongregate’s audience of dedicated gamers seek, and this partnership allows us to expand on our multi-platform distribution approach and reach millions of additional core gamers. Additionally Kongregate’s parent company GameStop provides us the potential to explore other unique avenues of promotion and distribution for our games.”
Additional Kabam titles slated for launch on Kongregate in coming weeks include The Godfather: Five Families and Thirst of Night. The Godfather: Five Families is an online multiplayer game set in the Prohibition Era preceding the films, with players and crime families battling for money, power, and respect. Thirst of Night, a new Kabam title, is a massively multiplayer online strategy game that transports players to a dark world where vampires are building a new empire in the ashes of human civilization.
Terms of the agreement were not disclosed, though one naturally wonders if it's a better deal than Facebook taking 30% of all revenues. In any case, Kabam is diversifying its revenue base away from total reliance on Facebook, which is a goal of many social game publishers. The deal is also a benefit to Kongregate, expanding their portfolio of games to include massively multiplayer social titles.
“Our community of nearly 16 million hardcore gamers are looking forward to experiencing Kabam’s style of games on their home turf,” said Emily Greer, Co-Founder and COO of Kongregate. “Kongregate provides a first-class platform for titles like Dragons of Atlantis that provide a deeper, immersive experience with the convenience of browser-based gameplay.” Emily also noted that GameStop, Kongregate’s parent company, gives Kabam access to potentially millions of more gamers both online and off.
