Overdog gets two million funding for matchmaking Xbox One apps
Nashville-based startup Overdog wants to change how online matchmaking works and just received almost two million dollars in funding to create a better matchmaking tool for Xbox One.
For some time now, Xbox has been seen as a mixed bag when it comes to game skills and social skills when looking for people to play against online. The result: most people mute other players in Call of Duty or they will only ever play with their friends. But what happens when nobody is online?
It’s a roll of the dice when it comes to who shows up in a lobby. Might end up with a group of overachievers or a total clownfest.
Co-founded by former Bears linebacker Hunter Hillenmeyer, Overdog has raised $1.8 million in funding co-led by Atlas Venture and Chicago Ventures, as well as individual investors Mark Pincus (founder of Zynga) and Allen Debevoisa (founder Machinima) to launch a new app on Xbox One that will match you up with people with similar interest.
The aim of the app is to ensure that like-minded and similarly skilled players will be matched up together.The Overdog system is designed a great deal like a dating app (the original matchmaking) and cues in on hobbies and preferences such as sports, music, gaming, celebrities, websites and entertainment. Instead of playing with anonymous rabble, Overdog users can meet like-minded people and play their favorite games (for example, FIFA, Madden, or Call of Duty).
“If you love Game of Thrones, the San Francisco 49ers, The Black Keys, and OpTic Gaming, we think those factors should help determine who you play with when you sit down for a game of Call of Duty,” said Overdog president and former NFL linebacker Hunter Hillenmeyer to GamesBeat. “Overdog can find the ideal gaming partner for whatever game you are about to play, and, of equal importance, we can help filter out the bad apples. A platform that makes who you are in the real world relevant to your gamer-self is long overdue.”
The Overdog app will become available in the Xbox One app store in the autumn of 2014.
The company expects to make their app cross-platform in near future. Overdog seeks to improve matchmaking for online gamers across all platforms, whether that’s Xbox, PlayStation, mobile and tablet, or even some virtual reality ecosystem that has yet to materialize.
“We couldn’t be happier with the make up of our investor group,” Overdog chief executive officer Steve Berneman said in a statement to GameBeat. “Two venture firms with proven track records and a great group of strategic angels position Overdog well as we revolutionize online gaming.”
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