Jim-Greer
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Kongregate CEO to step down
Jim Greer is stepping down as Kongregate's CEO, he announced in a forum post on the indie game portal's website. His sister Emily Greer will become the site's CEO, and Jim will stay with the site "half time" while also launching a non-profit political action group, according to Gamasutra. The change will go into effect on February 28. Kongregate is host to thousands of games, both downloadable and browser-based, and also has its own in-house game development team. The gaming portal was acquired by GameStop in July 2010. GameStop established a $10 million mobile game fund for Kongregate earlier this month. [Image: Kongregate]
Kongregate CEO Jim Greer on getting pulled from the Android Market
Kongregate CEO Jim Greer called Google's swift removal of his company's Kongregate Arcade app from the Android Marketplace "surprising." Released on the morning of January 19, the app was pulled by that evening. "We were very surprised, especially since we had shown it to several people at Google in mobile," Greer told Joystiq, noting that "the particular person who's sort of the lead on rejecting it" had not seen it prior to release. "The reason for the removal," Greer recounted, "and we didn't find out until after it was already gone, was that they claim you can't use their app store to distribute another app store -- which is a reasonable restriction. But to us, what's really bizarre, to call [Kongregate Arcade] an 'app store' seems like a pretty extreme stretch." The Arcade app is essentially a portal to Kongregate's Flash site, with access to more than 300 games formatted for mobile display and wrapped in a native layer of social features. "Literally, you can go to m.kongregate.com and play any of the games," Greer insisted. "And the experience will be -- once you've got the game on your phone -- just the same," minus the "rich presentation layer" added by the app.
Kongregate Arcade brings 300+ games to Android, wants to 'solve the game discovery problem'
It's no secret that the Android Marketplace doesn't share the iPhone App Store's surfeit of high-quality games but, as the platform continues to grow, we expect to see more land grabs. Today, one of browser-based gaming's cool kids is coming to the Android platform with 300+ Flash-based games in one download. Kongregate Arcade brings much of the web-based Kongregate service to the Android platform, including game ratings, achievements, comments, and even "mobile-only badges on top titles," all tied to your Kongregate account. "In creating the Kongregate Arcade, we wanted to solve the game discovery problem that all Android owners have shared," said Jim Greer, CEO of Kongregate. To that end, the Arcade launched with over 300 games, with new titles promised weekly "with selection based on compatibility with the mobile platform and the ability to play on a touch screen device." Kongregate's also looking to create Android-exclusive games "which should further jumpstart Android as a viable gaming platform." In order to get in on the action, you'll need an Android device running Android 2.2 (Froyo) or higher, with Flash 10.1 installed. You'll also need an internet connection though "select games can also be downloaded for offline play." Share your Kongregate usernames in the comments, so we can beat your Dolphin Olympics 2 score.
