Participated · Seed · Mar 2022

Joyride Games provides an end-to-end publishing platform optimized for Unity that helps developers build, launch, and operate blockchain-powered mobile esports, casual, and social games. Its toolkit includes a multi-chain token wallet, NFT minting and management, and support for fungible token economies. The platform also offers publishing support such as analytics, A/B testing, and live operations to help run live games. Joyride is preparing to launch its first completed games over the next six months, including Solitaire Blitz and Tennis Champs. The company has discussed a longer-term roadmap that could include a JRX token to serve as a medium of exchange and governance for the ecosystem. Joyride plans to use new capital to add more supported blockchains to the wallet, introduce new NFT features, and integrate with marketplaces. The product is aimed at bringing frictionless blockchain experiences to mainstream mobile gamers.

Participated · Equity · Jun 2020

Koji is a San Diego, CA-based app store for the creator economy that provides hundreds of free apps built by Koji and its community of independent developers. Its flagship product, the Koji Link in Bio, gives creators on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and other platforms new ways to engage audiences, connect with supporters, and monetize. Koji apps open directly inside social media apps without downloads or installs and are not subject to App Store fees, allowing creators and developers to keep more earnings. Since launching in March 2021, more than 150,000 creators use Koji’s Link in Bio and the platform hosts over 200 apps, from games to utilities like the Shoutout app. The company has a weekly app release cadence and apps are produced by community developers, creator-economy startups (including Laylo, Subtext, and Fanfix) and Koji’s in-house team. Koji recently announced a suite of Web3 apps, including commerce apps that offer discounts to customers who own specific NFTs, and plans to expand its engineering and creator teams while accelerating platform and crypto/Web3 development. Koji provides a standards-based, full-stack Java platform for creating interactive social-media content—anything from interactive selfies and memes to minigames—that generates shareable links usable across platforms. The product supports multimedia, audio, video, 3D graphics, augmented reality, and virtual reality, and offers hundreds of templates that users can “remix.” During a year-long beta the company says users created about 150,000 Kojis and those were played 10 million times. Koji enables a marketplace where template creators can sell premium templates or license assets; the company takes roughly a 20% cut of purchases. The team is small (about 10 employees) and recently hired former Sony Online Entertainment CTO Chris Yates as head of engineering. CEO Dmitry Shapiro and cofounder Sean Thielen position Koji as a bridge between platforms to make interactive content more viral and broadly shareable.

Participated · Equity · May 2020

Dazzle Rocks is developing a mobile-first, scalable sandbox MMO that the team compares to Minecraft and Animal Crossing, with a Nintendo-like, approachable aesthetic. The game is built as a persistent, player-driven world with crafting, property ownership, dynamic weather, and a custom social MMO engine designed for massive global scalability. The studio intentionally designed the game to appeal to both Western and key East Asian markets (China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan) and to both women and men. Dazzle Rocks plans an open beta for Western markets first, followed by launches in key Asian markets, and targets a full launch in the second half of 2020. The company will expand beyond mobile to additional platforms over time. Financially, Dazzle Rocks closed a $6.8 million funding round in mid-February to continue development; the team has 14 employees and aims to grow past 20 this year.

Participated · Equity · Mar 2020

Bazooka Tango was founded in 2019 by Bo Daly and Stephan Sherman, veterans from AAA game development who previously created Vainglory at Super Evil Megacorp. The studio is developing Shardbound in collaboration with web3 publisher Immutable; the game blends TCG elements, tactical maneuvers on hex grids and digital collectibles. Key gameplay features include commanders moving across low/high ground, mana and health systems, a Super Meter, an alternate Victory Points win condition, and five distinct commander types. Bazooka Tango ran playtests with roughly 1,000 creators, logged about 10,000 hours watched and amassed over 50,000 pre-registrations. The company plans seasonal content, deck building, leaderboards and broader cross-platform support, with a public beta later this year and an official launch in 2024 on Steam, Epic, Apple and Google stores and eventual mobile. Bazooka Tango raised $5 million to fund Shardbound, grow its team of roughly a dozen people and advance three other in-development titles. Bazooka Tango was founded by Bo Daly and Stephan Sherman, the creators of Vainglory, and is led by gaming veterans with experience at Riot, Rockstar, EA, and NCSoft. The studio's first title, Vainglory All Stars, is a 3-vs-3 mobile multiplayer game built on the E.V.I.L. engine and uses a more cartoon-like, accessible art style. Bazooka Tango emphasizes a scientific, analytics-driven approach, heavily utilizing player behavioral data to drive design and polish features. The company plans to create original IP and a portfolio that mixes successful mobile genres, mobile adaptations of PC/console genres, cross-genre remixes, and ambitious genre-defining titles. The team is currently about 10 employees based in San Mateo, California and has leveraged Super Evil Megacorp's E.V.I.L. engine to accelerate development. Bazooka Tango has raised $2.5 million and says it will scale up over time as it takes on more projects.

Led · Equity · Sep 2019

Mightier offers a clinically validated at-home video game system that pairs games with biofeedback and evidence-based coping strategies to help children build emotional resilience. The technology was developed by clinicians at Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School and is led by CEO Craig Lund. Since launching in 2018, Mightier has helped over 50,000 families, addressing issues such as anxiety, tantrums, ADHD, ODD and ASD. The company plans to use new funding to expand its team and scale its technology to reach more children. It also intends to push further into the healthcare industry via a strategic partnership. Financially, Mightier has raised a total of $29M to date. Mightier is a Boston-based video games program developed and tested at Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School that helps children aged 6–14 cope with emotional regulation issues including ADHD, anxiety and anger. Its games use a heart rate monitor so kids can see what they are feeling in real time and practice regulation skills. The current library comprises 25 games and the app has been used to play more than 2.5 million games. Three clinical trials conducted with Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School showed that after 12 weeks on the platform children manage their emotions better and parents report less stress. Led by co-founder and CEO Craig Lund, the company raised USD$250k in funding. Mightier intends to use the funds to expand operations and broaden its business reach. Mightier, founded in 2016 out of Boston Children’s Hospital, offers a library of 25 bioresponsive video games designed to treat behaviors associated with emotional dysregulation in kids aged 6–14. The company partners with video game developers and adds a Mightier emotional-learning layer to keep children engaged while teaching regulation skills. Commercially launched in July 2017, Mightier delivers its product via an app (iPhone and Android) paired with a heart-rate monitor and clinician coaching. It offers a starter plan (monitor, app, introductory coaching, progress tracking, parent resources and a private community) and a foundation plan (dedicated tablet, whole-family access and monthly licensed-clinician coaching). To date more than 2.5 million games have been played on the Mightier app. After the Series A, the company has raised over $10.1M and intends to use the new funds to grow product, marketing and engineering teams and to invest in consumer acquisition and engagement strategies. Mightier develops bioresponsive video games and a wearable heart-rate monitor (the Mighty Band) that teach children emotional regulation by making games respond to changes in heart rate. Its product includes the Mighty Band, the Mightier app and game library, six 30-minute coaching sessions, an online hub to track progress, and a private parent community. The company’s current library contains 15 games and it works with external video-game developers to expand offerings. Developed and tested over seven years at Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Mightier commercially launched in July 2017. The company plans to use the new funding to quadruple its team, expand the game library from 15 to more than 25 titles, and conduct additional clinical research at Massachusetts General Hospital.