News

Blast closes $5 million round to let gamers earn money while they play

Start-up wants to improve engagement and retention for developers while letting players make real money

Date Type Companies involved Size
March 12th, 2018 investment Blast $5m
Blast closes $5 million round to let gamers earn money while they play

A new start-up called Blast has raised a $5 million seed round to develop tools that earn gamers money while they play.

The app works with mobile and PC titles like Candy Crush Saga, Clash Royale, League of Legends and Counter-Strike.

By signing up to Blast, through ‘trigger savings’ players can receive money through dividends from in-game missions, topping Blast’s weekly leaderboards to win a payout, or simply earning interest on their existing balance.

Missions to get dividends can include testing new games, winning matches and triggering certain achievements such as defeating enemies.

By accomplishing missions players can also move up the Blast leaderboard, with half of all users then eligible to receive a portion of the weekly leaderboard payout - up to $10,000 a week for the top tier players.

Funds earned by players can be used to buy in-app purchases, invested via a Blast partner or taken out as real money.

Benefits for all?

The idea behind the scheme is to improve engagement and retention among the players of these games, while users get the benefit of making some money.

The $5 million funding round in the start-up included the Forbes and Roth families, Core Innovation Capital, Great Oaks Venture Capital, Snowmass Private Equity, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, and others.

The investment will be used to develop the toolset in beta and get it ready for launch in Q2 2018.

“Blast offers a new game dynamic that increases retention and re-engagement for game companies while also turning gamers into investors,” said Blast head of partnerships Armin Collosi.

“We’re excited about working with the top game companies, enthusiasts and streamers.”

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Head of Content

Craig Chapple is a freelance analyst, consultant and writer with specialist knowledge of the games industry. He has previously served as Senior Editor at PocketGamer.biz, as well as holding roles at Sensor Tower, Nintendo and Develop.