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Playdom co-founder Rick Thompson pumps $1.5 million into indie outfit Kihon Games

Joins board of directors

Playdom co-founder Rick Thompson pumps $1.5 million into indie outfit Kihon Games

Arizona-based indie studio Kihon Games has announced Playdom co-founder Rick Thompson has invested a total of $1.5 million in the firm.Delivered via venture capital firm Signia Ventures, both Thompson and Signia's entrepreneur-in-residence Dan Fiden will join Kihon's board of directors as a result of the deal, with the studio set to use the money to fund the release of its second game, Dojo Danger.Monkey business"Since co-founding Playdom, I've been dedicated to working with the best mobile and social gaming companies to improve the quality of these games," said Thompson, who has previously invested in Funzio, Idle Games and Wild Needle."Kihon has all of the elements of the best companies that I’ve been involved with, especially their talented team of developers, and their upcoming titles represent the standards that I believe in."Dan Fiden and I are proud to be a part of Kihon’s success in continuing to make high quality fun and addictive games for people of all ages to enjoy."Kihon Games was founded by Sony Online Entertainment veterans back in 2011, with the firm's first release – Baby Monkey (Going Backwards on a Pig) – having hit the App Store in August as a result of the popular YouTube video of the same name.No dangerDojo Danger, it's claimed, is to be built using Kihon's proprietary 'Kata' toolset, which is a described as a platform designed to "create quality games in an efficient, cutting-edge fashion.""As lifelong gamers and game creators, we've always had tremendous respect for Rick Thompson, and we are thrilled to count on him as a valuable partner and advisor," added CEO Mark Grossnickle."Most importantly, his support and guidance bolsters our efforts to keep making our particular brand of games."

Dojo Danger
is scheduled to launch on iOS in Q2 2012.


With a fine eye for detail, Keith Andrew is fuelled by strong coffee, Kylie Minogue and the shapely curve of a san serif font.