SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Forge, Inc., a leading innovator in capturing and sharing services for gameplay, today announced that it has raised $4.5 million in seed financing led by True Ventures and Resolute Ventures, in participation with WME Ventures.
Forge (in public beta) is a simple way for everyday PC gamers to connect and share short-form gaming clips. Forge instantly and automatically records all gameplay once a game is launched and runs quietly in the background with no additional hardware. Players can then easily clip and share their favorite highlights to the Forge network and other popular platforms like Twitter - all without exiting their game. The Forge app is free to download for Windows PC at forge.gg.
“Jared is a great technical Founder with deep knowledge of the gaming industry,” said Tony Conrad, Partner at True Ventures. “We previously funded his company WeGame (acquired by TAGGED) in 2007 and are thrilled to be backing him once again with Forge. The app has seen impressive traction thus far, and we are excited about the company’s impact on social gaming."
“Jared is a proven entrepreneur with a nearly lifelong passion for enabling gamers and the communities around them,” said Mike Hirshland, Founder at Resolute Ventures. “We are thrilled to be a part of helping him bring his vision into reality with Forge.”
“At WME we've seen first hand how short-form, sharable video clips have helped galvanize and energize fans,” said Beth Ferreira, Managing Partner at WME Ventures. “We believe there is an opportunity to do the same with gaming and are excited to partner with the Forge team to make sharing and experiencing gaming feats as easy as posting and watching a sports highlight on Vine.”
A syndicate of angels, including Vivek Paul (board member, Electronic Arts), Matt Mullenweg (Automattic), Jason Calacanis (Inside), Ryan Scott (Causecast), Hiten Shah, Jameson Hsu and Bob Ippolito (Mochi Media), Harris Barton, and Kirill Makharinsky also participated in the round. The funding will be used to continue the development of the Forge service.
"Gaming and esports are powered by video clips shared online, and that's where Forge really shines," said Jared Kim, CEO and founder of Forge. "With Forge, we make sharing your favorite gaming moments effortless. I'm excited to be working with True, Resolute, and WME Ventures, as well as all of our angel investors and advisors who have all been extremely supportive partners in this journey."
Forge's advisory board includes Kevin Chou (Kabam), Jason Yeh (Riot Games), Chris Kirmse (Xfire), Veronica Belmont, and Arjun Sethi (Social Capital).
About Forge, Inc.
Forge, Inc. is dedicated to making gaming more enjoyable and creating new mediums for players to share their gaming experiences. The company was founded by CEO Jared Kim, a pioneer of seamless video capture and social media integration and former founder of WeGame. WeGame was the first platform that enabled gamers to easily capture and share gaming videos online, and was acquired in 2011. Kim’s enduring dedication to building a better social experience for gaming is why Forge exists today. Forge is simple, easy-to-use, and enables everyday gamers to connect and share their moments with each other anywhere. For more information on Forge, please visit http://forge.gg or follow Forge on Facebook and Twitter.
