Friday, April 3, 2009
Talk of the town
Game on, dude For adults, there are the social communities of Facebook and MySpace. For kids, there are online worlds like Webkinz and Club Penguin. Betwixt the two, for the aptly termed 'tweens? Right now, not enough, according to SuperSecret Inc.
In the quest to create the next big web game for pre-teens, the San Francisco startup has decided to commandeer a Bay Area middle school for market research.
All week, SuperSecret has been hosting students from the private Girls' Middle School in Mountain View at its South Beach offices so the girls can critique the game set for release in late April.
Ten girls have been taking the train up every day with adult supervision. Ted Barnett, CEO of SuperSecret, said it has sort of been like a job for the kids - except they've been getting school credit, not money. The school, which a SuperSecret employee's children attend, sees it as chance to expose kids to the tech industry.
Francesca McRae, an 11-year-old from Palo Alto, said the experience was a thrill: "It's been exciting," she said. Since December, SuperSecret has had about 500 kids playing its game in private beta, and it has held focus groups since the fall. The company said it has received $10 million in venture funding led by Opus Capital. The game allows kids to create an avatar of themselves and to participate in quests and missions. Winners get to advance in age, and to enjoy privileges that come with maturity, like having a pet avatar.
- Contributors: Mark Calvey, Patrick Hoge
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