Mind Candy ready to expand its offering

26/10/06 00:00

The funding announced today comes from Accel Partners and existing investors Index Ventures and NewMedia Spark.

This is the third round of funding for the company and founder Michael Acton Smith said he always thought that venture capital would be required.

He said: “We have got highly ambitious plans and there’s no way we could grow organically so we thought the VC route was the best.”

Smith, who previously founded online retailer Firebox, met with around six VCs before deciding upon Accel, an American based company, who have added Bruce Golden to Mind Candy’s board.

Mind Candy’s leading product is Perplex City (picture above) where contestants hunt for hidden treasure worth £100,000.

Perplex City is described as an ‘Alternative Reality Game’ (ARG) which provides users with an ‘immersive gaming experience’ which blends real world events, websites, text messages, TV, print and other media.

The game has proved most popular with 16 to 30-year-olds and currently has tens of thousands of players from 92 different countries around the world.

Mind Candy’s new products, however, will be aimed at a younger audience, although next year will also see the release of more Perplex City related items.

Smith added: “Our first game, Perplex City, has generated several million dollars in revenue and tapped into the rapidly growing popularity of both puzzles and Alternative Reality Games.

“Now we plan to take that to a new level by evolving our products to appeal to a larger, more mainstream audience.”