Google may be helping an entrepreneur build and launch a social-gaming startup called Arcade. According to a report by Bloomberg, the games in Arcade will not be tried to any existing social networks. The report notes that users would instead be able to create accounts using their phone numbers. A Google spokesperson confirmed the existence of Arcade and told the publication that Google is considering this as a social-media investment since once a game gets to a certain size, it becomes a sort of social network in itself.
The spokesperson told the publication that Arcade was “focused on mobile gaming with friends,” and that “it’s a very early experience so there aren’t many details to share right now.” Arcade is a part of Google’s Area 120 division where select employees can work on small startups that live inside Google.
The Founder and Co-Owner of Arcade is a 21-year-old entrepreneur named Michael Sayman. He started off as an intern for Facebook Inc when he was 17, and then moved to Google last year.
Google has been increasing its focus on gaming as of late. Earlier this year, the company expanded its Instant Apps initiative to include games. This allowed mobile users to play game previews without the need to install the entire games. A few months ago, it was reported that Google was working on a game streaming service codenamed Yeti. As per the report, the service has been in development for two years and was expected to launch in 2017, but has been delayed for unknown reasons. back in 2015, YouTube Gaming was unveiled as a competitor to Amazon’s Twitch. It allowed users to view streaming videos of others or launch their own stream. It also offered access to other gaming-related content.