Jump Holdings has raised $1 million in seed funding to launch Inventure, an alternative reality mobile game that leverages interactive storytelling and artificial intelligence.
The Los Angeles startup raised the money from A3 Education to build a game that merges interactive choices with real world actions to enhance the lives of the game characters as well as the players themselves.
Inventure blends AI, alternate reality gaming (ARG), and Interactive Fiction in conjunction with the science of emotions and behavioral motivators to provide an immersive multiplayer experience fueled by interactive quests, realistic avatars, and real-time resources, the company said.
Unlike popular social simulators and choice-driven mobile games, Inventure goes beyond simple cause-and-effect entertainment to foster an atmosphere in which users
can understand and support one another within the game and through real-world experience.
“Our team honed in on the question of how to evoke empathy, emotional awareness and action in users through fun and engaging gameplay,” said James Adamy, CEO of Inventure, in a statement. “It is not an easy problem to solve, and there is still more work to be done, but we’re really excited to bring this unique platform to market that can also shed light on many social and mental health issues this generation faces today.”
Inventure has an immersive ARG mobile landscape in which users must complete tasks in the real world by use of photos and videos. They also have to navigate realistic scenarios, choices, and consequences while tackling some of today’s most pressing issues (including mental health, self-worth, #MeToo, bullying/harassment, and LGBTQ+).
By engaging with in-game avatars and their relevant story arcs, users have the opportunity to constructively navigate the challenges they and many of their peers face firsthand.
Celebrity guest avatars will also provide intimate access to some of the most challenging and rewarding moments of their lives, potentially to different outcomes based on user choices. Former NFL quarterback Ryan Leaf is one of Inventure’s pro-athlete guest avatars.
“It’s one thing to tell my story, but it’s entirely different to live my story by having to make the choices I was faced with and see the potential consequences,” Leaf said, in a statement. “I believe this revolutionary approach will help others in similar situations and build more empathy/compassion once people understand celebrities are human, too, and are sometimes faced with insurmountable pressures we aren’t prepared to deal with.”
Throughout the game, a mysterious AI guide from the future will attend users, learn their emotional palettes, and subsequently provide positive inspiration and multimedia resources tailored them. The mystery of this guide’s origin will create a puzzle that unfolds over the course of the game.
Earlier this year, A3 Education saw the opportunity to empower their targeted 20,000 student population with this unique resource and invested a seed round to accelerate the platform’s development and bring on additional talent.
“Plenty of emerging technologies attempt to tackle the complex issues, choices, and outcomes this demographic faces every day, but we believe Inventure is the first to do so in a unique and meaningful way that provides students an authentic voice in the experience,” said Sean McManus, CEO of A3 Education, in a statement. “We are proud to stand behind their vision and bring ‘the Inventure’ to our student population of game-changers and forward thinkers.”
New users can sign up today at Inventure.co to participate in the beta. The platform will be available for free download on iOS and Android mid-2019.