Amazon launches GameOn competitive gaming platform

Worldwide retailer Amazon has just announced Amazon GameOn, a cross-platform competitive gaming service for developers, allowing them to integrate competitions into their mobile, PC, and console games via a set of flexible application programming interfaces (APIs).

The service also allows developers to "drive engagement and increase monetization of their games," according to the press release, and supports leaderboards, leagues, and multi-round competitions, not to mention custom events like local and regional competitions. Players and streamers can even create their own user-generated competitions if the developers allow it.

GameOn is already being used by Game Insight, nWay, Avix, and GameCloud Studios in a number of different titles, something that Millenial Esports' Eden Games is particularly pleased with in their game Gear.Club. "GameOn has made it easy for us to add leaderboards and tournaments in-game," said Pascal Clarysse, CMO, Eden Games. "GameOn saved us months of development and a whole lot of maintenance and logistical overhead in the long run."

GameOn APIs can be used for free until May 1, at which point the first 35,000 plays per month will be free for a limited time. After that though the developers will pay $0.003 USD per play, with physical prizing fulfilled by Amazon only being available in the US at launch as well.

Do you like the sound of GameOn as a system?