Less than a year after taking its first venture funding, We R Interactive, a would-be web game maker, is taking a $5 million second round funding.
As well as repeat investment from previous backers Fru Hazlitt (ITV (LSE: ITV) commercial chief), Peter Mead (advertising veteran) and Eric Fellner (Working Title co-chair), the firm is adding new investors Elio Leoni-Sceti (former EMI Music CEO) and Paul Fitzsimmons (former Apax media partner).
All of which gives it an array of multi-media executive experience.
So far, We R Interactive has just one game out. Called I AM PLAYR, it’s a Facebook- and self-hosted soccer game that tries to meld both playable action and behind-the-scenes celebrity lifestyle in a first-person effort, including sponsored in-shot brand appearances.
For a web game, the second aspect, which includes footage of actors and a kind of Footballers’ Wives narrative, may be overkill. But CEO David Rose, in today’s announcement, boasts: “We have created a media format that combines high-end film and gaming to offer something fresh and immersive for users. Our approach allows innovative brand integration opportunities that actually enhance the player’s gaming experience.”