Bigpoint GmbH is a German

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 video game developer

Video game developer

A video game developer is a software developer that creates video games. A developer may specialize in a certain video game console, such as Nintendo's Wii, Microsoft's Xbox 360, Sony's PlayStation 3, or may develop for a variety of systems, including personal computers.Most developers also...

 that has specializes in browser-based games. Bigpoint runs a gaming portal website with a number of browser-based massively multiplayer online role playing games it has produced and has over 200 million registered users (announced in June 2011). NBCU has featured some of Bigpoint's games on the websites of some of its cable channels. In addition to its headquarters in Hamburg, Germany, Bigpoint maintains offices in San Francisco (Bigpoint Inc.), Berlin, Malta (Bigpoint International), and Sao Paulo.

Heiko Hubertz founded the company in 2002 and remains CEO. On April 4, 2011, Heiko Hubertz named Arthur Bastings co-CEO of Bigpoint GmbH.

In June 2008, General Electric

General Electric

General Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...

 and NBC Universal

NBC Universal

NBCUniversal Media, LLC is a media and entertainment company engaged in the production and marketing of entertainment, news, and information products and services to a global customer base...

, along with European private-equity group GMT Communications Partners, bought out a 70 percent share of Bigpoint. NBCU has featured some of Bigpoint's games on the websites of some of its cable channels.

On April 26, 2011, TA Associates

TA Associates

TA Associates, founded in 1968, is one of the oldest private equity firms in the United States. The firm employs a hybrid strategy making growth capital investments in developing companies and acquiring mature companies through leveraged buyout and recapitalization transactions...

 and Summit Partners

Summit Partners

Summit Partners is a growth equity investment firm focusing on a wide array of transactions from leveraged buyouts and recapitalizations to growth capital, venture capital investments, and mezzanine capital....

 invested $350 million into Bigpoint to become the majority shareholders. Previous shareholders Comcast Interactive Capital’s Peacock Equity Fund sold their holdings in this transaction. GMT Communications Partners and GE sold a majority of their stakes. Hubertz retained his existing ownership stake in the company.

Used technology

Games are developed using PHP

PHP

PHP is a general-purpose server-side scripting language originally designed for web development to produce dynamic web pages. For this purpose, PHP code is embedded into the HTML source document and interpreted by a web server with a PHP processor module, which generates the web page document...

, Adobe Flash

Adobe Flash

Adobe Flash is a multimedia platform used to add animation, video, and interactivity to web pages. Flash is frequently used for advertisements, games and flash animations for broadcast...

, Java

Java (programming language)

Java is a programming language originally developed by James Gosling at Sun Microsystems and released in 1995 as a core component of Sun Microsystems' Java platform. The language derives much of its syntax from C and C++ but has a simpler object model and fewer low-level facilities...

 and the Unity engine

Unity (game engine)

Unity is an integrated authoring tool for creating 3D video games or other interactive content such as architectural visualizations or real-time 3D animations. Unity's development environment runs on Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X, and the games it produces can be run on Windows, Mac, Xbox 360,...

.

List of games developed by Bigpoint

• Icefighter
• Fussballmanager
• Gangs of Crime (formerly known as Mafia 1930)
• Gladiatoren
• Managergames Hockey
• Managergames Soccer
• Seafight
  Seafight
  Seafight is a high seas pirate browser game developed and published by Bigpoint. Bigpoint describes Seafight as a free to play game, but in fact certain features are only available on payment. The game revolves around ship warfare on the open seas as player fight against monsters and against each...
  
  
• Land of Destruction
• DarkOrbit
  DarkOrbit
  DarkOrbit is a massively multiplayer online game developed by Bigpoint Games. The game is set in outer space, where players control a spaceship to battle against non-player characters and other players...
  
  
• Chaoscars

• SpeedCars
• SpeedSpace
• The Pimps
• ActionLeague
• Damoria
• K.O. Champs
• Gladius II
• SpaceInvasion
  SpaceInvasion
  SpaceInvasion is a free to play, text-based resource management and space-war massively multiplayer online browser game purchased and relaunched by Bigpoint in 2007. It has many gameplay features similar to OGame...
  
  
• War of Titans
• BeBees
• Parsec
  Parsec
  The parsec is a unit of length used in astronomy. It is about 3.26 light-years, or just under 31 trillion kilometres ....
  
  

• Deepolis
  Deepolis
  Deepolis is a 3D online browser based game, developed by Bigpoint. Released on 17 December, 2008, the game is available in 20 languages ....
  
  
• XBlaster
• Hellblades
• Farmerama
  Farmerama
  Farmerama is farming simulator by Bigpoint where players can grow and harvest crops and raise animals. Through a variety of chores and delivery orders, players level up and gain access to more advanced crops and more rare animals...
  
  
• ZooMumba
  ZooMumba
  ZooMumba is a free-to-play zoo simulator developed and published by Bigpoint where players take up the responsibility of creating and maintaining their zoo. Players start with an empty piece of land to transform into successful and fun-loving zoo. Players have a variety of objects and tools at...
  
  
• Battlestar Galactica Online
  Battlestar Galactica Online
  Battlestar Galactica Online is a browser-based Massively Multiplayer Online Game based on the 2004 television series Battlestar Galactica. Released in open beta on February 8, 2011, it was developed by Bigpoint and Artplant using the Unity Game Development Tool. In less than three months of...
  
  
• SkyRama
• PonyRama
• RamaCity
• AquaRama
  Aquarama
  Aquarama may refer to:*Riva Aquarama, a speedboat model built by Italian yachtbuilder Riva.*Aquarama Aquarium Theater of the Sea, an aquarium in South Philadelphia*Aquarama , a passenger ship that operated on the Great Lakes....
  
  
• Drakensang Online
• The Mummy Online
• Universal Monsters
  Universal Monsters
  Universal Monsters or Universal Horror is the name given to a series of distinctive horror, suspense and science fiction films made by Universal Studios from 1923 to 1960...
  
  

List of games published by Bigpoint

• WonderKing Online
  WonderKing Online
  WonderKing Online is a free-of-charge, 2D, side-scrolling massively multiplayer online role-playing game game created by the South Korean company Ryu & Soft.-Gameplay:...
  
  
• Drift City
  Drift City
  Drift City is a MMOR video game developed by NPluto and sponsored by several major automotive companies such as Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and U1 Technology.-Plot:...
  
  
• War Machines
• Terminator Salvation
• Rise of Gods

• Case White
• SpaceConquer
• Skaph (by Wadim Kapinos, a promotion from 2009 August)
• Rangersland International
• Pirates 1709 International

• Wanted
• 11 Manager
• Arenas of Glory
• Castle Fight International
• Puzzle Pirates

• Xhodon
• Anophis
• Dolumar
• Generated Affixation: the Nexus Lancinate

External links

• Online Gaming Outfit Bigpoint Points To Some Big Numbers TechCrunch June 20, 2011
• The Next Wave of Free-to-Play: Licensing Gamasutra June 16, 2011
• Battlestar Galactica Online Surpasses 2 Million Players Jostiq May 26, 2011
• Investors buy majority stake in online game maker Bigpoint for $350M VentureBeat April 25, 2011
• Bigpoint Talks Drakensang Online Massivley March 21, 2011
• Bigpoint expands to US with Electronic Arts digital distribution deal VentureBeat February 28, 2011
• Bigpoint saves Planet Moon game studio with hiring binge VentureBeat January 1, 2011
• Bigpoint in €70 million buy-out, at www.growthbusiness.co.uk, June 9, 2008.
• Bigpoint’s Sale to NBC-GMT a Big Deal: Online gaming company fetches $110 million, signifying continued interest in the space from major media companies and ongoing consumer interest., By JONATHAN MARINO, Mergers & Acquisitions Report via mergersunleashed.com, June 9, 2008.
• Peacock, GMT agree to majority buyout of Bigpoint, siliconindia news bureau, June 12, 2008.
• GMT and NBC Universal take over Bigpoint, Galaxynews.com June 9, 2008.