4mm Games
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Video games |
| Founded | 2008 |
| Founder | Jamie King, Gary Foreman |
| Defunct | 2012 |
| Headquarters | New York City , United States |
Key people | Jamie King, Gary Foreman, Nicholas Perrett, Paul Coyne, Geoff Heath (advisory board) |
| Products | Def Jam Rapstar, Dog Show Friends, Alli Skate (planned) |
4mm Games, LLC was a video game development firm headquartered in New York, established in 2008 by Jamie King and Gary Foreman, who previously co-founded Rockstar Games. They were joined by Nicholas Perrett, formerly of Image Metrics, and Paul Coyne, an executive with experience at Warner Music Group and NBC. The advisory board included former NCSoft CEO Geoff Heath, who contributed strategic advice.
On October 5, 2010, 4mm released the hip-hop-themed music title Def Jam Rapstar in North America, followed by a European launch on November 26, 2010. Developed by Terminal Reality and published through Konami/Autumn Games, the game was available on PlayStation 3, Nintendo Wii, and Xbox 360.
In the same month, November 2010, the company introduced Dog Show Friends, a social game on Facebook inspired by The National Dog Show, presented by Purina and NBC Sports.
4mm collaborated with the Alliance of Action Sports (Alli) to create digital games centered around action sports disciplines such as snowboarding, skateboarding, and motocross. These titles were designed for various platforms including mobile devices, television interfaces, and web browsers, aiming to offer both casual play and more engaging experiences. Their first planned release was Alli Skate, a free-to-play skateboarding game accessible through browsers.
Closure
Following a tepid reception of Def Jam Rapstar, the company’s online platform depleted its financial resources within a year and ceased operations without warning. Jamie King later acknowledged that the firm had been too ambitious in its approach, expressing regret over not postponing the game for Kinect integration or launching it earlier. Despite this setback, 4mm continued to pursue collaborative ventures; notably, in May 2011, King, Foreman, and Perrett partnered with UK-based developer Jagex to establish a holding company managing several Jagex projects including the flagship Runescape series. However, on March 31, 2012, EMI Music Group initiated legal action against both 4mm and Terminal Reality concerning the unauthorized use of 54 music tracks within the game, each valued at $150,000. In an interview from May 2012, King revealed that this lawsuit contributed to placing 4mm’s activities on hold. Subsequently, two months later, City National Bank filed a lawsuit against Konami and Autumn Games seeking $8.9 million related to a $15 million credit line extended for developing the title.
External links
- Official website (no longer active)