Guitar Hero Creator Charles Huang Riffing on Android for Next Play
Charles Huang, co-founder of Green Throttle Games
Green Throttle Games is coming out of stealth today with an idea for turning mobile devices into game consoles.
The Santa Clara, Calif., company was founded by Guitar Hero co-creator Charles Huang, along with Matt Crowley and Karl Townsend, who both have backgrounds in mobile.
“Mobile gaming is exploding, and new smart devices are becoming powerful alternatives to traditional consoles,” Huang said in a release. “We just need a simple and fun way for people to play games both on the go, and on the couch.”
Rather than buy a separate gaming device for the TV, like an Xbox or PlayStation, the company wants to enable gamers to play mobile games on the biggest screen in the house using their mobile phone or tablet. The Green Throttle Games gaming system allows a consumer to plug an Android phone or tablet into the TV using an adapter. An analog game controller connects wirelessly to the phone, allowing a person to play on the TV without any standalone hardware.
It’s similar to what some game companies have been trying to do with iPhones becoming the controller when connected to the TV via a cable.
Along with Green Throttle’s launch, the company is starting to pitch developers on making games for its system, ahead of the controller going on sale early next year. Developers can buy a kit today, including one of the company’s controllers, to start developing games. So far, it has signed up several developers, including nWay, Free Range Games, Mercenary and Monstrous. The company also will be developing games on its own. To start, Green Throttle will be compatible with Google Nexus 4, the HTC One X, Samsung Galaxy S II, S III and Galaxy Note, and the Nexus 7 and Nexus 10.
