Meet the 7 finalists for the GamesBeat 2013 Who’s Got Game Innovation Showdown

We received 40 quality startup applicants to the GamesBeat 2013 Who’s Got Game Innovation Showdown, one of the highlights of VentureBeat’s fifth annual gaming conference (Oct. 29–30 in Redwood City, Calif.).

We’ve narrowed the pool down to seven finalists who will present their innovative products or services on day two of GamesBeat. They’ll each have 5 minutes to sell our expert panel of judges on how their companies embody, enable, or amplify the very best new ideas in and around gaming.

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Judges include:

• Michael Chang, Managing Director, Mavent Partners
• Fernando Pizarro, North America General Manager, Papaya Mobile
• Mitchell Weisman, CEO, LifeStreet Media
• Eric Goldberg, managing director at Crossover Technologies
• Ann Burkett, founder of the HTML5 Developers Conference and game developer

See the Innovation Showdown finalists below, and make sure to register for GamesBeat today. The winner will get a Virtuix Omni virtual reality interface (a $499 value).

Goblinworks — Goblinworks is a spin-out from Paizo Publishing. The group is building a next-generation fantasy-sandbox massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMO) leveraging Paizo’s Pathfinder intellectual property. Goblinworks is innovating a new approach to MMO development, slashing costs by 10 times and accelerating the pace of development by three times.

Kazap Corp. — Kazap is a transmedia production studio focused on developing immersive digital brands with stories that arc across e-books, video games, mobile, and on-demand video platforms. The company is working on The Elements Club, the world’s first transmedia romance series. Set in Victorian London from 1892 to 1897, The Elements Club follows the lives of various individuals as they each unlock the power of love and fortune.

oMobio, Inc. — oMobio is launching its new mobile game, A Vision Quest, where you use your phone’s camera to solve platformer-style levels. The developer of Dropbox’s Android app and Smule’s Magic Piano for Android founded the company, and it’s creating new ways to use your phone to engage with the world around you.

Pixelberry Studios — Pixelberry Studios aims to change how people play and learn. Its team loves making games, and having the chance to make a difference in the world just gives the company even more passion for its work.

Playground Sessions — Playground Sessions is a new application that teaches piano and music theory using popular songs, gaming elements, and social connectivity. Adaptable for all skill levels, Playground Sessions features songs from artists like The Beatles and Beyoncé while including gaming elements such as scores, leaderboards, and badges. Music mogul Quincy Jones participated in the software’s development as well.

RivalMe — RivalMe is a personalized social-mobile trivia platform. With innovative social graph integration, RivalMe asks engaging questions about topics players like — from entertainment to travel to academics. Its flagship social-mobile game launches Nov. 2013. RivalMe’s white label clients include sports, media, and education brands and personalities like UCLA and Shaquille O’Neal.

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ZowPow — ZowPow makes wireless Bluetooth-low-energy game controllers for iOS and Android — think “Wii controller” for mobile. The controllers are in the shape of plush toys that look like characters. Developers use ZowPow’s platform to extend their titles into the real world, creating an active and social play experience for their users.

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You can check out the full GamesBeat 2013 program here. It’s packed with more than 70 industry-leading speakers, high-value discussions, breakouts, exclusive announcements, and brand-new networking sessions. Make sure to register today. Only a few seats remain!

Thanks to the following industry leaders for supporting GamesBeat 2013: Ad2Games, AppLift, Games Analytics, NativeX, Renren Games, and Tapjoy as Gold Sponsors; Flurry, Kontagent, Playnomics, Storm8, and LifeStreet Media as Silver Sponsors; AppFlood, Twitch, and Slashdot as Event Sponsors; Akamon Entertainment, Arkadium, and OnLive as contributing sponsors. If you’d like to become a sponsor, please send a message to sponsors@venturebeat.com.