// startup autopsy
Aurora Feint
Built the mobile social gaming layer before the giants noticed — then got absorbed and deleted.
platform dependencyAcqui-hire
Fatal mistake: Built an entire social gaming network on Apple's iOS without sufficient independence from the platform, which was instantly threatened when Apple launched Game Center in 2010.
Key Events Timeline
FOUNDING
Aurora Feint founded by Jason Citron and Danielle Cassley; launched an iOS puzzle game that included early social features.
PIVOT
Pivoted from game developer to platform play, rebranding the social layer as OpenFeint and opening it to third-party developers.
PRODUCT LAUNCH
Apple launched Game Center at WWDC 2010, directly threatening OpenFeint's value proposition by offering native social gaming infrastructure.
ACQUISITION ATTEMPT
GREE acquired OpenFeint for approximately $104M, citing its 75 million users as a gateway to Western mobile gaming markets.
SHUTDOWN
GREE shut down OpenFeint permanently, citing strategic realignment; users lost all achievements, friends, and progress stored on the platform.