Amazon is taking on Apple’s GameCenter with the launch of its own gaming network for Kindle Fire gamers: GameCircle.
GameCircle brings achievements, leaderboards and -- most interestingly -- makes sync APIs accessible for Kindle Fire games. Sync will save your place to the cloud, allowing you to pick up playing on one device right where you left off on another.
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Amazon thus: “Players will not have to worry about losing progress, scores or achievements between Kindle Fire devices, as all data is securely stored in the cloud.”
Curious wording, and a curious feature -- given that the Kindle Fire tablet is currently the only device with that branding.
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Probably the only reason for having such a service -- unless you happen to have bought multiple Kindle Fire tablets -- is if those are for real.
Sure, you could also use the feature to transfer game progress on your current Kindle Fire if and when that becomes available, or to a new Kindle Fire if your current device is lost, stolen, or broken. The functionality; however, would lose its luster long-term if you didn't have a few Fire devices to use it with.
As far as the other GameCircle features go, the Achievements section keeps track of all of the trophies, awards, treasures, and badges that you’ve earned in a game without having to leave the game much like Apple’s GameCenter.
Players can get messages in-game, letting them know when they’re reached a new milestone, and can pause gameplay to check out a summary of all of the achievements they’ve unlocked so far as well as what achievements are left to be unlocked.
Leaderboards let players see how they stack up against others playing the game.
If you’re a developer, you can sign up for . Gamers can check out a list of Kindle Fire games that are .
What do you think about Amazon’s GameCenter? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
This story originally published on Mashable .
