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I wasn't expecting this to be modd.io when I saw the title. It's a popular framework/platform for building IO games.

I play a lot of games and sold some in the past, but I’ve never heard the term. What is an IO game?

I believe it refers to casual multiplayer browser-based games.

IO game is a catch all term for these types of mechanically simple, multiplayer, web-based games . The name comes from the fact that many of these games are hosted on .io domains. Well known examples are agar.io and slither.io.

And the biggest platform for them all, itch.io.

Itch is not exactly a platform for IO games, sure you can put them there, but it hosts a lot of other stuff such as experimental and "extremely indie" games, software tools... It is a platform, storefront and community for things game developers make.

IO games on the other hand are usually characterised by being (sometimes only allegedly) multiplayer web browser games with super minimal friction, just open a page and play.

Put differently, I wouldn't call a supermarket a toothpaste store even though that is indeed an item supermarkets sell.

Maybe this was meant as joke, but this isn't true at all.

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