If you’ve ever been tired of playing FIFA Soccer against the computer or wanted a comrade to help you rip through Gears of War, you know that it’s not always easy to find a friend to play with. With that problem in mind, two Parisians invented Gamersband, a location-based social network that allows players to cooperate, compete and play with people in their area. The question is whether they can will gain enough adoption and develop enough filters so that the network isn’t filled with creepy old dudes who like Japanese dating simulators and fake female profiles asking you to “visit my website as9dfj.oi.ru”.

The service is well thought out and in addition to the more obvious functionality of being able to find players close to you, gamers can create challenges related to a ‘zone’, and then ask people to compete within that zone. Since they’re all in the same area, the idea is that if someone makes the winning score, all the players can visit one another to verify the claim. This kind of game mechanic serves the function of awarding titles like “The Street Fighter King of New York” to gamers. See the screenshot below for an example of a zone based challenge.

On the business side, Gamersband is noting that the service will be valuable to advertisers who can target players based on their location and games played. Imagine knowing that Capcom is holding zone-based tournaments across the country, and designating certain players as judges and referees? We could have a nation-wide tournament.