Category Archives: Casual

Catapult distressed avians at greedy porcine thieves on your social network. Assuming you can’t hide your smartphone and Facebook isn’t banned in your workplace, this may have made your day and ruined a vital report about plumbing supplies. You can post high scores to your news feeds to irritate your less-skilled friends, and soother their tempers by gifting them with power-ups for their own record attempts: Sling Scope, King Sling, Super Seeds and Birdquake.

Thanks, Gamespot.

GREE is setting up shop in San Francisco in order to facilitate the launch of its global platform during Q4 this year. The Japanese network operator, and social and mobile game developer, plans to use the time before launch to build relationships with local developers and publishers. Titles are to be offered through the firm’s existing service, along with that of OpenFeint – its most recent acquisition – and the first two will go live next month. It’s Japanese service boasts 190 million registered users, and it expects to its fiscal year-end sale to reach $2.1-$2.5 billion. Currently, the service offers over 7,500 games from more than 20,000 partners, and has its own internal development studio. Other offices for the firm are located in Beijing, Dubai, London, Sao Paulo, and Seoul. Thanks, Gamasutra.

Toki Tori has been added to the Humble Bundle for Android. This brings the total to five games, including Anomaly: Warzone Earth, Osmos, and EDGE. Those who pay more than the average price, currently $6.14, the indie classic World of Goo is also yours as an extra incentive. Buying the Humble Bundle for Android also nets you with the Mac, Windows, and Linux versions of the titles, along with the soundtracks. As of post time, the bundle has moved 133,387 units and earned $818,549.78.

Halfbrick has noted massive growth for Jetpack Joyride since making the iOS game free late last year.

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PopCap’s next game is a Facebook-only affair, according to IndustryGamers. Solitaire Blitz joins the casual developer’s other social network efforts, Bejeweled Blitz and Zuma Blitz, in March. A social version of Solitaire seems like an oxymoron, but PopCap has promised to work its magic on the classic single-player card game. Expect a small-scale beta soon, and see a trailer through the break.

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Nimblebit has confirmed that iOS micro-management game Tiny Tower has hit 10 million downloads since it released. This was announced by the developer’s Ian Marsh, who said it was giving away 10 million tower bux to players of the game.

Thanks, Edge.

THQ has announced an agreement with digital development studio Innovative Leisure, a new company formed by games veterans which reads like a list of who’s who of the industry, to publish the firm’s titles.

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“We’re talking with Sony games now. We are really trying to take it in areas that haven’t been done before and have stayed out of the marketplace because the ideas simply weren’t exciting enough. So while the gaming world is waiting for the KISS games that are going to explode, we’re busy taking the brand to places where no band has gone before. We’re talking with Angry Birds, KISS and Angry Birds, which will become a deal. It’s just endless what we can do, but we only do things when it’s right. Just because there are games, and just because there’s this or that out there, unless the deal is right and unless the content is exciting to our fans, we don’t do it.” – Gene Simmons on extending the KISS brand to video games and Angry Birds. Thanks, IndustryGamers.

Activision’s launched two new characters for Skylanders: Spyro’s Adventure, as well as a new content pack called Empire of Ice. The new characters introduced are Cynder and Double Trouble. Cynder is a a dragon of the undead element whose “dark powers flow through her due to her difficult past,” although is said to be making amends. Double Trouble was previously a adept spellcaster, but now comes from the magic element. Another character coming is Slam Bam, a “yeti-abominable-snowman-looking guy,” who has yeti fists and ice prison attacks.

More details here.

Crytek’s once-mysterious GFACE has resolved into a cross-platform online games platform, with social network and streaming games service.

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Zynga CEO Mark Pincus has defended the derivativeness of Dream Heights as standard industry practice.

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Angry Birds developer Rovio’s boss feels that piracy isn’t always bad for business and can actually help in building an entertainment brand.

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Social Gaming giant Zynga’s once again come under the spotlight for allegedly cloning other studios’ work.

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Rovio has announced Angry Birds is heading to Facebook in time for Valentine’s Day, and to celebrate, the firm will be hosting a launch event in Jakarta, Indonesia. The game will contain full-screen capabilities, leaderboards, higher quality animations, new power-ups you can earn or purchase for $0.99 such as earthquakes and bigger, better birds. The firm told Penn Olson that 40% of users were more interested in buying the power-ups, compared to 3 to 4% in other games. Thanks, Gamasutra.

Tiny Tower developer Nimblebit doesn’t seem at all happy about Zynga’s latest mobile effort, Dream Heights.

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App Store flavour du jour Temple Run has quadrupled its revenue since going free to play, developer Imangi revealed to Gamasutra. The 99 cent app hit the top of the charts on release but then stymied, so Imangi took it free to play in September, one month after launch. Temple Run has now been downloaded over 20 million times, is totting up more at a rate of 500,000 per day, and has 7 million daily average users. The game is now in top spot on the charts once more, with revenue and users growing daily.

Epic co-founder Tim Sweeney has said Fortnite, the recently-announced title from company’s North Carolina studio, will be centred as a “casual” experience.

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Rovio CEO Peter Vesterbacka has confirmed the company has no plans to have a public offering this year on either the New York or Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

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Harmonix has released something known as Dance Central Dance Cam for iPhone, Android and Windows Phone 7 devices. The app will allow users to pick previews of tracks on it, then practice them and be recorded whilst doing it. Videos can also be showcased for Facebook friends. Songs from the game are included, featuring I Like It, Bulletproof and Like a G6.

Get it from all respective marketplaces in the US now, with it coming to Europe soon. And no, I’m not touching it within a 50 mile radius.

Thanks, Joystiq.

Sing with me now: There’s a zombie on your la-awn, there’s a zombie on your la-awn. Now put one on your shiny new handheld.

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