Evolve 2011: 45 Games in 45 Minutes
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A brisk run-through of some interesting mobile games from recent months. Mainly pictures - what you're missing is me rambling for 45 minutes with the explanations.
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Evolve 2011: 45 Games in 45 Minutes
- 1. Stuart Dredge 45 mobile gamesin 45 minutes
- 2. Who am i?
- 3. Why am I here?
- 4. We’re on a deadline Session Hashtag #jesuschristwhobookedthisidiot
- 6. RedLynx 1000 Heroz #001
- 7. Tap Tap Tap The heist #002
- 8. kode80 1-bit ninja #003
- 9. Simogo Bumpy road #004
- 10. NaturalMotion Backbreaker 2: vengeance #005
- 12. miSoft Pit stop #007
- 13. KairoSoft Pocket academy #008
- 14. Social/ location
- 15. Zynga Cityville hometown #009
- 16. Grey Area Shadow cities #010
- 17. NimbleBit Tiny tower #011
- 18. NimbleBit Pocket frogs #012
- 19. Mobile Pie My star #013
- 20. Pocket Gems Tap zoo #014
- 21. Booyah Dj Rivals #015
- 22. GungHo Online Entertainment Twimon #016
- 23. VisionArena Cache & seek #017
- 25. EA Monopoly here & now: the world #019
- 26. hardcore
- 27. EA Dead Space #020
- 28. Microsoft Fable Coin Golf #021
- 29. Firemint Real racing 2 hd #022
- 30. Epic / Chair Entertainment Infinity blade #023
- 31. FreshTone Games One single life #024
- 32. Glu Mobile Gun bros #025
- 33. Capybara Games Superbrothers: sword & sworcery #026
- 34. Cool tech
- 35. PAN Vision piclings #027
- 38. Gurr-And-Games Space cadet: Pedometer rpg #030
- 39. Jesse Daugherty Wiki Golf #031
- 40. Music / audio
- 41. Head First Swing Pong #032
- 42. Somethin’ Else Papa sangre #033
- 43. Colin Tulloch Angry hipsters #034
- 44. Ananse Productions Stem Stumper #035
- 45. Visual flair
- 46. ToyTek Ultimate alphabet #036
- 48. Gamevil Kami retro #038
- 49. Games where using the phrase ‘silky fishburger’ is entirely acceptable
- 50. Evil Laugh Games Prose with bros #039
- 51. Not games
- 52. Toca Boca Toca robot lab #040
- 53. Her Interactive Nancy drew: Shadow ranch #041
- 54. Never Odd Or Even appysnap #042
- 55. Outfit7 Talking tom cat #043
- 56. Churn Labs Gnonstop gnomes #044
- 57. Square Enix Imaginary range #045
- 58. And just a few more I couldn’t leave out…
- 65. Thank you sdredge@gmail.com @stuartdredge on Twitter
Editor's Notes
- Journalist and Blogger: currently The Guardian, Sunday Times, Mobile Entertainment and Music AllyAppear on the radio – Lauren Laverne’s Planet of the Apps on 6MusicFirst wrote about mobile games in 2001 – T3 magazine article about In-Fusio and OrangeEnthusiast not an expert: have only got 2% in to most Rockstar console games over last 5 years, but amazing at Flick Kick Football and Game Dev Story unlocked toilet
- These aren’t the 45 BEST mobile games – in fact, some of them are rubbishMore about innovation, ideas – stuff that’s going on, which might touch off some ideas for you. Or at least get the odd cheap laugh2009 – same talk, ‘Ideas you should steal’. More lawyers here nowadays, and worried Lodsys may sue me for infringing a patent on ‘shambolic presentations’
- I have the pre-lunch slot, so I’m going to try to keep this fast and snappy, so nobody falls asleep or is late for lunchThere are loosely themed sections, but please don’t expect a ruthless grand plan – if you’ve seen me present before, I haven’t improved
- 1,000 Heroz by RedLynxCasual running game – left to right as fast as you canUSP: it’s going to have a new level to play every day for 1,000 days – collecting relics and new heroes, with daily leaderboardsAlso like the custom friend leagues to create your own contests
- The Heist by Tap Tap TapReally good casual puzzle game – minigames to complete, very polishedFeature I like – it mimics the phone – fake phone call (see also Malcolm Tucker app)Also shows the value of existing networks of users – 500,000 sales in its first week - $300k of revenues – based on Tap Tap Tap promotions
- 1-Bit Ninja by kode80Another jump and run game – big genre on iPhone this yearKey feature – drag the 2D levels out to go 3D and spot hidden pathsThis theme of retro graphics but with a twist – I sound like a wanker there – is big
- Bumpy Road by SimogoHugely positive reviews across the boardTakes idea from other games – you’re controlling the environment not the character – well suited for touchscreens
- Backbreaker 2: Vengeance by NaturalMotionGood example of a game stretching iOS graphical capabilities while focusing on casual gameplayYou run along the pitch tapping to spin, jump and show off – very focused, but proper physics engineFor NaturalMotion: grossed $1m together with Jenga in one month on the App Store – 7x the revenue of the first game in its first week
- SayWhat by 8linQ – BlinkThis is so new it’s not out yet – was supposed to be out this week and has now been shifted back a bitFormer DJ Hero developers + generative music studio + actual music studioFinding new forms for the music game – tap on icons to match lyrics, sometimes crypticExclusive deal with Sony Music Entertainment, example of partners who are interested in mobile gaming
- Pit Stop by miSoftFormula 1 Racing where you play the pit crewNobody would buy this on a console, but it’s the example of lateral thinking in digitalProbably sank without trace
- Pocket Academy by KairoSoftJapanese developer – who’s played Game Dev Story? This is that, but for schools. Also have one for hot springs and grand prixPicking up big word of mouth among the early adopters / game sitesThese are all old PC games in Japan that are being translated more or less well – and they feel fresh and new on iPhone
- CityVille Hometown by ZyngaLaunched in June, and interesting that it was a separate game – not linked at all to the Facebook versionDespite Zynga doing that with FarmVille – raises questions about whether social mobile and social Facebook are silosApp Store chart on Monday – Top Grossing – below Tap Zoo, Special Enquiry Detectives, Tiny Tower, Happy Theme Park, Tap Pet Hotel, Smurfs’ Village – 31st top grossing
- Shadow Cities – Grey AreaLocation-based game with mages and spells and… well, pretty hardcoreBut this knocked Angry Birds off the Top Grossing chart. And in Finland too!Now out in the US, UK and elsewhere – good combination of hardcore dynamics and casual mechanics – runes on screenRaised $2.5m from investors
- Tiny Tower – NimbleBit (one of the emerging stars of freemium)Game dynamic – Sims meets Little Computer People (or, indeed, Sim Tower) – build tower and people will comeFree to play, buy Tower bucks to speed upOne million downloads in four days when it launched in June. 2.6% of people spend in-app.3rd top grossing game yesterday
- Pocket Frogs –NimbleBit7.5m downloads – breed frogs and swap with friendsIAPs – 99 cents was half transactions but 9% of revenues4.99 was 42% of both29.99 was 8% of transactions but 49% of revenues
- My Star – Mobile PieInteresting example of a developer working with an operator – Orange in this caseSocial game where you build up your character, furnish your apartment and record songs, funded by IAPNice location based feature where you flyposter real-world locations (virtually)Like The Heist – mimics the phone, so you can get SMS calls and emails from your pop star
- Tap Zoo – Pocket GemsBasically turn a zoo into a safari park, buy animals and attractions, hire staff – with social twist to visit friends etcThis is currently the top grossing iphone game in the UKDeveloper Pocket Gems has done more than 40m downloads, recently got $5m investment, and hired 40 new staff this year alone
- DJ Rivals – Booyah (not as blurry as it looks)Spin off from a popular Facebook game Nightclub City – actually you wouldn’t really know (see also CityVille)‘DJ Hero meets Pokemon meets Foursquare’ – have DJ battles to win territory in the real world, including real tracksThis idea of playing on the real world but not needing 24 other people to be there att the time is big (see also MyTown, Shadow Cities)TERRITORY
- Twimon – GungHo Online EntertainmentThis actually is Pokemon meets Foursquare – you battle at real-world locations, but also meets TwitterYou nurture your eggs by tweetingDownside: ‘Can-Do Clayman is on a rampage at Fire & Stone’ to your Twitter followers
- Cache & Seek – VisionArena in Korea‘Casual Running Game – create your own courses, hide virtual treasure, photos etc, and share with other membersCrossover between fitness and games – gamification? Sorry.
- Gbanga by MillformSocial location game based on the real world, works across different phonesWeekly quests and says 12% of players buy virtual goodsAdded IAP including $99 World Domination satellite – first one was bought within six hours – lets you take over places without being there
- Monopoly Here & Now: The World Edition – EASees iPad as a tabletop board game for multiple people to playResearch that shows people do share their iPads – browse together etc – more than iPhonesEA caught onto this early with Scrabble – also other board games are realising this (Red Rover = Split-screen)
- Dead Space – EASomeone described this to me as the first game where EA were really taking iOS seriouslyOriginal story – sits in between the two console Dead Space games – finally ‘filling in the blanks’Alongside Infinity Blade, figuring out the audience for premium game + IAP on iOSEarn 1,000 credits to use in the console game – “doesn’t even buy 6 rounds for Plasma Cutter”
- Fable Coin Golf – MicrosoftMini Golf / pinball – pushing a puck around into a hole, while applying powersEarn coins to spend in Fable 3 on Xbox 360 – also unlock weaponsMy first ever interview with EA Mobile – potential to do x in mobile and get y in console – taken this long to really deliver
- Real Racing 2 HD by Firemint (now part of EA)Showed that independent studios can make high quality premium games and find a big audience10hr career mode, and they’re quick to jump onto new Apple features (e.g. iPad 2 uprezzing) – 16-player online multiplayer, youtube replaysOne of the first iPad games to really exploit the ability to play HD on a big screen TV – consoles are new smartphones?
- Infinity Blade – Epic Games / Chair EntertainmentReally famous, justifiably so, for being awesome and a great showcase$10m of earnings in six months – net incomeIAP has been 43.7% of revenues since it was introduced two weeks after launchProved you can make money from a premium game ($5.99) – but also that these kinds of games can suit IAP
- One Single Life by FreshTone GamesJump and run – you only get one life (although you can practice levels as much as you want) – and a secret hidden lifeBig press attention, also backlash when it was being paid for
- Gun Bros – Glu Mobile (which has reinvented itself as a freemium publisher)Dual stick shooter, social features – freemium hardcoreMarch 2011 – 6.8m downloads in its first six months, and made $610k from ISP and ads in first two monthsExample of a game that did well from Tapjoy’s offers – so interesting to see how it’ll go now
- Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery – Capybara GamesBeautiful pixel art and old-skool adventuringMusic was key – can even buy the soundtrack as a standalone EPExample of word of mouth buzz around just making something imaginative and awesome
- Piclings by PAN VisionPlay levels on photos that you’ve taken on your iPhoneThis has been around since early days – Spore – but not super high profileThink this is a good example about what’s possible
- AR.Race by ParrotParrot made this AR.Drone – a remote controlled helicopter where the remote is your iPhoneAPI for game developers to tap in – I have no idea how lucrative making a game for this market isGuessing that everyone will buy it who has one, but…AR Race – create your own courses, and even buy inflatable pylons and accessories for it
- Reflow by Xymatic“unconventional and difficult to explain in words”You point your iPhone at the real world, and it turns it into a black and white level – then fill up the white bits with colourful liquidsShare it all via Twitter and Facebook
- Space Cadet Pedometer RPG by Gurr-And-GamesNot the best looking game, I grant you. A basic shoot ‘em upWhy include it? Pedometer. You level up your ship by walking around – it’s really the best gaming pedometer rather than the worst shoot ‘em upPhysical sensors filtering into a game…
- Wiki Golf by Jesse Daugherty6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon but with Wikipedia – get from the Sun to London. 150 ‘holes’ to play in batches of 910% of revenues go to Wikipedia (costs £1.19) – interesting way to pull in web content and gamify it
- Swing Pong by Head FirstTable tennis where you swing your iPhone and play with a friend – with sound effectsI played it and had no idea what was going on – all done by sound
- Papa Sangre by Somethin’ ElseLondon creative agency – known for doing radio and websites more than appsAudio only game – 3D sound as you creep around this spooky environment – genuinely quite frighteningActually resulted in a commission from Wrigleys called The Nightjar starring the bloke out of Sherlock Holmes
- Angry Hipsters by Colin TullockShould have run a mile from this game – it’s Angry Birds but with Hoxton warriors being flung at StarbucksWhy I liked it – uses a site called Hype Machine to pull in the soundtrack live every time – literally what hipsters are listening toNot so good for 3G obviously, but streaming music APIs + gaming… interesting idea
- Stem Stumper by Ananse ProductionsPuzzle game where you have to guide a vine through levelsIdea – uses sounds as you move so it can be played by blind and partially sighted players as well as fully sightedUsesVoiceOver – Apple’s screen reader for iOS
- Ultimate Alphabet – ToytekBig paintings, where you zoom in on individual elements then have to solve cryptic clues about what they areBeautiful artwork – based on old books – and selling each letter as an individual IAPAgain, resulted in Filth Fair with the Wellcome Trust – example of developers getting stuff out there and inding partnersExample of something that really took advantage of iPad – pinch and zoom
- Albert – FingerlabDon’t have much to say about this one – mini-games, but with hand-drawn cardboard graphics feelStarting to see visual artists coming into mobile and trying stuff – just as you are with digital games on the consoles
- Kami Retro – GamevilActually could be in various categories – platform + puzzle + line drawing – completely neon too, really characterful
- Prose With Bros – Evil Laugh GamesWorld’s first competitive multiplayer poetry game, like fridge magnets in a shared houseYoure given 50 words and have to make the best sentence possible – by best, that means ‘the favourite of the other voting players’ – which means rudest‘creaming into her silky fishburger’ is relatively tame, to be honest
- Toca Robot Lab – Toca BocaCreate a robot by dragging parts onto the screen – carefully designed so toddlers can do itThen you fly them round a level collecting stars to get a magnet – really not a game at all, more a test flightThey make digital toys – not games – but using the craft and background of games developersA big market here – you’re seeing pop-up books using game engines too – something to think about
- Nancy Drew: Shadow Ranch – Her InteractiveRunning a close second behind the Smurfs as something heralded as iPhone gaming innovation in 2011Part books, part games – you flick from one to the other, but the text remains central rather than just the gameBook publishers are all mustard keen on apps, and wondering what they can do beyond e-books – lots focus on audio and video
- Appysnap – Never Odd Or EvenUK developer – social location photography game (what if Instagram was a game…)Mission-based – take a photo of your favourite wine / street sign / an old person and a very young person)Chance for sponsored missions, location based missions…Really early days – already a couple of others with similar idea – social mobile + gaming
- Talking Tom Cat – Outfit7Ask who knows it? And who’d heard of Outfit7 before this year150 million downloads – 100m iOS – wants to be the next disney. $200k on xmas day in revenuesTT2 – 1m downloads in a day15th most used connected app in the UK – 450k people – ahead of Sky+, Rightmove, Google Earth and TuneIn RadioThis is a virtual pet with very light gaming elements – but the latter are getting more part of it – one to watch as your competition
- Gnonstop Gnomes – Churn LabsIf this looks like the kind of app that you’d do if you sold your company to Google for $750m, well…Omar Hamoui – basically you create a gnome avatar and take pictures of it in real world – like AmelieBUT you can pass it on to a friend then follow its progress – there is something really interesting in that idea – even if not quite sure how
- Imaginary Range – Square EnixPart comic, part game – cutscenes in between comic pages and you play game segmentsCollect coins to unlock new bits in the galleryPeople really like it, but now want more episodes – example of a publisher having a good idea, but now someone can take that on
- Kebab Manager and Pantyhose Sumo YehYeh
- I Hate Angry Birds and Toilet Training
- Monino Save Story
- Nyan Cat: Lost In Space
- Where’s Jesus?
- BootyDance