Feature
30 CommentsMaking Games and Breakdancing in the former USSR: The story of Contre Jour
By Charlie Hall on Jun 05, 2013 06.05.13
Human Angle: The Breakdancing Indie Human Angle: The Breakdancing Indie A street battle in Malaysia A street battle in Malaysia Lviv is often called the Paris of Ukraine, as much for its Austrian-inspired architecture as for its diverse population. It's a sleepy little city with cobblestone streets and a maze of narrow roads filled with three-quarters of a million people, mostly Ukrainians and Poles. Everything moves slowly here, as it has for more than 750 years since the city's founding. Hryniv is the exception. Against the background of this sluggish city he is a blur. He stands only around 5 feet 6 inches, but in motion his short legs cover a lot of ground in very little time. It's hard to keep up with him. Like a forest fire, he actually appears to move...
News
2 CommentsAngry Birds movie taps 'The Simpsons,' 'King of the Hill' writer Jon Vitti
By Michael McWhertor on May 20, 2013 05.20.13
The screenplay for the Angry Birds animated movie will be penned by Emmy Award-winning comedy writer Jon Vitti, whose credits include The Simpsons, The Larry Sanders Show and King of the Hill, publisher Rovio announced today. Vitti, who also has screenwriting credits for The Simpsons Movie and the 3D-animated Alvin and the Chipmunks movie, served as writer, story editor and producer on early seasons of The Simpsons. Some of his most recent writing credits are for the U.S. version of The Office. In addition to Vitti's role on Angry Birds, Rovio announced the addition of Star Wars: The Clone Wars executive producer Catherine Winder to the crew. Winder, who has worked with both traditional and computer-generated animation, will serve as a producer on the film. Rovio's Angry Birds movie...
News
2 CommentsGoogle Plus Games being shut down June 30
By Samit Sarkar on May 16, 2013 05.16.13
Google will shut down the Games section of Google Plus on June 30 to make way for Google Play game services, the company announced yesterday. Google Plus launched in June 2011, and games arrived on the social network in August of that year. The platform hosts casual and social games à la Facebook, including Rovio's Angry Birds and Spry Fox's Triple Town. Yesterday Google announced Google Play game services, the company's first foray into gaming-centric services — such as leaderboards, achievements and matchmaking — for mobile games across Android and iOS devices and the web. Google is advising users who wish to continue playing the games to contact their respective developers about the fate of each title, and provided a list of the studios in a support document to facilitate...
Culture
26 CommentsAngry Birds film opening worldwide July 1, 2016 through Sony Pictures Entertainment
By Dave Tach on May 15, 2013 05.15.13
Sony Pictures Entertainment will handle the worldwide distribution rights to the Angry Birds film, which Sony Pictures will release July 1, 2016, according to a press release from the company. Angry Birds developer Rovio Entertainment will develop, produce and finance. Producers John Cohen (Despicable Me) and David Maisel (former Marvel Studios chairman and Iron Man producer) have both signed on for the film. "Every studio in town would love to add Angry Birds to their slate," said Michael Lynton , chairman and CEO of Sony Pictures Entertainment and Amy Pascal, co-chairman of Sony Pictures Entertainment in a combined statement. "There are few titles out there that bring this kind of excitement, brand awareness and built-in audience to the table. We're thrilled to be distributing this...
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3 CommentsRovio gradually introducing accounts to sync gameplay across all devices
By Alexa Ray Corriea on May 07, 2013 05.07.13
Developer Rovio is gradually introducing Rovio Accounts, a service that will allow players to sync and save their games across multiple devices, the company revealed on the official Rovio blog. With a Rovio Account, players can store their game progress in the cloud while playing on one device and pick up where they left off on another. For devices with multiple users, each player with a Rovio Account can have their own game save. Power-ups for games will not be saved across devices because they are stored on the device itself, and are available to everyone playing on that device. "Our fans have been asking for a way to play their game on different phones or tablets without losing their progress when changing the device," the company said in a statement. "This is exactly what Rovio...
News
3 CommentsApple reveals top 50 apps of all time, counting down to 50 billion downloads
By Alexa Ray Corriea on May 03, 2013 05.03.13
Nearly 50 billion apps have been download from Apple's App Store, the company announced today. To commemorate the approaching milestone, Apple revealed the 25 most downloaded apps in both the paid and free categories. Topping the paid apps list is the original Angry Birds, followed by Halfbrick Studios' Fruit Ninja, Lima Sky's Doodle Jump, Cut the Rope and Angry Birds Seasons. Words With Friends sits at number eight, while Angry Birds Space is tenth and PopCap's Plants vs. Zombies is number 12. Angry Birds Star Wars also makes the list at number 18, and Minecraft Pocket Edition takes the twenty-third spot. Facebook sits at number one on the free apps list, followed directly by Pandora Radio, Instagram, YouTube, Skype and Words With Friends Free. Twitter's application is eighth with T...
News
0 CommentsAngry Birds creator reveals revenue growth of 101 percent during 2012
By Emily Gera on Apr 04, 2013 04.04.13
Angry Birds creator Rovio Entertainment announced today its 2012 financial results, revealing revenue growth of 101 percent during the full year. Sales of games and consumer products resulted in €152.2 million (or nearly $195 million), roughly double compared to revenue of €75.6 million earned in 2011. Earnings prior to interest and taxes were up 64 percent from 2011, amounting in €76.8 million, with net profit after tax hitting €55.5 million — a growth from 2011's €35.4 million. This follows the launch of a number of successful games for the company. In 2012, Rovio released Angry Birds Space, Amazing Alex, Bad Piggies and Angry Birds Star Wars. The result was more than 1 billion downloads in May 2012, with roughly 263 million active monthly users across all platforms....
Report
9 CommentsPaid apps aren't dead in the era of free-to-play, Capy co-founder says at GDC
By Dave Tach on Mar 27, 2013 03.27.13
Reports of the death of paid apps have been greatly exaggerated, co-founder and president of Capybara Games Nathan Vella said in a talk at GDC 2013. The Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP developer acknowledges that 2013 will likely be crowned "the era of free-to-play." As proof, he offered charts showing that 66 percent of apps published in 2012 were free-to-play. That's the inverse of the market as it was in 2010. According to Vella, the free-to-play model is in ascension because of the pricing model's recent success stories. Developers follow trends, he said. In 2010, many chased Angry Birds. Today, developers are chasing successful free-to-play hits like Clash of Clans because they see in-app purchase pricing models as the "next cash cow." But acknowledging the success of...
News
11 CommentsBoy Scouts of America to offer game design merit badge
By Samit Sarkar on Mar 07, 2013 03.07.13
Boy Scouts will soon be able to earn a merit badge in game design, the Boy Scouts of America announced today. The organization spent two years developing the game design program with "volunteers from the game industry and game enthusiasts across the country," according to a press release announcing the badge, and will officially unveil it this weekend at the SXSW Gaming Expo in Austin, Texas. The Boy Scouts of America recognizes the importance of play throughout human history — the press release highlights games from bowling in ancient Egypt to Angry Birds — and the merit badge will challenge Scouts to study all kinds of games and understand the importance of intellectual property before undertaking the program's main requirement: designing a game. Scouts can design physical...
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0 CommentsKennedy Space Center opening Angry Birds interactive exhibit, Angry Birds Space Encounter
By Alexa Ray Corriea on Feb 08, 2013 02.08.13
The John F. Kennedy Space Center in Florida will open an attraction based on the Angry Birds puzzle game franchise this spring, the center announced today. In collaboration with developer Rovio Entertainment, the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Center will install an interactive exhibit centered around the series, the Angry Birds Space Encounter. The Center states the attraction will bring the franchise's iconic characters to life and has been designed specifically for participation by children. The Center states that Angry Birds Space Encounter will be the first exhibit of its kind in the United States, a "comprehensive, interactive Angry Birds attraction." Last fall, Rovio announced it would open an Angry Birds Land theme park near Shanghai, and has already opened Angry Birds-themed...
