Peter Molyneux's 22cans partners with DeNA to publish Godus

Mobile game developer, publisher and service provider DeNA will publish 22Cans' Godus on Android, iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch devices, the company announced today.

Developed by Peter Molyneux's independent studio, Godus is a god game-style mobile title that is the spiritual successor to Molyneux's Populous. 22cans turned to crowdfunding platform Kickstarter last year to ask for £450,000 to develop the game. The Kickstarter campaign describes Godus as blending "the power, growth and scope of Populous with the detailed construction and multiplayer excitement of Dungeon Keeper and the intuitive interface and technical innovation of Black and White." The Kickstarter campaign closed at £526,563.

Godus is coming to Windows PC, Mac and mobile devices, and DeNA will be responsible for distributing and marketing the mobile version of the game. The game will also utilize DeNA's Mobage mobile social games platform in Western territories, Japan and Korea.

Speaking to Polygon, DeNA West's CEO, Clive Downie said the partnership came about when Peter Molyneux approached DeNA and pitched the idea of evolving the god game genre with Godus and applying DeNA's live operations expertise to the game.

"We looked into it some more and we realized that we would be a really powerful combination: taking our expertise in live operations, and then partnering that with [Molyneux] rejuvenating and innovating the god game genre," Downie said.

"What's appealing about Godus is the emersion and the delight I think it can bring to mobile consumers. When we saw Godus we realized there's just magic there that can bring — I'd like to think — hundreds of millions of people together around this notion of creating their own specific world and then leading the followers in those worlds, and co-operating with or even battling against different worlds."

Godus does not have a release date yet.