2015
Company
Documents about 2015
Games You Might Not Have Tried: Winter 2015 - Find New Games - Extra Credits
This selection of video games highlights titles from late 2015 that offer unique design concepts, innovative mechanics, or compelling narratives that may have been overlooked by mainstream audiences.
- Undertale (2015) is highlighted for its innovative subversion of JRPG tropes, specifically through a combat system that allows for a pacifist playstyle.
- The Beginner’s Guide offers a unique narrative focus on the creative process, exploring themes of self-doubt and the psychological struggle for validation.
- The Black Watchmen demonstrates the effective integration of alternate reality game (ARG) mechanics to create an immersive, non-traditional gameplay experience.
Why Nintendo going mobile is the big news of 2015
Nintendo’s 2015 strategic pivot toward mobile gaming represents a fundamental shift for one of the industry’s most historically insular publishers.
- In 2015, Nintendo initiated a strategic pivot away from its historically closed-ecosystem model by partnering with DeNA to enter the mobile gaming market.
- The partnership with DeNA is designed to leverage external expertise in mobile monetization and infrastructure to support Nintendo's transition to mobile platforms.
- Nintendo is prioritizing the stability of its network infrastructure and digital systems, such as Miiverse, before releasing flagship intellectual properties like Mario on mobile.
Why Nintendo's NX unified vision is the big news of 2015
The emergence of the Nintendo NX represents a pivotal shift in the gaming industry by attempting to bridge the long-standing divide between dedicated console hardware and the mobile gaming sector.
- The Nintendo NX aims to unify the gaming industry by bridging the divide between dedicated home consoles and mobile hardware.
- The core strategic objective is to create a fluid ecosystem where game states and user progress are synchronized across different device form factors.
- By enabling seamless transitions between mobile commuting and home-based play, Nintendo intends to eliminate platform friction for the end user.
Concept Art House CEO James Zhang on helping Supercell make its Super Bowl advert
Concept Art House provides high-end art, 3D animation, and pre-production services to the global gaming industry, contributing to approximately 500 games annually.
- Concept Art House supports approximately 500 games annually, providing high-end art and 3D animation services for major developers including Riot Games, Blizzard, and Hasbro.
- Mobile gaming is shifting toward console-quality graphics as developers utilize high-fidelity assets to differentiate products in a saturated market and justify rising production costs.
- The integration of established entertainment intellectual properties, such as Jurassic Park and The Hobbit, has become a primary strategy for securing top-grossing positions in mobile app stores.
Her Story dev Sam Barlow on how the innovative detective game found an audience
The detective game Her Story represents an experimental approach to non-linear narrative design, utilizing a police procedural framework to engage players through a database of real-life video footage.
- Her Story achieved a balanced revenue split of 60 percent from desktop and 40 percent from mobile by launching simultaneously on Steam and mobile platforms.
- The game’s search-based mechanic, which mirrors intuitive web browsing, made its unconventional non-linear narrative accessible to a broad audience beyond the traditional 13-to-17-year-old male demographic.
- Releasing the title shortly after E3 2015 allowed the game to capitalize on a media vacuum, driving organic discovery and social media engagement.
Biz Daily: Why Undead Labs shut down Moonrise before it launched
The cancellation of the creature-based RPG Moonrise by Seattle-based developer Undead Labs highlights the challenges of the modern mobile games-as-a-service model.
- Undead Labs cancelled the creature-based RPG Moonrise because it failed to meet essential 1-day, 7-day, and 30-day player retention benchmarks during its eight-month soft launch.
- The project was deemed commercially unsustainable because the developer could not achieve the monetization levels required to offset the high ongoing infrastructure and operational costs of a live-service model.
- Publisher Kabam shifted its strategic focus away from original intellectual property, prioritizing high-revenue branded content like Marvel-themed titles instead.
Special: PAX 2015 - Scott Explains How Extra Credits is Made
The production process for the educational web series Extra Credits involves a structured, multi-stage workflow that balances research, technical synthesis, and artistic animation.
- The production of Extra Credits follows a structured, multi-stage workflow that balances research, technical synthesis, and artistic animation to maintain a consistent weekly release schedule.
- The show's signature high-pitched narration originated from a technical necessity to condense a college project into a specific time limit by accelerating playback speed.
- Artists utilize Adobe Flash to create episode visuals, dedicating approximately 10 to 20 hours of labor per episode.
Biz Daily: Is Agar.io this year's Flappy Bird?
The mobile game Agar.io emerged as the most downloaded iOS title in July 2015, mirroring the viral, rapid-growth trajectory previously established by Flappy Bird.
- Agar.io became the most downloaded iOS title in July 2015, mirroring the rapid viral growth trajectory of Flappy Bird.
- Despite its popularity—reaching the sixth most-played iPhone game in the U.S. during its peak—the game currently lacks in-app purchases and relies entirely on advertising.
- Miniclip faces a significant challenge in introducing monetization to Agar.io without alienating a user base accustomed to the free, non-monetized experience of its original browser-based version.
Biz Daily: Glu Mobile hit by maturing Kim Kardashian audience
Glu Mobile experienced a challenging second quarter in 2015, characterized by a 19 percent decline in revenue to 56.2 million dollars compared to the previous quarter.
- Glu Mobile reported a 19% revenue decline to $56.2 million in Q2 2015, shifting from a $1.1 million profit to a $5.5 million loss.
- The financial downturn is driven by the maturation and user churn of the 'Kim Kardashian: Hollywood' title, which currently generates one-third of the company's total sales.
- Despite operational losses, Glu Mobile maintains a strong liquidity position with $190 million in cash reserves, bolstered by a $120 million strategic investment from Tencent.
Biz Daily: A Candy Crush Saga gap in King's profits
King’s financial performance for the second quarter of 2015 reflects a period of transition as its flagship Candy Crush Saga franchise enters a mature phase.
- King experienced a significant Q2 2015 downturn, with revenue falling 14% to $490 million and profits dropping 27% to $164 million compared to the previous quarter.
- The primary driver of the financial decline is the maturation and slowing momentum of the flagship Candy Crush franchise, which new releases like Candy Crush Soda Saga failed to fully offset.
- Despite the quarterly dip, King maintains a strong financial position with $800 million in cash reserves and derives 80% of its total revenue from mobile platforms.
Biz Daily: EA Mobile's record $145m financial quarter
EA Mobile achieved a record-breaking financial performance for the first quarter of the 2016 fiscal year, covering the period from April to June 2015.
- EA Mobile generated a record $145 million in revenue for the first quarter of fiscal year 2016, marking a 17 percent increase over the previous quarter.
- The revenue growth was driven by a games-as-a-service model that focuses on continuous updates to existing titles rather than new game launches.
- Key titles supporting this financial performance included The Simpsons: Tapped Out, Real Racing 3, and The Sims FreePlay.
Biz Daily: How Com2uS become a world player
Com2uS has successfully transitioned from a localized South Korean mobile publisher into a significant global industry player, driven primarily by the sustained performance of its flagship RPG, Summoners War.
- Com2uS reported Q2 2015 sales of $97 million, representing a 16% increase quarter-on-quarter and over 100% growth compared to the same period in 2014.
- The RPG 'Summoners War' is the primary driver of company growth, necessitating an increase in quarterly marketing and user acquisition spend from $15 million to $18 million.
- Com2uS has successfully pivoted from a local Korean publisher to a global player, with 82% of its Q2 2015 sales generated outside of Korea.