We Rule content update, server fixes incoming
Ngmoco CEO Neil Young posted another update last week about We Rule. That game is probably the biggest hit Ngmoco has come across yet with its freemium model, but unfortunately, the title has been plagued with service outages since the release. Young says that they simply underestimated the amount of people who want to play the game, and that they're working as quickly as possible to scale the server infrastructure on both the We Rule and Plus+ systems. The game is free-to-play, but in-game purchases still seem to be doing well for the company, as the app currently sits at number 40 on the Top Grossing list in the App Store, above a few $0.99 apps and even much more expensive fare.
Young says the company is also pushing out content updates for the game -- there are new crops to grow and new buildings to buy and build on the farms. I'm playing We Rule (if a little reluctantly), and it seems like Ngmoco is playing around with the variations on crops and reward times -- some crops seem designed to bring people back to the app in as quickly as a few hours, while some promise a large reward daily (as if they're trying to at least drive people back in every day). I've experienced a few more bugs as well, like not seeing any of my friends' kingdoms on the main screen.
Despite the bugs and the issues, it certainly seems like people are playing (and paying), and clearly Ngmoco is dedicated to support and producing content (Young says they're planning more updates for players who've reached level 25 already). Other freemium games like Godfinger haven't quite taken off as quickly, but as a flagship title for Ngmoco and a learning experience for their future releases, We Rule seems to be working well.
