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Real Racing creator developing Need for Speed: No Limits for mobile
Electronic Arts has tapped Melbourne-based developer Firemonkeys for its upcoming mobile-exclusive Need for Speed sequel Need for Speed: No Limits, the publisher announced this week. FIremonkeys (formerly Firemint) established itself in the mobile marketplace with its sim-styled Real Racing series, later producing iOS and Android ports of Need for Speed: Most Wanted. Electronic Arts acquired the studio in 2011, acting as publisher for the 2013 free-to-play sequel Real Racing 3. Need for Speed: No Limits is due to launch next year for iOS and Android devices. [Video: EA]
Firemint devs form new Australian studio, Loveshack Entertainment
Joshua Boggs, Adrian Moore and Ollie Browne are three developers who formerly worked at Firemint, the venerated studio behind iOS hits like Flight Control, Spy Mouse, and (after an acquisition by EA and a merger with Iron Monkey to become Firemonkeys) the recent hit Real Racing 3. They decided to leave the studio about six months ago and form their own team, called Loveshack Entertainment. As Loveshack, the guys are working on a new game called Framed, which looks pretty good according to this concept trailer. The game is an interactive comic book page, where you can drag panels around the screen and line them up in the right order to make a certain sequence of events go down. Obviously, that video is just a concept, but we'll look forward to seeing what the game looks like when it's done -- it's due out sometime later on this year. Firemint is one of the premiere developers on the App Store, and these guys are starting their own venture with a lot of good experience behind them. Hopefully, we'll see some really great releases from Loveshack in the future as well.
Daily iPhone App: Real Racing 3 is a showcase of the best (and not quite) that iOS has to offer
Here's the bottom line on this one, right away: Real Racing 3 is an amazing game, and EA has put it on the App Store for free. Go grab it and be awed, right now. That said, I do have one issue with this game, and it's that I'm actually a terrible driver. I do fine on real roads at less-than-deadly speeds. But whenever I play a racing simulation game like this one, where real racing vehicles are modeled on real racing tracks, I always drive way too fast, brake way too late and I spin out on the track as the rest of the pack flies by me. It's a personal problem, I know, but personally I prefer arcade racers, or another genre completely. I still enjoy playing Real Racing, though, just because it is such an excellent showcase of what's possible on iOS. This time around, Firemonkeys (who I'd really rather see making another Puzzle Quest, but whatever) has outdone itself, with some gorgeous graphics and some very impressive social features. Even in standard campaign races, you see your friends and their Game Center icons driving around you, and all of the standard social services are seamlessly integrated into the game. There's no shortage of racing to do here, and you could (and some people will) probably play for years trying to lock down all of the top spots in the various tracks and time trials. One of the biggest controversies about this game pre-release has been its freemium mechanic, and it is sort of a pain: You need to pay for repairs to your vehicle, which presents a drain on your in-game currency (that you can of course fill with IAP if you choose), and when you choose to upgrade a vehicle, each upgrade is done on a timer, which means you don't get the fruits of your upgrade right away unless you spend some in-game gold, also available via real money. In practice, it's somewhat annoying, but not unbearable at all. I don't necessarily like paying to repair after every race (especially since, as previously stated, I am not the most gentle driver), but in general, there seems to be enough money to go around without having to dive into IAP. You can also buy new cars and tracks with real money, and while those prices are relatively high, selling extra content in a freemium game isn't a new idea by any means. The biggest wrinkle is that when your car needs a major system repair, you're forced to wait on racing with that car, or you can pay a real-money currency to complete it quickly. That can be a real pain, especially if you only have one or two cars to race (so save up and buy a few cars right away). And shame on Firemonkey for including a mechanic like that, meant to serve their publishers rather than their players. But for the most part, it looks like EA at least found a safe balance here: The freemium system isn't exceptionally heinous, and having the game released for free means those excellent social features will always be populated with plenty of players. Real Racing 3 is a gorgeous game, a perfectly designed game (at least while racing), and probably the best example, at this moment, of what an iOS game can be. The freemium hooks do drag the experience down a bit, but that seems appropriate for this time and place, given how much of an effect the iOS platform has had on models like this. You should download this one, for free, without question, if only to experience that first race for yourself and see what Firemonkeys has done with Apple's devices. After that, whether you cough up more in-game currency or even real money is up to you. I plan to play a whole lot without spending a dime, and I'll be easy to spot: Just look for the beat-up car spinning out in the dirt.
Australian government invests in game industry to halt job migration
Australia's government-funded Screen Australia program plans on investing $20 million into the local video game industry. Gamasutra reports the organization will spend $4-5 million on games production and $2-3 million on supporting business sustainability over the next year.The organization cites the American-owned Firemonkeys, studio-killing LA Noire and Halfbrick (Fruit Ninja, Jetpack Joyride) as successful signs of Australian-developed games – hey, one legit shout-out to Halfbrick out of three ain't bad.Australia has had to spend the past several years reinventing its place in the video game industry. Unfavorable exchange rates for foreign investors caused major publishers to pull console game development out of the country, causing severe job losses over a three-year period. The region has found success focusing on the mobile market.
Real Racing 3 to be free-to-play, takes its place in EA's higher gaming pantheon
The Real Racing series has been a staple of mobile gaming, at least in some circles. However, EA now sees the game as big enough to matter for the entire brand, full stop -- and it's willing to make Real Racing 3 a free-to-play release to snag as wide an audience as possible. When the Firemonkeys-built sequel reaches Android and iOS on February 28th, it will follow the stereotypical freemium model, where any purchases are solely to unlock content sooner, including repairs now that there's a damage element. The team suggests that free-only play won't be a grind, however, and a rare I-go-you-go multiplayer racing mode should keep many of us entertained without a cash outlay. It's doubtful that RR3 will suddenly take on the stature of a perennial blockbuster like Madden, but the switch in business models shows EA treating mobile as more than just a sideshow.
Here's what Real Racing 3 looks like on iPhone 5
Take a good look at the screen above, because it's from today's live demo of Real Racing 3 at Apple's press conference event for the iPhone 5. The EA Firemonkeys game, announced last month for iPad, will be optimized for the upcoming Apple device later this year.EA's press release also mentions "time-shifted" asynchronous multiplayer for the game, which uses Game Center iOS 6 challenges. Regardless, hot racing action on a four-inch retina display sounds just fine to us. Now about those controls ...
Real Racing 3 coming in 2012 from Firemonkeys [Update: Trailer]
The first game from recently merged developer Firemonkeys is Real Racing 3, the developer revealed moments ago during EA's Summer Showcase event in San Francisco. The racing sim was revealed for iPad during the event and is slated for launch in 2012.The third installment in the originally Firemint-developed franchise is going bold with new never-before-seen features in the series' history, such as real-world tracks – including Laguna Seca and Indianapolis.As a member of the EA family, Firemonkeys also has use of the Porsche license, which they intend to make use of, along with other licensed cars from Audi and Dodge and other unnamed companies.
More Puzzle Quest coming from reborn indie Infinite Interactive
Yesterday's announcement regarding EA's Firemint and IronMonkeys merger actually had a sideplot to it, in that Infinite Interactive, which was "acquired" by Firemint last year, quietly split off this past January to be independent again."There was never an actual acquisition of Infinite, it was more of a merger. It was all amicable stuff – as much as it would be fun to have a bit of a scandal. Unfortunately there isn't one," Infinite Interactive's founder and creative lead Steve Fawkner told us. "I think everybody agreed that Infinite does its best work when it's independent, and so we headed back out into the wilderness to work on our own stuff again."Fawkner explained he couldn't get into the "nitty-gritty" details about intellectual property ownership and that things are "a little more complicated" than before, but that Infinite do still retain the Puzzle Quest and Warlords IP rights."While I don't have a specific announcement that I can make at the moment, if you shook a Magic 8-Ball and asked it 'Will Infinite's next game be a Puzzle Quest title?', then it would quite probably say 'All signs point to yes!'," Fawkner explained."In the short term, we will continue to build and innovate in the genres and settings that we know and love. That means games that combine fantasy, puzzles, strategy and tactics. It's doubtful we'll ever move too far from those genres, because they are our favorites, and you always do your best work when you're building games that you're passionate about."[Thanks Aaron S.]
IronMonkey and Firemint merging into Firemonkeys, jungles burn across the world
Electronic Arts is smooshing its two Aussie mobile developers together to form one studio known as Firemonkeys. IronMonkey (Mass Effect Infiltrator, Dead Space) and Firemint (Flight Control, SPY mouse) combined now form "Australia's largest game development studio." Awkward.Firemonkey will continue working on separate projects, along with "collaborating on new ones out of the EA Melbourne office."It should also be noted that shortly before it was acquired by EA, Firemint purchased Puzzle Quest developer Infinite Interactive. Now, the only thing more dangerous than Firemonkeys would be Infinite Firemonkeys.Update: Turns out Infinite Interactive quietly split away this past January.
EA joins Iron Monkey and Firemint mobile studios to create Firemonkeys
EA has announced that it's consolidating its two biggest mobile studios. Firemint is the developer behind Flight Control and Spy Mouse (and was acquired by EA last year), and Iron Monkey is the developer behind EA's iOS hits like Mass Effect Infiltrator and Dead Space. Those two Melbourne, Australia-based studios are now joining up to become FireMonkeys, serving as a big internal mobile studio for EA. Between the two studios, Firemonkeys now claims over 85 million downloads on the App Store, as well as 15 number one hits between them. EA says the teams will now be collaborating on current projects, as well as creating some new ones out of the new combined studio as well. As a Firemint fan, this has me a little more worried about that company's popular properties. Rob Murray, Firemint's CEO, and a few original team members still remain working on the company's products. But Flight Control Rocket was a very different game than the high quality Flight Control, released before EA's takeover, and EA doesn't say what has happened to Infinite Interactive's properties, including the popular Puzzle Quest series. An interview with MCV says the restructuring was "more of a formality" than anything else, and that the number of employees will generally be split and may even grown in the next few months. But still, I haven't seen the same quality or polish come out of Firemint since it was independent, and it seems unlikely that combining it together with Iron Monkey will do much to change that. Show full PR text EA is Proud to Announce the Merger of Two Renowned Mobile Studios IronMonkey and Firemint become Firemonkeys EA is bringing together two of the world's leading mobile development studios - IronMonkey and Firemint - to form Firemonkeys. These two studios have entertained over 50 million players in 2012 alone with stellar titles including Flight Control, SPY mouse and Real Racing from Firemint, and Mass Effect Infiltrator, Dead Space and The Sims FreePlay from IronMonkey. Based in Melbourne, Australia, both studios have been developing mobile games for over a decade and combining the two teams makes Firemonkeys Australia's largest game development studio. Both teams look forward to the unification with Rob Murray, Executive Producer of Firemint commenting, "IronMonkey and Firemint have solid reputations for producing well-known games and we are excited to have the opportunity to share best practices, technology and resources." By aligning the strategy of IronMonkey and Firemint, EA is able to create an even more focused team of passionate individuals who are dedicated to developing high-quality mobile game experiences. This merge in the mobile space is resulting in positive overall growth for the Firemonkeys team, as the studio is now hiring for several positions. Fans should expect to see progressive development efforts with upcoming launch and project announcements in 2012. "Both of these studios have produced award-winning games and we believe combining the incredible talent pool in Melbourne, as well as leveraging the EA brand, sets us up for further success in the mobile arena," adds Tony Lay, GM of IronMonkey. Firemonkeys will continue to work on separate products in addition to collaborating on new ones out of the EA Melbourne office. With the added synergy this partnership creates, fans can expect unique features and new experiences in the brands they have come to know and love.
