Temple Run keeps on running, franchise tops 1 billion downloads
Mobile auto-runner Temple Run joins Angry Birds at the billion downloads table, developer Imangi Studios announced this week. That figure, by the way, refers exclusively to Temple Run and Temple Run 2, so imagine how huge it is when you include Disney spinoffs Oz and Brave. Either way, it's a remarkable achievement for the studio founded by a husband and wife team who had no idea how their game would catch on.
"It's kind of crazy," founder Keith Shepherd said in a GamesBeat interview. "Temple Run has been out a little over three years. We launched on August 3, 2011, I think? At the time, there were just two of us at the company. We were working with a freelance artist on the game. The three of us made the original Temple Run in about five months.
"We had no idea that it was going to become this huge hit and worldwide phenomenon and get a billion downloads. We were just a small team that loved to make games, working out of the bedroom in our apartment and doing what we loved. We'd been doing it a while - I think it was the tenth game that we released on the App Store - and it really blew up."
Shepherd added Imangi won't create another Temple Run without something "exciting and different" to add to the experience. As far as Temple Run goes, fans should look out for more updates and content to jog their way to Temple Run 2. How Imangi plans to top the that's-how-big-we-are-now addition of Olympic sprinter Usain Bolt remains to be seen.
[Image: Imangi Studios]
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Temple Run Series Hits One Billion Downloads
Temple Run Second Mobile Game Franchise Ever to Reach Milestone
RALEIGH, N.C. - June 4, 2014 - Independent game developer Imangi Studios announces today that its mobile games Temple Run and Temple Run 2 have together reached the milestone of one billion downloads. Since the launch of Temple Run in 2011, Imangi Studios has evolved from a husband-and-wife team working in their apartment to a thriving company. Temple Run is now one of the most downloaded series in mobile gaming history, having grown into a household name that remains popular with first-time runners and avid fans.
Some incredible milestones from the Temple Run series:
Players have collectively spent over 216,018 years playing Temple Run.
Over 32 billion games have been played.
Temple Run players have run a total of 50 trillion meters.
The massive success of Temple Run even spawned a new genre of 3-D endless-running games, which has grown into a top mobile gaming category.
"Having Temple Run reach the one billion downloads mark is a milestone we couldn't have imagined when we first started out," said Keith Shepherd, co-founder of Imangi Studios. "We're incredibly grateful to all the Temple Run players and our wonderful team. We look forward to continuing to grow the Temple Run franchise, as well as creating additional innovative games."
While the billion downloads milestone exclusively refers to Temple Run and Temple Run 2, Imangi has also launched Temple Run: Brave and Temple Run: Oz with Disney Mobile, both #1 hit apps. The company is also dedicated to growing its brand well beyond mobile. Temple Run has expanded to include apparel, plush toys and arcade games, among other licensing partnerships.
