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EA buys Firemint, makers of Flight Control and Real Racing
Here's yet another big iOS developer picked up by a traditional gaming giant: EA has acquired Firemint, the maker of iOS hits Flight Control and the Real Racing series. This is a pretty big purchase, but not a big surprise; Firemint has done work for EA in the past, including a few ports of popular EA titles, and as it has just merged with Infinite Interactive and has a big new title on the way called Agent Squeek, Firemint seemed primed for a connection with a larger company. The last time I talked with Firemint's Rob Murry and Steve Fawkner back at GDC this year, they obviously didn't mention any plans to join up with EA, but they did hint to me that Firemint's future included more traditional console titles -- either versions of their current games for systems like Xbox and PlayStation, or new games entirely. Those plans may be put on hold, however -- EA's press release connects the Firemint acquisition with another purchase of a company called Mobile Post Production, which specializes in porting games across smartphone devices, and says it will use MPP's technical abilities and Firemint's creative skills to kick out high quality mobile games.
Puzzle Quest creators talk about upcoming Galactrix
Who would've thought blending RPG elements into a puzzle game would become so successful? Puzzle Quest's incredible fan following has earned its spiritual successor, Galactrix, a great deal of attention. In an interview with IGN, Lead Designer Steve Fawkner reveals that the team is trying their best to make this game feel unique: "the last thing we want to hear from gamers is "oh that's just a Puzzle Quest clone" (which we admit to doing).When questioned on its gameplay mechanics, Fawkner stated the game was not based on Bejeweled, but another popular puzzle game: "I would say that it would better be described as Collapse in space." A crucial difference between the two titles is that Galactrix features real-time puzzle battling.As revealed in the interview, there are plans to introduce downloadable content and 6 player multiplayer. It will be interesting to see how this game develops over time.
Puzzle Quest sequel in the works
If Final Fantasy can reach the double digits, why can't an RPG puzzler also have sequels? In a recent interview with the creators of Puzzle Quest, IGN learned that not only were the creators surprised by how quickly the title has sold, but that they are also working on a sequel. Infinite Interactive's CEO Steve Fawkner said: "We have enjoyed creating (and playing) Puzzle Quest so much that I think we wanted to start on a sequel the day the game was released. The right thing to do, though, is to spend some time gathering ideas, discussing new features, and listening to our customers before we dive right in and start work on a sequel. But I can almost guarantee that, barring the most unfortunate Act of God, you haven't seen the last Puzzle/RPG hybrid to come out of Infinite Interactive." If that still doesn't convince you that a sequel is in the works, Puzzle Quest's publisher D3 also chimed in about a sequel possibility: "Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords is considered one of D3's key franchises. Absolutely do not count out the possibility of an amazing sequel to this remarkable game." So what changes would you like to see in this inevitable sequel?
