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Mobile gaming giant Storm8 has today announced its move into third-party publishing, and Develop was able to catch up with CEO Perry Tam to find out more.
Why has Storm8 moved into third-party game publishing?
Over the last four years, Storm8 has developed more than 40 hit games on mobile. We have also grown our network to more than 50 million monthly active users who are always eager to try out new games. Storm8 Publishing is a strategic next step for us as we continue our exponential growth. Through this program, we will work with promising developers worldwide and handpick only the highest quality games that our audience will enjoy.
What do you offer developers to help them become a success?
Apart from a huge network (50m MAU) that developers can tap into, we also have some of the most enthusiastic and engaged mobile game players in the world. In 2013, we consistently had at least five games in the Top 100 Grossing list. Partners will have access to this expertise, in addition to our experienced teams in marketing, promotion, development, design, analytics, engineering and community for long-term game optimization and success.
What kind of games are you specifically looking for? And can developers from around the world get involved?
We’re open to speaking to smart developers around the world that have an engaging game that Storm8’s network of users will love. We’re looking for partners who already have a strong game, understand their gaming audience, and have the desire to reach a worldwide audience.
What does this mean for your own development plans?
Storm8 is a mobile game developer at heart and we will continue to develop mobile games. In fact, we already have a pipeline of games planned for 2014. Storm8 Publishing will augment our already strong portfolio of mobile games across all Storm8 brands.
There appears to be a trend of the larger mobile developers moving into publishing, why is this?
From our standpoint, Storm8 Publishing is a strategic and logical next step for our company. Over the last four and a half years, we’ve developed a network of more than 40 games in five different mobile gaming genres that our players enjoy. Storm8 Publishing allows us to 1) augment our already diversified portfolio by introducing even more high quality games to our users, and 2) continue our exponential growth.
When promoting to your own user base, is there ever a danger that you actually move players away from your own games?
No, it’s actually the opposite. Storm8 Publishing brings a partner’s game into Storm8’s network. Our player network currently consists of more than 50 million monthly active users. What we’ve found is that gamers who play multiple games within a network have three times a longer lifetime than those who play only one game. By consistently introducing new and interesting games to our users, we essentially keep them coming back for more.
