EA sets up dedicated 99-cent iPhone developer
8lb Gorilla 'micro-studio' will balance out premium titles with lower priced games
EA has launched a new mobile games subsidiary called 8lb Gorilla and plans to use it to release 99-cent iPhone games on a near-monthly basis.
According to a TouchArcade report, the 'micro-studio' will comprise a team of twenty-something year old developers tasked with developing simple, indie-style iPhone games.
Recent analysis of the current US top 100 iPhone games chart showed that apps selling at the 99-cent price point were by far the most popular, making up 15 of the games in the top 20.
However, EA games were among the highest priced in the chart, costing an average of USD 5.49, meaning that the new studio will be well-placed to as an alternative to lowering prices of its premium titles in order to gain entry to higher chart positions.
8lb Gorilla's first game will called Zombies & Me, a title in which players fend zombies away from a grandmother's house by herding them into the paths of missiles. Providing it doesn't encounter delays with the App Store submission process, the studio plans to release further games on a regular, near-monthly basis.