Press Room

'The Incredible Machine' for iPad Announced by Disney Mobile Stitch Kingdom.com

The iconic PC classic game of logic is back, this time exclusively for the iPad. At E3, Disney Mobile announced it's bringing 'The Incredible Machine' to the iPad this month. Originally released for the PC in 1993 and named one of the Top 150 games by Computer Gaming World magazine, 'The Incredible Machine' challenges players to solve puzzles by building comically-engineered contraptions to accomplish simple objectives. With straightforward touch controls, Retina Display graphics, original music, and great sound effects, 'The Incredible Machine' inspires the imagination with mind-bending invention, physics and hours of fun.

• INCREDIBLE FUN: Developed by the original designer of the PC game, 'The Incredible Machine' features 60 puzzling levels to test your skills.Packs include Newton's Playground, Pipeworks, The Cast and more, with new puzzles that will be available to download shortly after launch!

• INCREDIBLE ITEMS: Pipes, balls, belts, ropes, rockets, lasers and more - more than 90 creative items to build with!

• INCREDIBLE COMPETITION: Connect to Game Center and compete with your friends and other players for the most stars earned. Go to full news article » See E3's 'Best Game for iPad & iPhone' nomination »

Playdom Outdoes Itself with New Facebook Game, City of Wonder Christopher Mack, Inside Social Games

Disney-acquired Playdom has outdone itself with a new Facebook app discovered by the folks over at Gamezebo. Called City of Wonder, it's a game that combines some of the best parts of Playdom's past titles, as well as socialized mechanics of others. In short, City of Wonder is a streamlined, very social version, of Civilization, but unlike other titles influenced by the classic Sid Meier PC game, it focuses more on city building, and has a beautiful pattern of game progression. While some may complain that it's a Civ clone, the truth is, that it feels more a balanced combination of Social City, Civilization, and Facebook social mechanics. Download full news article »

Disney Purchases Playdom, a Social Game Start-Up Brooks Barnes and Claire Cain Miller, The New York Times

The Walt Disney Company became Hollywood's leading player in the booming social gaming business on Tuesday with the purchase of Playdom in a deal that could be worth up to $763.2 million. Disney will initially pay $563.2 million for Playdom, which is the No. 3 social gaming company on Facebook with about 42 million active players every month. The deal includes $200 million in additional payments should Playdom achieve unspecified growth thresholds. Download full news article »

Playdom Continues Shopping Spree; Acquires Social Gaming Startup Hive7 Leena Rao, TechCrunch

Fresh off a $33 million funding round, Playdom is making its fifth acquisition of the year today. The gaming giant is buying social gaming startup Hive7. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Hive7, which is backed by True Ventures and was founded in 2005, develops social games for Facebook and MySpace. The startup is best known for its flagship game, Knighthood, which combines combat and diplomacy in a medieval setting. Other titles include Youtopia, Kick-Off, and Sindicate. Hive 7's developers and team have already joined Playdom's Mountain View offices. Download full news article »

Playdom Adds $33 Million to Its Funding Eric Caoili, Gamasutra

Social game developer Playdom raised $33 million in venture capital financing from new backers Bessemer Venture Partners, New World Ventures, and Steamboat Ventures, the last of which is The Walt Disney Company's investment fund for digital media, consumer, and technology companies in the U.S. and Asia. Download full news article »

ESPN Drafts Playdom to Build Social Games Chris Morrison, Inside Social Games

ESPN is planning to take a slice of the professional sports market on Facebook and other social networks. The broadcaster announced today that it has signed a two-year deal with Playdom to build games, starting with two planned for the near future. Download full news article »

Playdom Combines City-Building, Quests and Nature in Treetopia Christopher Mack, Inside Social Games

The folks over at Playdom have launched a brand new title of the tribal, tree-hugging, city-building variety: The serene new Facebook application Treetopia. At first glance, Treetopia is a city builder, but its premise and a number of mechanics make this particular title much more interesting than many of the watered down SimCity clones. In short, the objective is to save Treetopia and guide your own personal tribe of nature-conscious people to becoming a flourishing society beneath the canopy of a great tree. The game goes beyond city-building, incorporating characters in quests to create a deeper gaming experience. Download full news article »

Social Gaming Alliances Gain Pace David Gelles, Financial Times

The multi-billion dollar industry that has built up around "social gaming" - casual video games played on social networking websites - is rapidly consolidating. Hundreds of small software development studios have sprung up in the past two years to create the games, but a few large companies are beginning to dominate the market. Download full news article »

Inside Social Apps 2010: Social Gaming Has an Even Bigger Future Chris Morrison, Inside Social Games

The Inside Social Apps 2010 conference kicked off this morning with a panel of top social gaming executives: Peter Relan, chairman of CrowdStar; Keith Rabois, executive VP at Slide; Vish Makhijani, COO of Zynga; Kavin Stewart, VP of product at LOLapps; and John Pleasants, the CEO of Playdom. Inside Social Gaming's Eric Eldon moderated, and got some interesting answers from the panelists about monetization, international markets, the next big hit and more. Download full news article »

Inside Social Apps 2010: Investors Talk Big Acquisitions and Mixed Opportunities Eric Eldon, Inside Social Games

Inside Social Apps 2010 ended today with a panel on investing opportunities in social applications and games. While most of the investors weren't too bullish on the short-term opportunities for small developers, they do believe there are all sorts of short and long term opportunities. Download full news article »

Startups Find Room to Run on Crowded Social Web Olga Kharif, BusinessWeek

Playdom's co-founders - Yue; co-founder Chris Wang, 26; and Ling Xiao, 28-year-old vice-president of engineering and co-founder - are among the finalists in BusinessWeek.com's annual Best Young Technology Entrepreneurs showcase. Seven of the 13 startups on this year's list are building Web and mobile-device software that extend the capabilities of social networks, including Facebook and Twitter. Download full news article »

Playdom Acquires Three Melons Social Game Company in Argentina Vinod Sreeharsha, VentureBeat

Playdom's General Counsel Brad Serwin said in an interview that his company is bullish on social game talent in Argentina. He added, "There seems to be a style there (in game development) different from what is seen in the U.S., which adds a dimension to our game design and art." Download full news article »

The Economics of Facebook Games Nick O'Neill, Social Times

Last week at SXSW, John Pleasants, CEO of Playdom, spoke about "The Future Of Social Gaming", but the greatest takeaway was the current economics of Facebook Games. If you are looking to get into the business or are already a player in the space, there were a number of important facts disclosed by Pleasants. What's clear is that the business is a smaller version of the movie industry with the difference being that games can be improved as users interact with them. Download full news article »

Social Gaming Startup MetroGames Gets A $5 Mllion Infusion From Playdom Leena Rao, TechCrunch

Argentinean social gaming company MetroGames, has just raised $5 million in series A funding from game developer Playdom. According to a release, the investment will be used to expand MetroGames' development of games and its social gaming platform. Playdom's CEO, John Pleasants will join MetroGames' board. Download full news article »

Playdom constructs Its Own Facebook City Builder: Social City Christopher Mack, Inside Social Games

Aesthetically, the game looks great, and as an added bonus, players start with a respectable amount of money to get their city started and looking very nice. Most games don't give the players enough, and it can be hard to keep them playing if they have to wait three days to make their virtual space look half decent. Social City, however, has immediate reward. Furthermore, this city actually feels alive. Sadly, there are no cars, but tiny residents actually walk about, hawk wares outside stores, mow lawns, and even work in the factories. Download full news article »

Wild Ones Review Jim Squires, GameZebo

Wild Ones is really, really good...A Worms-style game lives and dies by two things: level design and weapon selection. Wild Ones excels at both. Each new map you unlock will feature new layouts with distinct advantages and disadvantages. What's great is that these advantages and disadvantages usually allow for interesting uses of your weaponry. Download full news article »

Cold this Winter? Try Some Tropical Farming with Tiki Farm! Christopher Mack, Inside Social Games

While games such as FarmVille and Farm Town are currently going the winter wonderland route (in terms of virtual goods) a new farming title from Playdom is taking a different approach. Many are probably wishing for a nice, warm tropical setting now that we're getting deeper into winter. So, Tiki Farm, one of the developer's most recent titles, is here to help make that wish come true. Download full news article »

Another New Playdom Game Surfaces: Wild Ones, a Social Take on Worms Christopher Mack, Inside Social Games

What the new app does have that is distinctive, is that players are actually able to customize their avatar and even change its animal type. When you start out, all you have is a plain looking dog, but as you play and level up you will unlock a rabbit, panda, and monkey template for purchase (using currency you gain periodically or purchase). Moreover, higher levels also have greater access to purchasable weapons and more intricate level maps. Download full news article »

Playdom Hires Former Tech Analyst Quarles As CFO Eric Caoili

Mountain View, California-based social game developer Playdom hired Christa Quarles, previously the internet services managing director at investment banking firm Thomas Weisel Partners, as its chief financial officer. Download full news article »

Playdom Buys Green Patch and Trippert Labs - On the Way to IPO? Eric Eldon

Playdom, the largest social game developer on MySpace and one of the larger ones on Facebook, has confirmed a couple purchases we've been hearing rumors about recently. It has bought Facebook game developer Green Patch, as well as iPhone developer Trippert Labs, both for undisclosed amounts. Download full news article »

Playdom Gets Acquisitive Gabriel Madway

Fresh on the heels of its $43 million financing round, social gaming company Playdom announced a pair of acquisitions Thursday in a move to expand its portfolio of games. It acquired Facebook game developer Green Patch and Trippert Labs, which develops games on Apple's iPhone. Terms of the deal were not released. Download full news article »

Playdom Raises Big New Round Eric Eldon

Social gaming company Playdom has been looking at raising a big round of funding since this spring, but now it is closing one worth up to $70 million at up to a $300 million valuation, industry sources tell us. The investors include NEA, we hear — although the company isn't commenting. [Update: TechCrunch has the details. The company has raised $43 million on a $260 million pre-money valuation, with New Enterprise Associates, company chairman Rick Thompson, Lightspeed Venture Partners and Norwest Venture Partners participating.] Download full news article »

Virtual Goods Start Bringing Real Paydays Claire Cain Miller and Brad Stone

Wendy Pickering of Columbus, Ohio, plays Sorority Life, a game in which players create and dress groups of co-eds...Ms. Pickering has paid more than $30 in the last few months to buy the game's virtual currency, called Brownie Points, which she has used on items like the Miss America tiara and hair, and the Cinco de Mayo party outfit, which included a sombrero. Download full news article »

GDC Europe: Playdom's Meretzky On Making Social Games More Viral Thomas Inman, Gamasutra

Steve Meretzky, VP Game Design at Playdom, spoke at GDC Europe this Tuesday on the key elements required in creating a successful social game. The talk focused on how to achieve virality and cash flow in a rapidly emerging market. Download full news article »

Social Gaming Draws Developers In Paul Hyman, Gamasutra

Indeed, the opportunities in social gaming were also apparent to a few high-profile execs, like former Electronic Arts COO John Pleasants who, last July, became CEO of Playdom, a social gaming studio that had already claimed Steve Meretzky. Download full news article »

Social gaming startup eyes big opportunity Gabriel Madway, Reuters

Playdom, which was launched last year but only emerged from stealth mode in March, recently made a big splash when it lured John Pleasants from his perch as COO of Electronic Arts to become its CEO. Playdom battles rivals Zynga—which predicts revenue of $100 million or more this year—and Playfish in an increasingly competitive space. Download full news article »

Playdom launches second-generation Mobsters game Dean Takahashi, VentureBeat

Playdom's Mobsters 2: Vendetta, is debuting today on Facebook. The game is the first major follow-up to the Mountain View, Calif.-based company's Mobsters game, which has been a monster hit on MySpace with 13.5 million users, but which also faces tough competition on Facebook. Download full news article »

Playdom Extends #1 MySpace Game 'Mobster' to The iPhone Jason Kincaid, TechCrunch

It's been just under one year since social-gaming startup Playdom launched Mobsters, which has grown to become the #1 game on MySpace with 13.5 million total installs. Now, the company is taking the incredibly popular game mobile with its first iPhone App, dubbed Mobsters: Big Apple. And while it may not be the first such mafia-related game on the iPhone, it still has a few tricks up its sleeve that could turn it into a major hit. Download full news article »

Stop Ignoring This Startup Nicholas Carlson, Silicon Alley Insider

Mark Pincus's social gaming startup Zynga gets a lot of press for its projected $100 million 2009 revenues, but Playdom is the other startup in the rapidly developing space you have to know, too. Download full news article »

Stop Ignoring This Startup Nicholas Carlson, Silicon Alley Insider

Mark Pincus's social gaming startup Zynga gets a lot of press for its projected $100 million 2009 revenues, but Playdom is the other startup in the rapidly developing space you have to know, too. Download full news article »

No. 2 Electronic Arts exec John Pleasants on his defection to hot startup Playdom Dean Takahashi, VentureBeat

Anyone doubting that social gaming is the next big growth area for the video-game industry should note which way top executives in the industry are moving. Download full news article »

Playdom Grows Up: Switches to Studio Model, Lands Top Talent Leena Rao, TechCrunch

Playdom, a popular social gaming developer on MySpace, is moving to a studio model, similar to the model of competitor Zynga. Playdom has largely flown under our radar until now, but they've built up some very popular social networking apps on MySpace, and are also moving to Facebook as well. Download full news article »

Facebook, MySpace Gamemakers Turn to iPhone Nate Ralph, Wired.com

Playdom and Playfish, two companies that boast the most popular games on social networking sites like MySpace and Facebook, have a new target for their communication-centric games: iPhone. Download full news article »

Playdom, Developer of 8 of the Top 25 Games on MySpace, Preparing for Facebook Assault Justin Smith, Inside Facebook

Playdom, the developer of the #1 game on MySpace and 8 of the top 25, is coming out of stealth mode tonight. The company has 37 employees—with plans to be at 100 by the end of the year—and is already profitable. They've raised no money, and co-founders Dan Yue, Rick Thompson, Chris Wang, and Ling Xiao say they don't have plans to do so, due to a successful monetization strategy through a mix of virtual goods. Download full news article »

Playdom Launches Games on Facebook Platform Chris Caceres, Vator News

Playdom, a social gaming company, today announced they are expanding their games from MySpace to Facebook. Currently, the Mountain View, Ca.-based company, is the most highly ranked game developer on MySpace. Download full news article »

Playdom Reveals Itself as the Developer of the #1 Game on MySpace Justin Smith, Inside Social Games

The developer of the #1 game on MySpace, and 8 of the top 25 games on the MySpace application platform, is emerging from stealth mode tonight, and we have all the details here on Inside Social Games. Download full news article »

Playdom Expands from MySpace Games to Facebook Dean Takahashi, VentureBeat

Playdom, formerly known as YouPlus, built its own little empire as one of the leading makers of games for the MySpace social network. Now the company hopes it can repeat that success on Facebook. Now it will battle against some entrenched opponents on Facebook and learn whether it was lucky, or good, when it dominated MySpace. Download full news article »

Game Startups SuperSecret and Playdom Show Strength in Weak Economy Scott Duke Harris, San Jose Mercury News

Today's dispatch comes from the front lines of a business battlefield where digital superheroes, mobsters, space aliens, vampires, meter maids and sorority sisters are struggling to win hearts, minds and money. Download full news article »