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Google Secretly Invested In Zynga, Preparing To Launch Google Games

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Re: Google Secretly Invested In Zynga, Preparing To Launch Google Games

#51

Post by nzmsv »

contextfree wrote: post #33
mynameishere wrote: post #14

Can you imagine working on Farmville? I mean, it would be like going into work every day to refine the equivilent of the Fisher Price moo farm toy [1] except a) for adults and b) relatively juvenile. Imagine the meetings, mostly run by marketing idiots. "Okay, we need the new chewy coco grove coconut tree special item out by next Monday. So that means everyone's coming in on saturday." But how can you argue with 85 m…

Presumably Fisher Price itself employs people who go to work every day to refine their moo farm and other toys. I doubt most of them see the nature of their jobs as particularly embarrassing or degrading.

Some people really like designing toys. And at least IEEE thinks it's a cool job: http://spectrum.ieee.org/consumer-electronics/gadgets/shanno...

Re: Google Secretly Invested In Zynga, Preparing To Launch Google Games

#52

Post by Perceval »

Jun8 wrote: post #29

I think Google's worry about Facebook (partly justified, partly not) is starting to cause them to make pointless (and time wasting) decisions. If I had 5mins with Sergei and Larry, I would say (after taking a long sip from the free organic drink I just got from the snack bar we're standing next to) "Look, the real enemy is not FB but Apple (and sometimes your own engineering hubris, e.g. Buzz), so focus all your troo…

>Look, the real enemy is not FB but Apple

The first thing I thought of when I read this news was precisely that it was targeted at matching Apple. All of a sudden Apple has come out of nowhere as a gaming force, threatening even Nintendo's portable gaming systems. Google investing in gaming looks like a move to reinforce their offerings in this department.

Re: Google Secretly Invested In Zynga, Preparing To Launch Google Games

#53

Post by eli »

naner wrote: post #31
glhaynes wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Or maybe it'd be fun because you'd be making something that people can relax and enjoy and that adds a little extra social interaction to their everyday experience, often with people that they don't have another "reason" to be in contact with.

No, actually, it is just a stupid waste of everyone's time.

Other than you not liking it, how is it fundamentally different from any other game?

Re: Google Secretly Invested In Zynga, Preparing To Launch Google Games

#54

Post by robryan »

eli wrote: post #53
naner wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No, actually, it is just a stupid waste of everyone's time.

Other than you not liking it, how is it fundamentally different from any other game?

The games are designed to be addictive, not fun in the long term. You could argue the same about WoW but at least in that case there is a lot to do over a long period before you truly get into the addictive repetition phase. Something like farmville is pretty much that from the start.

Re: Google Secretly Invested In Zynga, Preparing To Launch Google Games

#55

Post by s3graham »

alanh wrote: post #49

Just throwing this out there: I consider it unethical to invest in Zynga. Edit: They are essentially using psychology, social and otherwise, to ultimately trick people out of their money. A classic on the topic: http://techcrunch.com/2009/10/31/scamville-the-social-gaming...

Care to expand? I'm not especially familiar with them other than they make some casual games.

Re: Google Secretly Invested In Zynga, Preparing To Launch Google Games

#56

Post by borisk »

Jun8 wrote: post #48
donw wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think that their hiring and internal quality-control process excludes it, actually. For building Google's search engine, you need people who know search and sorting algorithms backwards, forwards, inside-out, and upside down. You need hardcore A/B testing based on statistical significance, and rigorous respect of the data you collect. To make the iPhone and the iPad, you need neither of those. You need one guy who…

Excellent points. As to your first action point, Google is actually going the opposite way! By Gingerbread (Android 3.0) they intend to squeeze out all vendor-specific add ons, like Motorola Blur or HTC Sense. This is a big mistake that will end in a lose-lose situation. Another area that AFAIK Apple can't currently match is turn by turn navigation, I no longer use my GPS device in my car but rely completely on my Dr…

How is

"By Gingerbread (Android 3.0) they intend to squeeze out all vendor-specific add ons, like Motorola Blur or HTC Sense. This is a big mistake that will end in a lose-lose situation."

the opposite of

"Personally, the first thing I'd do with Android is revamp the market and distribution model to standardize the OS across platforms and vendors, so that an Android works the same no matter where you got it. Vendors can add in custom content (wallpapers, extra apps, ringtones, etc), but the interface (icons, look-and-feel) needs to be the same." ?

Re: Google Secretly Invested In Zynga, Preparing To Launch Google Games

#57

Post by colinplamondon »

donw wrote: post #44
joubert wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They have a pretty disappointing track record when it comes to consumer hardware. I bet it is not in their DNA.

I think that their hiring and internal quality-control process excludes it, actually. For building Google's search engine, you need people who know search and sorting algorithms backwards, forwards, inside-out, and upside down. You need hardcore A/B testing based on statistical significance, and rigorous respect of the data you collect. To make the iPhone and the iPad, you need neither of those. You need one guy who…

Even then they're still screwed- you're talking about two features, Apple is marketing an experience.

"We let you root your phone" is not a marketing strategy, and that's the base of Android so far. They let you customize, Apple gives you something kick ass that just works.

Re: Google Secretly Invested In Zynga, Preparing To Launch Google Games

#58

Post by MartinCron »

glhaynes wrote: post #26
mynameishere wrote: post #14

Can you imagine working on Farmville? I mean, it would be like going into work every day to refine the equivilent of the Fisher Price moo farm toy [1] except a) for adults and b) relatively juvenile. Imagine the meetings, mostly run by marketing idiots. "Okay, we need the new chewy coco grove coconut tree special item out by next Monday. So that means everyone's coming in on saturday." But how can you argue with 85 m…

Or maybe it'd be fun because you'd be making something that people can relax and enjoy and that adds a little extra social interaction to their everyday experience, often with people that they don't have another "reason" to be in contact with.

That's how I felt, as a guy who feels pretty "meh" about lolcats, when I was working at Cheezburger Network.

Even now, I know that software that I wrote is helping to make literally millions of people happy every day. That feels a hell of a lot better than helping a big cable company with video DRM, that's for sure.

Re: Google Secretly Invested In Zynga, Preparing To Launch Google Games

#59

Post by MartinCron »

bpm140 wrote: post #27
traskjd wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Exactly right. I present on game development to local user groups in New Zealand and I always get a good response when citing "It's fun to write games - wouldn't you much rather be writing a class called SuperLaserWeapon than MembershipIdentityProvider" :-)

Maybe we should just rename the "MembershipIdentityProvider" method to "SuperLaserWeapon"?

I haven't gone into SuperLaserWeapon territory, but I try to have a little (appropriate) fun with naming.

Re: Google Secretly Invested In Zynga, Preparing To Launch Google Games

#60

Post by greenlblue »

The article says something about social graph but that doesn't make sense. Gmail basically rules the world when it comes to email so they already have a lot of social graph information just from email correspondences. There must be some other strategy they are pursuing.
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