Facebook's Mobile Game Publishing

By LUDWIG VON KOOPA - Promoting disgusting behaviour.

A while ago, Gamasutra reported that Facebook will be entering the mobile game publishing arena. This means that, whenever we write about Facebook in KoopaTV articles, it gets to be bolded like any other industry-relevant company! Speaking of which, go Like our Facebook page.  (Anyway, analysis to follow.)

Unlike in the traditional publisher-developer relationship, Facebook is acting in a distribution role instead of as a financier that holds milestones over your neck. It's therefore no wonder that the only monetary number they ask of you is the marketing budget.

I don't really understand this infographic but apparently Facebook supports iOS and Android-native mobile games.

So let's look at that Gamasutra article and see what companies and games are being supported. This was described as a limited trial launch sort of thing back when it was announced, and now that it's October I still haven't heard much else.

One of the companies listed is Gameloft. Where have I heard that na-...

AH! GAMELOFT! THE MAKERS OF SEXY POKER! 

What are they doing here? I don't want Facebook advertising to the world that... I... play that game! That's what YouTube is for! Ugh, I can imagine the sidebars now...

"Hey, ___! Ludwig plays Sexy Poker! You should too! Click here!"

Ugh, this is awful. But what am I supposed to do, use Google Plus? That's not happening! For the record, I haven't touched that game since it froze my Wii. So that was like, seven months ago. You know, I actually held Ubisoft in contempt all the way up to Rayman Legends for their relationship with Gameloft!

...OH, right, this article is supposed to be about Facebook.

This is Gameloft's explanation of their social media strategy. Facebook isn't even here.

Um, so let's look at Gameloft's only other game ever, Kingdoms & Lords. It... doesn't look like the Facebook penetration is good. At all. Less than 7,000 Likes. (Gameloft's own page somehow has over 10,000,000 Likes on it. (I'm not one of them.) This is our CULTURE now. Perverts!) The entire point of this is utilizing Facebook's distribution power, so... Looks like a flop?

I don't understand this infographic, either.

Yeah, I don't know. Facebook wants some of the revenue as payment. Not really sure that's worth it now, but let's wait and see. If it's as a step-increase cost related to amount of penetration (this reduces risk and relates Facebook's share to its performance) then it could be viable. If it's a fixed percent either way, stay far away from this idea.

Of course, this only applies to mobile games anyway, those you'd find on the iOS and the Android. Obviously those are icky. But just imagine if Facebook upped their game...! Some day, they'll be a real videogame publisher. Hanging out in the big leagues. Then they can suffer all the ridiculous stuff that happens to videogame publishers that you read all about here on KoopaTV. At least their stock price has gone up since their IPO! (Remember when it was ridiculed in the news for having a terrible launch?) Compare that to say, Electronic Arts, and they're in great shape.


Ludwig has already advertised Facebook stuff in this article enough.


Ludwig now regrets advertising Facebook, since they banned him.
Apparently this mobile publishing business didn't work out too well.