@RawSteelUT: Touch a nerve, did he? If you clickthrough to the rest of the interview, you'd find out that the read itself is actually quite fascinating, and that he doesn't come off as condescending at all.

JustThisGuy

@RawSteelUT: "Perhaps the guy should shut up, since his games will never sell as well as a blockbuster video game."

I bet PopCap sells more combined units than almost any other studio out there. Their revenues are measured in millions of dollars each month. Think about it. There is nothing "casual" about how much business they are doing.

xot

Peggle is a really fun game, and is very well put together.

RAWSTEELUT:"Perhaps the guy should shut up, since his games will never sell as well as a blockbuster video game."

I'm betting that is wrong, there are likely more copies of Peggle out there than just about any of the "blockbuster" games on console or PC.

Popcap seems set up for generating extreme outrage from nerd gamers. They are a big company with lots of many, and they make "casual" games.

Vydas

@RawSteelUT: Did you read the entire interview? That's the only quote in which he might seem in any way 'condescending'... I don't know whether PopCap games come with spyware or anything (never played one, except the free version of Bookworm, which was pretty fun) so can't comment on that, but the guy comes off fine from the interview.

quen

50 million PS2s vs. 500 million DVD players. Videogames have a long way to go before they can be called mainstream.

xot

@okenny :): Anyone up for some for some Puzzloop, err, I mean, Zuma?

BigDanG

Condescending little bastard, isn't he. The gaming industry hasn't been anywhere near this so-called "ghetto" for quite a while now, as the 50 million PS2s on the market can attest to. And his backhand snipe at gamers is downright insulting. I'm a male who's about to reach 30, and I play a whole lot more than shooters. Everything from Tetris to Halo to Assassin's Creed has been able to captivate me, and many others like me.

Perhaps the guy should shut up, since his games will never sell as well as a blockbuster video game. We all know that the real reason these games make so much money is because they cost next to nothing to produce and are linked to every spyware game client (Hi, WildTangent) you can think of.

RawSteelUT

Wow... big talk from PopCap big talk from a rip-off artist. As glib as his words may seem, he is right about casual gamers. One thing I know for sure though is that if Japan stops making casual games (not likely), PopCap would go out of business.

okenny :)

@Siegeman:

Was about to post that word for word :-x

jisf0rjosh

The Heroes of Might & Magic series used unicorns in a cool way. Upgraded, they could really kick ass.

I think what gaming needs is more kickass unicorns.

We're the Unicorns,
We're more than horses!

el_gordo

Peggle consumed my life for the three days it took me to beat it.

Still working on the challenges once in a while.

Siegeman

What I wouldn't pay for a real puzzle game. Something original and interesting. To be honest though, what I'm thinking of would be some point and click adventure-Puzzle hybrid.

I'm so bored of tetris clones :(

Edmon

PopCap isn't doing anything mindblowing with their games (except earning heaps of cash), but the production value of Peggle is simply off the charts. You have to respect that.

xot

But will puzzle games Blend?

That is the question.

Edmon

Here's another interesting interview, this time with someone from Mitchell (who made Puzz-Loop):

[www.insertcredit.com]

It's quite interesting for their take on clones. I can see that, they're not happy, but Popcap think clones are fine, because they make money from it.

system11

I'm kind of a fan of the Peggle EXTREME trial that came for free from having nvidia hardware. It's a good waste of time. And it can't be any worse for me than looking at porno.

ThatGuyOverThere

My parents, as far from gaming people as you can get, fell absolutly head over heels for Peggle.

I installed it on my moms laptop for something she could do if she got bored. I showed her the first few levels and let her go, thinking she'd play it once and not touch it again. Long story short, she's now addicted, being the Peggle Master and aiming to complete all the challenges so she can be Grand Peggle Master. She's now better than me at the game, and it's not uncommon for her to log 2 or 3 hours a day if she gets into it. She uses it as an escape from work and stress, just watching the ball fall racking up big points from some epic combo.

My dad is similar. He played it on the same laptop as my mom, but instead of getting addicted there, he bought it for his iPod. Now he has Peggle wherever he wants it, which he tells me is great for downtime at work.

What PopCap has done to my parents is unreal. Their games make common folk like my parents see what addictive gaming is all about. Whether this is good or bad in the long run is still up in the air, but I think it's just fine. Long live PopCap.

-nesdude

nesdude

Yahtzee's review says it all.

Sabre_Justice

@el_gordo: We're the Unicorns, and we're people too!

I played the free demo of Peggle, and, to be honest, it's nothing special. Yes, it's very polished for a game of that genre, but that's only because the only things it has to compete with are free flash games, and those bargain bin multi-game collections you always find at supermarkets.

What I do respect, is that PopCap saw those and thought:
"Given the prevalence of this crap, surely there's a niche there for well polished titles at slightly higher cost."

hinges

I only played Peggle a week ago even though I had The Orange box the day it came out. Sonfabitch hooked me so bad i bought the deluxe the minute the HL2 version was finished.

Cell9song

@Edmon: Crush on PSP. Seriously as puzzle games go it will melt your face into next Tuesday.

TearsandScreams

When they took SimCity and made it casual, I died a little.

Screw shooting aliens. I'm a late 20 something male and I just want a reasonably progressed city simulator.

Tubatic

Cool interview, System11. That Japanese designer came across as a bit of a jerk, but he's right to be mad at Popcap ripping off Puzzloop. I sure do love me some Zuma though...

eastx

Peggle and Bookworm Adventures both owned me for a long period of time. That is all.

Karlott

@JustThisGuy: Of course we are both assuming that such hardcore gamers as 'RawSteelUT' are actually capable of reading, which may be a mistake... </condescending> :)

quen