Mark Pincus Advocates for Copying Success in Mobile Game Design
Mark Pincus, the founder of Zynga, is promoting a straightforward approach for mobile game designers in his upcoming book, "Life at the Speed of Play," set to release on June 23. In a free sample chapter, he introduces his ‘Proven Better New’ framework, which he describes as a systematic method for creating successful products more efficiently. Pincus claims this methodology became a guiding principle within Zynga and has been adopted by other game developers, including Supercell.
Pincus points to Supercell’s debut title, Hay Day, as an example of his framework in action, noting that it essentially replicates "FarmVille for mobile". He outlines the three components of the Proven Better New process: "Proven" refers to existing products loved by users, encompassing all features and mechanics; "Better" involves enhancements that would elicit a positive response from users; and "New" includes unique ideas that require careful testing due to their inherent risks.
He encourages designers to set aside moral hesitations about copying successful concepts, quoting Steve Jobs: "Good artists copy; great artists steal," a phrase he attributes to Picasso. Pincus suggests that egos often prevent product teams from recognizing the value of copying effective designs. He argues that junior teams spend unnecessary time trying to avoid similarities with existing games, which detracts from innovation.
Pincus reflects on the philosophy behind Zynga, stating that the mantra "all New fails" was meant to foster experimentation rather than stifle creativity. He recalls how his first game, Zynga Poker, exemplified the Proven Better New ethos by adopting proven mechanics from online poker and improving the experience by eliminating downloads, while introducing the innovative feature of player identities via Facebook photos.
Funding Zynga with $350,000 of his own money, Pincus was determined to avoid seeking venture capital after his previous venture, Tribe, did not succeed. He describes Zynga Poker as intentionally unambitious, with its only new feature being the use of players' real identities. Pincus also shares insights on the rapid development of FarmVille, which took just six weeks, influenced by titles like Restaurant City and FarmTown. During a meeting with Mark Zuckerberg, he devised a strategy to make FarmVille the first game featured in the Facebook feed. After its launch on June 19, 2009, FarmVille quickly amassed one million daily active users within four days and surpassed 20 million within six months.
Why it matters
For subsequent games like CityVille, Zynga borrowed innovations from Millionaire City, a title developed by what would later become Supercell. Pincus notes that Supercell reciprocated this influence with Hay Day, which closely mirrored FarmVille. He highlights the similarities between the two games, from the layout to specific features, stating, "If you compared the original Hay Day and FarmVille, you would have thought they were the same game." Pincus concludes that this practice serves as a masterclass in the Proven Better New framework.
Original source
MobileGamer.biz
