Emerging Paid iOS Apps: Older Electronic Arts Titles Saturate the Top Lists

The iOS charts have normally been a great space for smaller developers to break out, but this week is not the case as gaming giant Electronic Arts obliterates the competition with a 90% off sale on virtually every title in its repertoire for both iPhone and iPad. Even in looking at all top 50 titles within the paid lists, the vast majority are from EA with only long running favorites such as Angry Birds, Cut the Rope and Plants vs. Zombies, remaining in their relative positions. We tried to highlight some of the specific EA studios and subsidiaries involved in the development of these titles. New Titles Within Top iPhone Paid Apps List NBA Jam by EA Sports-- The EA sale starts the week off by ousting last week's #1 title, Air Penguin from its position. The new top title is NBA Jam, and yes, it's on fire. It's an iPhone remake of the memorable arcade basketball title. Also, this game is one of the newer titles on the list, recently updated April 21st to support local Bluetooth and WiFi multiplayer. In addition to running $0.99 (due to the EA sale), the game also monetizes with in-app purchases ranging from $0.99 to $2.99. This game's specific developer is EA Sports, a Florida-based company responsible for EA titles such as Madden, FIFA, and Tiger Woods. Dead Space -- At #6 is a game we reviewed back in January, Dead Space for iPhone. Players control "Vandal" as he attempts to deal with a horde of necromorphs that he unwittingly unleashed upon an isolated space station. Updated, March 11th, the survival-horror game is one of the better deals with EA's sale, again running $0.99. That said, the app also hosts in-app purchases ranging from $0.99 to $4.99. Dead Space was also developed in association with IronMonkey Studios, an Australian developer that creates titles for both mobile devices and consoles. Dead Space was originally created by EA-owned company, Visceral Games. The Sims 3 -- It's not a surprise that one of the best selling gaming franchises of all time hits #8 when its 90% off. The currently $0.99 EA title of The Sims 3, has shot up out of hiding, despite its age. In fact, this game hasn't been updated since November 30th, showing that players still enjoy controlling the virtual lives of their avatars. Like the other EA titles in this list, the monetizes with in-app purchases; namely Sim clothing sets for $0.99. With the franchise originally created by EA company Maxis, this mobile rendition was also created with the help of IronMonkey Studios. TETRIS -- Even older than The Sims, here comes the grand daddy of all casual games. In at #10 is the ancient game of TETRIS at $0.99. The app has not been seen in the top 50 for some time-- let alone the top 10 -- and has not been updated since November 21st. Even so, the classic design of the game has brought it back into the lime light; if only temporarily. This iPhone version of Tetris was created by EA Montreal, a larger EA studio that has been in business since 2003. Battlefield: Bad Company 2 -- The next top title isn't too far: At #11 is the first-person shooter of Battlefield: Bad Company 2. Another iPhone port of a core console game, this war-game puts players through a respectable single player campaign and was last updated (February 8th) to support multiplayer. Like the others, the game is currently running $0.99. The game's core version developer is Digital Illusions CE, a core games developer based out of Stockholm, Sweden. New Titles Within Top iPad Paid Apps List Dead Space HD -- It was $9.99, and now it's $0.99, thus Dead Space HD is #1 on the top paid iPad apps list. With better visuals than the iPhone rendition, this title still hosts the same monetization mechanics (paid for and in-app purchases) as its counterpart. In fact, the game was recently enhanced -- as of March 11th -- for the iPad 2. Again, Dead Space's developers, along with EA, are IronMonkey Studios and Visceral Games. SCRABBLE for iPad -- Scrabble for iPad has always been a popular application, but it hasn't been terribly high on the charts as it is today. Currently at #2, the now $0.99 tabletop-style game is testing the vocabulary of a whole new slew of players. Last updated April 7th with "performance" improvements, the game is developed by EA Mobile. The original tabletop game was created by toy-maker Hasbro. FIFA 11 by EA Sports -- In at #3 is another title from EA Sports. Another much older game, FIFA 11, was released December 17th. Even so, withthe cost of the soccer title being a mere $0.99, its popularity is, at least temporarily, booming. Though not as in depth as its console counterpart, this iPad title still allows players to participate a variety of different game modes using actually soccer franchises and players. RISK: The Official Game for iPad -- Another old EA Mobile game appears on the list this week, and it moves all the way up to #4. RISK: The Official Game for iPad was released December 14th, and now the iOS, tabletop translation only runs $0.99. A strategy-based board game with the goal of world domination, the touch controls of the iPad lend themselves well to this title. Once again, the original board game was created by Hasbro. Madden NFL 11 by EA Sports -- Electronic Arts makes a clean sweep of both the iPhone and iPad top charts with the #5 paid iPad application, Madden NFL 11. Yet another title created by EA Sports, this mobile rendition of the popular Madden football franchise is, like every other EA game at the moment, only $0.99. Last updated December 22nd, the iPad version does come with an exclusive feature dubbed "vintage voltage football," a game mechanic reminiscent to retro, electric football.

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Emerging Paid iOS Apps: Older Electronic Arts Titles Saturate the Top Lists

Christopher Mack

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Christopher Mack