Game Studio Story for Facebook: And We've Come Full Circle

Nietzsche famously said that when you stare into the abyss, the abyss also stares back at you. We can suppose that that's the kind of thing that led to the birth of Game Studio Story, a (formerly iTunes exclusive) Facebook app that centers on managing your very own videogame studio. Because the postmodern era isn't unnerving enough already, Drecom Ltd. has crafted a game that lets you create games. iTunes account holders may find the title familiar and that's because Drecom Ltd. obviously spent enough skill points in their videogame creation to warrant a PC port by KairoSoft. Now, due to the miracle of Facebook (and the boundless possibilties of app-related advertising revenue!) Game Studio Story's alpha version is free to play, only requiring a Facebook account and a willingness to bombard your friends with status updates and hiring requests. The premise of Game Studio Story is simple enough: you are the leader of a design studio that wants to make money. You make money by making games. The games you make can be brainstormed over, researched and gussied up with music, graphics and other accrouements supplied by your employees. The catch, of course, is that your employees must be entirely drawn from your real-world Facebook friends list, making the title effectively grind to a halt if you're not willing to pester yourself up some recruits. There are a number of requisite, addiction-ready elements on display in Game Studio Story for those that are able to scare up some similarily interested peers. Among the carrots dangling in front of you throughout every play session are items like new clothes for your avatar, fresh designs for your studio and unlockables that only open up after you've gained enough levels. These feature s are all well-implemented, jiving appropriately with the game's cutsie aesthetic and ultra-happy color pallette. A drawback, aside from the lack of any solo play options whatsoever, is found in the translation, which is something of a mess. While it's never bad enough to hinder your path to virtual game designer glory, the English release of Game Studio Story is also filled with awkward sentence structures and frequently misspelled words. Considering that this is an alpha version, however, there is the hope that the finalized release will be given the attention of a professional proofreader. Despite it's faults Game Studio Story is, ultimately, a fun social game that holds a lot of potential as it progresses toward a completely polished version. For now, the alpha release is colorful enough and with sound enough structural mechanics to culminate in the creation of an enjoyable experience. For anyone interested in a simplified look into the world of videogame development (or for those perverse souls vying to create Game Studio Story inside of Game Studio Story to continue this hellish, digital hall of mirrors) it's one of the worthier timesinks currently available on Facebook.

Social Pro Daily

Game Studio Story for Facebook: And We've Come Full Circle

Reid McCarter

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Reid McCarter