Well I want call the game a scam seems it was a template bought and paid for and uploaded to app store fair enough. But how does a game that was uploaded Dec 18 2012 get a update on Jan 30 2014 and go into the top 10?
If you look at the Rank History on App Annie and compare it to other top 10 games such as Slayin, you notice something peculiar: other top 10 apps have very high numbers of downloads and very high gross sales, but this game has very high gross sales and a relatively low number of downloads. That coupled with the number of reviews/ratings (currently 27) makes me wonder if very many people actually bought this game. There are some anomalies when it comes to the number of reviews/ratings but many of the top ten apps have numbers in the tens of thousands.
Flappy bird was released last year but it became so popular now suddenly.
Flappy bird became really popular because of the famous youtuber PewDiePie. he posted a video where he was playing flappy bird (and dumb ways to die). most of his fans downloaded flappy bird and now its really popular. here is his video:
Flappy bird was released last year but it became so popular now suddenly.
Flappy bird was released last year but it became so popular now suddenly.
Flappy bird became really popular because of the famous youtuber PewDiePie. he posted a video where he was playing flappy bird (and dumb ways to die). most of his fans downloaded flappy bird and now its really popular. here is his video:
Oh cool! Didn't knew that. Was wondering why were everyone suddenly talking about flappy bird lol. Downloaded it and was kinda addicted
Well I want call the game a scam seems it was a template bought and paid for and uploaded to app store fair enough. But how does a game that was uploaded Dec 18 2012 get a update on Jan 30 2014 and go into the top 10?
I remember reading something recently - probably linked to from these forums - about how people will release some crappy game, then use a network of iTunes account to download enough copies to push it into the charts. As little as $20,000 in purchases can be enough, iirc. That's $6,000, once Apple's taken their cut, to be in the charts. Once you're in the charts you're almost guaranteed a certain number of downloads, and will almost always make back the money spent getting there.
I remember reading something recently - probably linked to from these forums - about how people will release some crappy game, then use a network of iTunes account to download enough copies to push it into the charts. As little as $20,000 in purchases can be enough, iirc. That's $6,000, once Apple's taken their cut, to be in the charts. Once you're in the charts you're almost guaranteed a certain number of downloads, and will almost always make back the money spent getting there.
Perhaps that's what's going on here.
Thats always possible I never thought of it that way
tatiangMember, Sous Chef, PRO, Senior Sous-ChefPosts: 11,949
edited February 2014
@Armelline I linked to an article about that about ten posts up.
tatiangMember, Sous Chef, PRO, Senior Sous-ChefPosts: 11,949
edited February 2014
Doing a search on the second persons name "Mateen Pekan" it seems a lot of scam warning pop up even on touch arcade..I smell something fishy.. not sure if "Louis Leidenfrost" is related.
edit:
thought I'd seen name before he's mentioned on Gamesalad forums as a scammer also.
So here's something interesting in follow-up to my earlier post. I Googled "Red Bouncing Ball Spikes" and one of the results was a site called store.heaveniphone.com/...
The email about buying iOS source code, which I believed to be from "Mateen" was from Firoozeh Morady < heavenlydesignapps@gmail.com >. I noticed the similarity ("heaven") and wrote a response: "Congratulations on your success with Red Bouncing Ball Spikes!" I figured if the response was "Huh?" then it probably wasn't the same person as Louis Leidenfrost. The reply I got back was "Thank you. Ipad and v2 of the game will be out soon."
Louis Leidenfrost = Mateen Pekan = Firoozeh Morady ... or they all work together. Or that's some pretty cool name generator.
Yes it looks like they used my template It's called red bouncing ball spikes It's ranked #3 paid in the US
I went to the Marketplace to have a quick look at your original template and was reminded how absolutely awful the GS Marketplace is ! ) Am I right in thinking that you can't even search for an asset, even if you know what is it called ? That you need to scroll through thousands of assets in the hope that you might spot the one you are after
Agreed the GS Marketplace is a very odd design, why it wasn't designed in the same way as every stock video/graphics site in the world I don't know i.e. (istock.com, revostock.com, videohive.net, shutter stock.com)... a working search function...
As for this game doing so well in the app store... I've no idea what to think... other than ah screw it maybe I should stop over thinking game design and unique idea and just get some actual games out there and see what happens. But then I think a little more...
Agreed the GS Marketplace is a very odd design, why it wasn't designed in the same way as every stock video/graphics site in the world I don't know i.e. (istock.com, revostock.com, videohive.net, shutter stock.com)... a working search function...
Stormy, you're being very polite/diplomatic with your "very odd design" ) let's be honest it's really pretty dreadful, like you say why on earth didn't it follow the same template laid down by all those stock sites you mention, I've been selling stuff on Revostock, Pond5 and iStock for around 7 years - so it's not like these sites are a recent development or somehow secret or unknown, the template and formula that works is out there.
All these sites work just fine on the Mac's own browser (Safari) but GS went with a payment system that won't support Safari - and then to make things worse they slapped a great big warning across the top of the Marketplace telling you just that . . . a warning that they slapped right on top of the search tool, so now Safari users can't buy assets nor can they even search for assets !! )
And with these other asset/stock sites there is a fairly robust vetting procedure that you need to submit your work to - and if needed provide evidence of your working process (for example a screenshot of your AfterEffects project showing all its layers and animation and so on) so people don't submit work that is just a plug-in preset with a couple of values changed, the result is that all these sites carry only high quality assets that meet strict technical requirements, whereas the GS marketplace you have to wade through a fair amount of X_X X_X X_X X_X in the hope of finding something decent, people don't like doing that.
Still one of my favourite GS Marketplace 'assets':
Doing a search on the second persons name "Mateen Pekan" it seems a lot of scam warning pop up even on touch arcade..I smell something fishy.. not sure if "Louis Leidenfrost" is related.
edit:
thought I'd seen name before he's mentioned on Gamesalad forums as a scammer also.
So here's something interesting in follow-up to my earlier post. I Googled "Red Bouncing Ball Spikes" and one of the results was a site called store.heaveniphone.com/...
The email about buying iOS source code, which I believed to be from "Mateen" was from Firoozeh Morady < heavenlydesignapps@gmail.com >. I noticed the similarity ("heaven") and wrote a response: "Congratulations on your success with Red Bouncing Ball Spikes!" I figured if the response was "Huh?" then it probably wasn't the same person as Louis Leidenfrost. The reply I got back was "Thank you. Ipad and v2 of the game will be out soon."
Louis Leidenfrost = Mateen Pekan = Firoozeh Morady ... or they all work together. Or that's some pretty cool name generator.
I have noticed on one site when it says other games by Louis or Mateen when you click on them it goes back and forth between there names. I also noticed Mateen made a android app for a computer repair service in canada.
What I do find interesting is how easy it is for me to follow this guys trail around the net, I feel like a detective even though that Facebook test said I should have been a astronaut,lol.
and Flappy Bird now #1 the creator has all 3 of his games in top 10 and another game called Iron pants looks just like Flappy Bird now number #5 I think..lol
I'm not making fun of it, I'm showing it for the surreal and challenging minimalist artwork that it is, it both challenges ideas of who we are and what art is - as well as, at the same time, encapsulating the zeitgeist in a new and daring form that compels you to ask questions about the very nature of the world you live in, it's as much a philosophy of art as it is an iconoclastic piece of visually literate 'theatre'.
Comments
Well I want call the game a scam seems it was a template bought and paid for and uploaded to app store fair enough. But how does a game that was uploaded Dec 18 2012 get a update on Jan 30 2014 and go into the top 10?
I want this guy to promote my next game ,lol.
PS. If anyone finds out how he did it, let me know so I can do it with my games $-)
It’s not a bug – it’s an undocumented feature
If you look at the Rank History on App Annie and compare it to other top 10 games such as Slayin, you notice something peculiar: other top 10 apps have very high numbers of downloads and very high gross sales, but this game has very high gross sales and a relatively low number of downloads. That coupled with the number of reviews/ratings (currently 27) makes me wonder if very many people actually bought this game. There are some anomalies when it comes to the number of reviews/ratings but many of the top ten apps have numbers in the tens of thousands.
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he posted a video where he was playing flappy bird (and dumb ways to die). most of his fans downloaded flappy bird and now its really popular.
here is his video:
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http://www.bluecloudsolutions.com/blog/flappy-birds-smoke-mirrors-scamming-app-store/
Perhaps that's what's going on here.
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So here's something interesting in follow-up to my earlier post. I Googled "Red Bouncing Ball Spikes" and one of the results was a site called store.heaveniphone.com/...
The email about buying iOS source code, which I believed to be from "Mateen" was from Firoozeh Morady < heavenlydesignapps@gmail.com >. I noticed the similarity ("heaven") and wrote a response: "Congratulations on your success with Red Bouncing Ball Spikes!" I figured if the response was "Huh?" then it probably wasn't the same person as Louis Leidenfrost. The reply I got back was "Thank you. Ipad and v2 of the game will be out soon."
Louis Leidenfrost = Mateen Pekan = Firoozeh Morady ... or they all work together. Or that's some pretty cool name generator.
New to GameSalad? (FAQs) | Tutorials | Templates | Greenleaf Games | Educator & Certified GameSalad User
As for this game doing so well in the app store... I've no idea what to think... other than ah screw it maybe I should stop over thinking game design and unique idea and just get some actual games out there and see what happens. But then I think a little more...
QS
Dr. Sam Beckett never returned home...
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@StormyStudio Stormy, you're being very polite/diplomatic with your "very odd design"
All these sites work just fine on the Mac's own browser (Safari) but GS went with a payment system that won't support Safari - and then to make things worse they slapped a great big warning across the top of the Marketplace telling you just that . . . a warning that they slapped right on top of the search tool, so now Safari users can't buy assets nor can they even search for assets !!
And with these other asset/stock sites there is a fairly robust vetting procedure that you need to submit your work to - and if needed provide evidence of your working process (for example a screenshot of your AfterEffects project showing all its layers and animation and so on) so people don't submit work that is just a plug-in preset with a couple of values changed, the result is that all these sites carry only high quality assets that meet strict technical requirements, whereas the GS marketplace you have to wade through a fair amount of X_X X_X X_X X_X in the hope of finding something decent, people don't like doing that.
Still one of my favourite GS Marketplace 'assets':
. . . . cough cough
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And at only $2.99 for each one, why not go crazy and buy them all !?
(it's good that they are watermarked to prevent people stealing them
I also noticed Mateen made a android app for a computer repair service in canada.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/developer?id=Mateen+Pekan&hl=en
there site, so maybe he works there or owns or maybe just made the app for them who knows.
http://www.mbc.ca
What I do find interesting is how easy it is for me to follow this guys trail around the net, I feel like a detective even though that Facebook test said I should have been a astronaut,lol.
and Flappy Bird now #1 the creator has all 3 of his games in top 10 and another game called Iron pants looks just like Flappy Bird now number #5 I think..lol
I think I'm working to hard on my next game.
Yup
And it looks a bit like a poo.