Spring Bonus is out for Mobile

[Grey Alien]

Yay, Spring Bonus is finally out for mobile, and just in time for Easter!

Grey Alien Games partnered with Hot Head Games to publish it on multiple mobile devices as follows:

iPhone/iPad: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/sprin...509315666?mt=8

Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...es.springbonus

Barnes & Noble Nook: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/spri...mes/1109757970

Kindle Fire: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007PTPCL6

Please tell your friends and family. Thanks!

[Roman Budzowski]

Congrats! I played on iPad and it was good playing. 4 levels seem short for the trial, so I am curios about your conversion rates.

[Grey Alien]

Apple just featured it!! http://yfrog.com/jqu1qp

@Roman: I am curious too. We had a bigger plan to randomise that number until we found the best one but didn't have time before launch, may still be doing that though.

[lennard]

Congrats on your latest release!

I'm curious about your platform/strategy for getting your title functioning on all of those devices.

[Grey Alien]

It was ported to Unity by a friend in the UK and Unity is of course cross-platform. Original was PC/Mac made in BlitzMax. There's a WP7 port done by another friend in the UK last year in XNA.

[Jamie W]

Apple just featured it!! http://yfrog.com/jqu1qp

@Roman: I am curious too. We had a bigger plan to randomise that number until we found the best one but didn't have time before launch, may still be doing that though.

Nice idea about the A-B testing Jake. I'm curious, how can you determine if for a given number, you get a conversion (user buys the game etc).

[Nutter2000]

congrats Jake, good luck

[Grey Alien]

@Jamie: It's easy, the game tracks the current level that the user has got to, and when an IAP is made for a level pack, we just send an additional metrics message (to a service that provides metrics tracking) detailing the level the reached. We would have been sending the UDID too but Apple have now depreciated that.

@Nutter2000: Thanks.

[Grey Alien]

Spring Bonus is in the top 100 iPad games in Canad and the US. Seems the feature really helps with that.

[Jamie W]

@Jamie: It's easy, the game tracks the current level that the user has got to, and when an IAP is made for a level pack, we just send an additional metrics message (to a service that provides metrics tracking) detailing the level the reached. We would have been sending the UDID too but Apple have now depreciated that.

Ah yeah. Of course. I was totally over-looking that you may be using IAP for it. I was thinking it was lite/full version, like on desktop. Need to re-boot my brain!

[Bram]

Just a heads-up Jake: there is something odd about how your game is listed in the app store.
Normally, games are listed in sub categories.

Your game is only listed under 'Games'.
If you take a look of 'New & Noteworthy' Games in the app store:
All of them are listed as Games: Subcategory.
Except for yours.

I don't know if this was a strategic decision by Hothead Games, but if it is not intentional: it could hurt, as it gives you less possibilities in getting top rank spots.
It is easier to break top10 Games:Puzzles than it is to break top10 Games.
And a top10 category spot will drive more downloads.

PS: Do NOT be tempted to make changes now though.... getting featured should be coveted. You never know what happens if you try to make changes. You have seen that horror story from that retro racing game that got yanked because of an account upgrade.

[JGOware]

I must say, you should certainly get the indie award of the century for "most mileage from a single game frame work"! Congrats on being featured, my wife loves the app.

[Grey Alien]

Hi Bram, yeah I know, it's a bummer, there was some screw up when Hot Head listed it. We can't change it until we do an update, I totally agree with you. It should be in puzzle and family.

@JGOware: Thanks! Glad your wife likes the game too!