Casual Connect Europe 2013: interview with Wooga

Wooga company talks about the growing up of casual players, its plans for midcore, the secrets of the success of mobile games and the future of the industry in our exclusive interview from Germany. 

At the Casual Connect Europe 2013 conference, held last week in Hamburg, we talked with representatives of some companies that set the tone in the mobile games market. We begin the series of these mini-interviews by publishing a conversation with Wooga Executive Director Jens Begemann

Now many people are talking about midcore, about the fact that in the mobile games market it is now possible to earn not only on a casual audience? Are you going to release any such product?Yes, we really started with very accessible casual games, and still the main focus remains on them.

However, over time, casual users, let’s say, grow, they want more “depth”. So, yes, in the future we plan to gradually move on to more complex games, which are now described by the term “midcore”.

What should a mobile game be like today to become popular?First of all, it should bring what is commonly called the English word fun.

In addition, it should have intuitive controls, as well as, mainly, short gaming sessions. This, of course, does not mean that you need to discount projects that require longer sessions, but the user should be able to play quickly for a few minutes, say, while waiting for a train or bus. Social aspects are also very important. Beating a friend’s score in Diamond Dash is much more fun than fighting in single player mode.

What is your forecast for 2013?

I think that in the next couple of years we will witness the emergence of new game ideas and new genres. We are waiting for more technically advanced mobile games that will look great externally. Although, of course, the changes that directly affect the gameplay will be much more important.