King.com expands into Asia with localized 'Saga' games

by Brandy Shaul, Posted Feb 23rd 2013 1:00PM

Proving that "fun games" are fun regardless of your language, King.com has further expanded its global outreach by announcing that both Candy Crush Saga and Bubble Witch Saga are being localized for the Japanese and Korean markets. These localized games will be released first on Facebook, and will then be launched on iOS and Android devices at a later date.

This move makes sense for King.com, as the company has also announced that over one million daily active players in Hong Kong alone play Candy Crush Saga, even before that region has received its own localized version. Candy Crush Saga itself became the top Facebook game last month, with around 45 million monthly active users.

"We have been looking towards Asian markets for some time now and feel this is the perfect time to offer localized versions of our games in Japan and Korea," said Riccardo Zacconi, co-founder and CEO of King.com, via a company release. "We are delighted to see our hit game Candy Crush Saga being played by one out of every seven residents of Hong Kong. People have been literally asking strangers on the street to friend them and give them lives so they can continue playing the game without waiting."

Candy Crush Saga obviously isn't the company's only successful game, as the King.com catalog now sees over nine billion "plays" per month. Could King.com eventually rise up and overtake Zynga as the top Facebook game developer? Only time will tell.

Do you think King.com has what it takes to top Zynga on the monthly active user leaderboard? Which King.com game is your favorite? Sound off in the comments!

Tags: bubble witch saga, BubbleWitchSaga, candy crush saga, candy crush saga hong kong, CandyCrushSaga, CandyCrushSagaHongKong, hong kong, HongKong, japan, king.com, korea, localized games, LocalizedGames

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King.com goes for social gamers' sweet tooth with Candy Crush Saga

Is there an award for the most adorable match-three game? Well, we're making one right now, because King.com's newest social game, Candy Crush Saga on Facebook, is a downright saccharine marriage of match-three and Candy Land. The sixth "Saga" Facebook game to come from London-based casual games portal is available now for all to play.

Candy Crush Saga is actually a social version of a game that already exists on King.com proper, but with a new lot of social features that demand it be on Facebook. For instance, as players match identical pieces of candy in each of the game's 65 levels at launch, they'll progress along a game board much like they would in Bubble Witch Saga. As they press on, players will be able to compare how far along they are with their friends' positions on the same game board.

Of course, players can unlock more levels by inviting their friends and purchase in-game boosts with Facebook Credits. But what seems to set Candy Crush Saga apart from the established match-three games on Facebook--namely Diamond Dash and Bejeweled Blitz--is the levels themselves. The two latter games present the same level every time with a constant stream of gems and new power-ups, while Candy Crush Saga's 65 levels are predetermined with a limited number of moves.

This game also provides players with a number of play modes, like timed sessions, limited moves, a collecting objects mode and more are promised to come as King.com updates Candy Crush Saga with more levels. King.com CMO Alex Dale also took the chance to announce yet another milestone for the developer when speaking with us: King.com has outpaced EA as the third most popular Facebook game maker in terms of daily players. But how did the company do it in such a short amount of time?

"What happened with Bubble Saga was a number of years of trying out different approaches to Facebook, and it was the Saga formula that we had success with," Dale tells us. "This was marrying the basic game mechanic from successful games on King.com with the social layer, but also focusing on a more relaxed gameplay experience ... which works well for the Facebook audience. There's a secular trend, as the Facebook games audience has broadened, toward casual social games. We've kind of ridden that wave, if you like."

Dale goes on to say that the popularity of the simulator-style Facebook game (i.e. your 'Villes) has dwindled and that casual social games are on the up and up. King.com is laser-focused on this trend, so expect plenty more puzzle-style Facebook games where Candy Crush Saga came from.

Click here to play Candy Crush Saga on Facebook Now >

Are you interested in checking out Candy Crush Saga? Do you see the same trends that King.com sees on Facebook? Sound off in the comments. Add Comment.

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King.com breaking into match-3 genre with Candy Crush Saga on Facebook

King.com brings its popular “Saga” series to the match-3 genre today on Facebook with Candy Crush Saga.

The game is based on Candy Crush, available on King.com’s web portal. Players are tasked with helping Mr. Toffee and his daughter, Tiffi, travel through 65 levels in a Candyland-like world, solving candy-themed match-3 puzzles and acquiring items for candy recipes. The game monetizes similar to the other Saga games, with extra lives and gameplay-boosting charms and powerups available for Facebook Credits.

Candy Crush Saga will eventually be playable via open web, Facebook, and mobile devices;  somewhat like King.com did with the match-3 game Miner Speed. Unlike Miner Speed, Candy Crush Saga won’t offer crossover experiences: CMO Alex Dale tells us the Facebook and open web versions play significantly different from each other. Dale also tells us the various Saga games will be launching for mobile devices in the near future, coming to as many platforms as possible. The titles are expected to launch for iOS and Android devices, but King.com CEO Riccardo Zacconi recently showed us Bubble Witch Saga on the Kindle Fire, too.

Clarification: Bubble Witch Saga on the Kindle was a prototype version and is not currently available.

“On our King.com portal, you’ll typically have a couple of levels of gameplay where you play head-to-head in a match or a tournament. The excitement is very much driven by the direct competitive challenge,” Dale says. “On Facebook, it’s a much more a relaxing experience about progressing through the game with your friends, and the mobile version will be ‘snackable’ so it can be played whenever someone has a free moment.”

Candy Crush Saga marks the sixth Saga game for King.com,  after Hoop De Loop Saga, Bubble Witch Saga, Mahjong Saga, Bubble Saga and Puzzle Saga. Bubble Witch Saga is currently the most popular of these titles on Facebook, holding the No. 6 spot for daily active users. Between the launch of Puzzle Saga in October 2010 and Bubble Witch Saga a year later, King.com’s Facebook traffic has rocketed the company to the No. 3 games developer in terms of DAU. Both Bubble Witch Saga and Bubble Saga maintain positions on our Top 25 Facebook Games list for the month. The latest game in the series, Hoop De Loop Saga, is also rapidly acquiring DAU, so it may show up on next month’s rankings.

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