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February 18, 2014

DNA Dynamics Inc. Finalizing Deal with "Major Hollywood Studio" in Mobile Gaming

With mobile gaming a rapidly-increasing part of the overall gaming landscape, it's not surprising to see more and more studios getting involved. But there's something of a new twist afoot, as mobile gaming company DNA Dynamics—via its subsidiary DNA Interactive Games—makes a play for a major name under a new agreement with a Hollywood studio.

While there's not much word as yet as to just what property it is that DNA Interactive Games will be handling—the reports suggest that the license in question is a “household name to millions of Americans,” and that the agreement covers “some of the classic TV series of a generation,” allowing DNA Interactive games a three-year license to “exploit selected titles to turn into mobile gaming experiences for the duration agreement.”

There are plenty of possibilities for just what TV series are in line under this arrangement. DNA Dynamics' head of marketing, Bill Miller, pointed out some of the comparisons, referring to “The Simpsons: Tapped Out” as one example of what can happen when television and gaming merges. Indeed, as Miller noted, “The Simpsons: Tapped Out” was a huge success for EA, with 2.8 million daily active users and a reported $100 million in revenues, along with a bit of controversy over its use of in-game currency and the ease of converting real-world currency to same.

DNA Dynamics, for its part, expects to release more details about this once the deal has been completed, and expects the whole thing to be completed during the second quarter of this year. That's no mean feat, really, and is in turn prompting some speculation about just what franchise we're dealing with here.

Indeed, there have been several television series converted into games, some of which have done better than others. Consider the “Star Trek” franchise, an entire set of television series converted into games. There was a “Deadliest Catch” game released for consoles, and while that didn't do quite so well, the idea of it certainly did. With all manner of possibilities out there ranging from “Duck Dynasty” to the Animation Domination block on Fox and beyond, just what DNA Dynamics is being entrusted with for three years is anyone's guess. When it comes to “major household names,” there are certainly plenty of these to work with, but given that the original reports noted “some of the classic TV series of a generation,” it could be that we're going to be looking at some older fare. Though many older series could be tough to convert to games; what's the point of the “Mr. Ed” game, see how fast you can smear peanut butter on a horse's gums to produce the lip-sync special effect? The company has already handled “The Naked Gun”, however, so we really could be going farther back than some may think.

This could be the start of something very big indeed, or the start of a major fizzle for a company only a comparative handful have ever even heard of. Either way, though, it will be something to watch, and it likely won't take long until it all boils down, either.




Edited by Cassandra Tucker


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