Interviews

Funzio looks to fill a gap in the social gaming market with Diablo-cum-Risk Google+ dungeon-crawler Kingdom Age

'We think the fantasy RPG genre hasn't gotten that modern, blockbuster treatment'

Funzio looks to fill a gap in the social gaming market with Diablo-cum-Risk Google+ dungeon-crawler Kingdom Age
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Today Funzio launched the new dungeon crawler Kingdom Age. It is a Google+ exclusive and, as usual, the Crime City folks are putting a social twist on a classic theme.

“I grew up playing Gauntlet and Diablo. One of my favorite PlayStation 2 games is Balder’s Gate: Dark Alliance. The fantasy creatures, the leveling up, and other fun stuff,” says Jamil Moledina, Funzio Vice President of Business Development.

“We think the fantasy RPG genre hasn’t gotten that modern, blockbuster treatment.”

Risk (inventory) management

Kingdom Age is perhaps best described as a combination of Diablo and Risk. The goal is to gain as much power as possible, but it can be done by acquiring more land, increasing your army, or finding rare loot.

However, the most obvious difference between Kingdom Age and classic dungeon crawlers is that the focus is on social gaming.

“It’s still social, so you can play while at work, waiting in line at the movies, and other places,” Moledina says. “Like other social games, we’ll have speed-ups and other items available (for a fee), but a lot of items can’t be found at the store.”

Three pronged lance

The emphasis is on social, but Funzio is trying to create a three-prong experience for Kingdom Age players.

“There is the single-player approach, where you build up your resources; a strong, co-op multiplayer aspect that lets friends join you to beat up a big boss and you can equip them with different armors and weapons; and competitive multiplayer, where you are battling others,” Moledina says.

Google of +1 charisma

Kingdom Age has a click-based setup, but it’s up to you how much you want to micromanage your experience. For instance, you can train your troops in a particular way or allow them to automatically improve.

Funzio is taking a risk going with Google+, the still new gaming platform, but says that Google is committed to gamers. The previous hit Crime City has been doing well on on the platform. It also opens up the opportunity to play the game on any web-enabled device.

Kingdom Age is out now on Google+.
Damon Brown
Damon Brown
Damon Brown has been speaking the mobile game gospel since 2003 for Playboy, New York Post, and many other outlets. Damon writes books when he isn't busy gaming or Twittering. His most popular book is Porn & Pong: How Grand Theft Auto, Tomb Raider and Other Sexy Games Changed Our Culture.