Zynga’s Last Chance to Save the Company

After years of leading the social gaming scene, Zynga is no longer the number one Facebook game publisher in France and almost every social gaming country in the world. Candy Crush, the popular arcade-puzzle hit, is now France’s most played game on the social networking site, beating Zynga’s FarmvilleMafia Wars, and Texas Hold’em – all of which used to get the biggest slice of Facebook’s gaming populace.

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Zynga’s Moves

However, what made the biggest news is Pretty Simple Games’ Criminal Case, a title that is also projected by many experts as the game to beat in the coming years. The Paris-based game studio announced last month that the crime-solving game now ranks second in France, with over nine million daily active users and 17 million likes on Facebook. This isn’t surprising in the social media gaming market as Zynga has now shifted its focus to real-money gaming. The American company is now trying its luck in the real-money gaming industry through Texas Hold’em, now called Zynga Plus Poker. Moreover, Zynga also acquired promising game studios like OMGPOP in the hopes of expanding their coverage and getting back some of their players they lost to other games. Meanwhile, Criminal Case was able to conquer the French market because of the government’s support of independent studios. {Rude Baguette} said that despite a EUR 2.3 million budget, Criminal Case had many French social gamers smitten because of the game’s fresh elements. There is a great chance that Zynga could eventually lose everything on Facebook. For the past years, the company has been subjected to various accusations like stealing ideas and inside trading. If the company is to utilize innovative gaming ideas like the Leap Motion controller, Zynga might still be able to save the company from bankruptcy. However, what actually is the Leap Motion controller and why could it be Zynga’s last chance to save the company?

Leap Motion: A Closer Look

Leap Motion is a company that specializes in state-of-the-art motion controllers, using similar technology harnessed by the Xbox Kinect. The company’s flagship product, the Leap Motion controller, utilizes advanced motion sensing technology that lets users navigate through their computers easily without using the keyboard or the mouse. In gaming, Leap Motion’s product has also been used by many studios and is perceived by experts as one of the most important elements in game peripheral development. Block 54 is among the most successful games using motion sensors. The objective of the game is to reach the outer space and drop blocks in a virtual world. Imagine how hard it would be to play Block 54 if you are going to use a mouse. But with the Leap Motion controller, there’s no need to point the cursor in the direction of the blocks, all you need to do is tap and swipe at it. If Zynga can learn how to incorporate human-interaction in its games, then it might become the standard on Facebook games, once again.

The Touch-free Controller

Leap Motion is about to release their own touch-free controller, another thing that game developers should be taking note of. Other than providing wireless controls of some games, this controller allows players to navigate through the computer’s Windows 8 Start screen by putting their fingers or hand close to the screen. The Motion Leap controller uses hand and finger gestures to point, click, zoom, and scroll on the screen; no need for a mouse and a keyboard to perform basic computer functions. This could be stellar in making VoIP calls or retrieving files in a hurry. This controller, which is slated to hit shelves in August, has been tested and approved by over 10,000 developers so you can be sure about its quality.

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