popcap-games posts

GDC 2011 is over. Game developers have talked until they are blue in the face, game demos have run non-stop and game journalists have been taking notes and making videos. As for the general public, they stilll have some PC game sales to check out.

• PopCap Games has a weekend sale all 51 of their PC/Mac titles that runs through Monday. Yes, you can get all 51 games from the casual game developer, including all the Bejeweled titles, all the Peggle games and Plants Vs Zombies, for just $99.95.
• Impulse has Commander Conquest of the Americas on sale for today only for just $10.49.

There's a lot of money in casual game publishing and PopCap remains the leader in this genre with games series like Bejeweled, Zuma, Peggle and of course Plants Vs Zombies. In a new article on the Forbes web site it states that the privately held company has been profitable every year since it started 10 years ago and currently generates $100 million in revenue. At first most of its money came from selling games for the PC and Mac but 2010 saw only 40 percent of PopCap's revenue coming from those platforms with mobile and console ports gaining ground.

Now PopCap is aiming for yet another big move; taking the company public. According to the article PopCap could file for an IPO in the second half of 2011. However that's not certain with company head Dave Roberts stating, "There are no investors pushing for it, so we will really only look at it if the markets align."

Hump day this week also means just two more days until New Year's Eve. Are you going to be partying like it's, well, 2010? Before you head to your local ball drop consider checking out some more PC game download sales.

• From now until January 2, all of PopCap's PC and Mac games (with the exception of Bejeweled 3 and game bundles) are on sale for 50 percent off their normal price.
• Impulse has Victoria Complete on sale today only for just $4.99.
• GamersGate has Planet Alcatraz on sale for today only for $5.99.
• Direct2Drive has Assassin's Creed 2 on sale today only for $14.95.
• The Games For Windows Marketplace web site has Cubis Gold 2 on sale today only for $4.99.

Update: The Assassin's Creed II sale is over but you can now get Dawn of Discovery Gold Edition from now until 1 pm Thursday for $14.95.

The new Games For Windows Marketplace web site recently had a number of titles sold for just 99 cents for one day only. Ah, good times. But that promotion is over now. However it doesn't mean that Microsoft is setting down now. Today the site revealed a new week long sale for three well known casual games.

From now until December 16, three of PopCap Games' most popular games are on sale on the Games For Windows Marketplace web site for 25 percent off their normal prices. Bookworm, Zuma's Revenge and the major pop culture hit Plants Vs Zombies will be priced at just $7.49 each for the next week.

As promised, PopCap Games has released Bejeweled 3, the latest game in the developer's hugely popular puzzle game series. In addition to the game's four classic game modes, Bejeweled 3 has four new gameplay modes such as the very peaceful Zen mode where you just keep playing the game forever. The new version also has higher resolution graphics a new achievement system and more features.

Our sister site Games.com has more info on today's Bejeweled 3 launch including a download link to get the full version for $19.95. In addition that site is giving away 10 copies of the game to some lucky readers.

Bejeweled 3, the latest game in publisher PopCap's multi-million selling puzzle game series, has just been announced. The company is calling this game the first true sequel to the series in the last six years (it did release a game called Bejeweled Twist for the PC in 2008).

Bejeweled 3 will contain the four gameplay modes found in Bejeweled 2 (updated and expanded, naturally) along with new "secret' modes like Ice Storm, Butterflies and Poker (well if you mention them in the press release, PopCap, then they are not a secret anymore, are they?). In addition there will be a Quest mode with 11 mini-games which PopCap claims will be "clever hybrids of Bejeweled game-play with other classic game mechanics." You can expect to be addicted to Bejeweled 3 when its released via download and in retail stores on December 7. In the meantime our sister site Games.com has a chat with PopCap Games' co founder James Kapalka about Bejeweled 3.

Want to get a game that normally cost $20 for free? Of course you do. In celebration of the fact that today is October 10, 2010 (or 10-10-10) casual game developer PopCap Games is offering folks a chance to get its classic puzzle game Bejeweled 2 for free for the PC and Mac.

Yep, all you have to do is head to the game's official web site by 10 pm Pacific time tonight (that's 1 am Eastern time). hit the "Get it Free" button and then hit checkout. The site will fill in the coupon code you need to get the free game automatically and then you fill in a little personal info before you get access to the download. And then get ready to become addicted to matching jewels and blowing them up. However be prepared for some slow server action; it looks like a bunch of folks are trying to get in on this 'free game" thing. Who would have thought that?

One of PC gaming's most respected journalists has got himself a new full time gig. Jeff Green, formerly the editor in chief of the late and very much lamented Computer Gaming World/Games For Windows magazine, has been hired by casual game giant PopCap Games. According to The Armchair Empire Green is now PopCap's Director of Editorial and Social Media.

What does this new title really mean? Green states, "I'll be doing all the things people expect of me in a public forum, but am looking, too, to contribute as much as I can to the games themselves in any capacity that they'll let me." Green won't be leaving game journalism entirely. He has already announced plans to write a monthly column for the recently relaunched EGM magazine.

[Via Joystiq]

Publisher Blizzard has teamed up in the past with PopCap Games to offer up free Bejewled and Peggle add-ons for its fantasy MMO World of WarCraft. But it looks like Blizzard has done PopCap an even bigger solid for the upcoming expansion pack World of WarCraft: Cataclysm. As first revealed by the CynicalBrit.com site via a YouTube video, it's been discovered that the beta of the game has an in-game (not an add-on) quest that looks and plays an awful lot like PopCap's hit tower defense game Plants vs Zombies.

It's not actually called Plants Vs Zombies; the "quest" is called Peacebloom vs Ghouls. But as you can see in the above video the quest certainly looks and plays much like PopCap's title. There's no word if PopCap approves of this although we suspect they don't mind. Hopefully this little mini-game will be available when the expansion is officially launched later this year.

[Via Rock Paper Shotgun]

We are just a couple of days away from some interesting game announcements. Are you ready?

• Steam now has added the previously released Plants Vs Zombies Game of the Year Edition for PC and Mac to its library with additional Steam Cloud and Steam achievement support.
• In related news, Impulse has started adding titles from PopCap Games to its lineup
• Global Agenda is now on sale for 25 percent off.
• The free Moonbase Alpha game has a new bug patch update via Steam.
• The fantasy MMO game Alganon is moving to a free-to-play model starting on Friday.
• Double Fine reveals its upcoming downloadable game Costume Quest, except that there's no PC version mentioned. Ouch.
• Here are the currrent top 200 StarCraft II players online in North America. Fear them.