The project that Google has been working on for so long is finally ready. This gives Google loads of opportunity to grow even bigger, and one department they’re eyeing on is the gaming industry.
Even though Facebook already has a rock solid foundation in the gaming industry, there is still room for yet another platform. With Google’s new social networking site, operating system for mobile devices, and a micropayment system, it’s pretty clear that Google is heading down this road.
Social Gaming: A Tried and Tested Victory Lane
Undeniably, social gaming is Facebook’s biggest source of revenue. Rueter’s leading Internet enterpreneur and former Chief Executive of online advertising giant DoubleClick, Kevin Ryan, calculates that Facebook is expected to generate $1 billion in revenue this year from social gaming.
The biggest social gaming developer on Facebook, Zynga, said “We generate substantially all of our revenue and players through the Facebook platform and expect to continue to do so for the foreseeable future.” They generated $235 million on the first quarter alone of 2011, which will most likely reach $1 billion for the whole year.
Google+ Games on their Mark
Within Google+’s code are some clues of services that may become available in the future. As per Engadget report, one of these gaming features has a line that says “have sent you Game invites and more from Google Plus Games.”
It’s expected since Google was scouring for game developers like Slide and SocialDeck last year, and doing the same thing for a gaming team.
It’s a possibility that Google+’s Games could take a big chunk on the social gaming portal’s pie chart, going against Facebook Games and Apple’s Game Center.
Developers Like It
Google+ has an impressive platform for handling social games, it’s also liked by game developers as well. Google is sure to use this great advantage despite the fact that they’re not ready to talk about the gaming plans for its social network yet. Senior manager of global communications and public affairs at Google, Katie Watson, said:
“We don’t have any specific details to share on our plans around incorporating games into Google Plus. But, it’s important to keep in mind this is an ongoing project and this is just the beginning. We plan to add a lot of features and functionality to Google Plus over time. We’re just excited to get started.”
CEO of core-gamer focused developer Kabam, Kevin Chou, of Gamasutra said:
“In terms of first impressions, I think what’s impressive is that Google has dealt products that connect multiple Google properties, and that has achieved, more or less, feature-parity with Facebook. It’s a very impressive feat, and I think Google has shown that they can build a high-quality product with a high-touch user interface, with design in mind.”
And it isn’t just Kabam that’s keeping an eye on what Google+’s Circles has to offer. SVP of Games Rock You, Jonathan Knight, said:
“People who play games on social networks typically have groups of people they play games with, who don’t necessarily overlap with ‘true’ friends they see socially.”
And the CEO of Ravenwood Fair maker Lolapps, Arjun Sethi, said:
“Google Plus is a great step for Google. It’s clear that they’ve built it from the ground up with the idea of improving communication with the social web in mind.”
Gamers are Going to Love Circles
Circles is quite possibly the biggest plus in Google’s latest attempt to create a social network. This feature lets users have more control over who how they share things and with whom.
One of the differences between Circles from Facebook’s is that Circles doesn’t require that a relationship be established between individuals to be able to play together in a game, this means you don’t need to let this player know any personal things about yourself.
Product Manager at PlayHaven, Ryan Hoover, said:
“It’s very common for Facebook social gamers to friend random strangers or seek fellow game-players on various community sites to help manage each other’s crops. Unfortunately, this pollutes the user’s social graph, devaluing Facebook’s primary utility – social interaction.
Google+ puts lists (in the form of “Circles”) at the core of the user experience and on-boarding flow. This allows users to define explicit social groups to create a better gaming and social experience.”
Google+’s Capability
Google holds many advantages over Facebook, for instance, google has its own operating system, Android, that is slowly becoming the market leader.
We should anticipate an overlap between mobile and social if and when Google+ becomes a gaming platform. Facebook is innovative, however, with Google’s OS-level integration, this should allow them to become even more innovative than Facebook.
In the Future, we might see devices powered by an Android OS with pre-installed gaming platform run by Google+. This will allow gamers to gain access to all their games, friends, achievements, whether on their mobile or on the social network. This is something that Apple’s Game Center should worry about.
