Gameloft

Gameloft

File:Gameloft.PNG
Company type	Public (Euronext: GFT)
Industry	video game industry
Founded	1999
Headquarters	Paris, France
Area served	Worldwide
Key people	Michel Guillemot, President, CEO
Revenue	€110.3M (2008)
Number of employees	4,000 (2008)
Website	http://www.gameloft.com/

Gameloft (Euronext: GFT) is a French publisher and video game developer headquartered in Paris, France, with offices all around the world.

The company, founded by the Guillemot brothers, founders and owners of video games leader Ubisoft, primarily creates games for mobile phone handsets equipped with Java, BREW and Symbian OS, as well as the N-Gage platform. Gameloft also develops games for dedicated games consoles such as the Sony PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Nintendo DS, Wii/Wiiware, Xbox 360, Zeebo and for other platforms including iOS, WebOS, Android, Windows Mobile, BlackBerry and Windows PCs.

Through agreements with major telephone wireless carriers, handset manufacturers, specialized distributors and its online shop, Gameloft has a distribution network in over 80 countries.

History

Founded in 1999, Gameloft has expanded to employ a staff of 4,000 at the end of 2007, up 59% over the end of 2006. Gameloft has posted consolidated revenues of $92m in 2006, $140m in 2007, and $147m for the year 2008.

Engine

Gameloft has many game engines specifically dedicated to some platform family Java ME mobile phones, Nintendo DS, PSP, N-Gage, Cell Phones, iPod Touch, iPhone, Nintendo DSi, PS3, X360, Nintendo Wii and more.

Awards/Honors

Spike TV Video Game Awards

In 2007, Spike TV recognized Gameloft at their annual Spike TV Video Game Awards with four nominations:

• "Mobile Game of the Year" (Assassin's Creed)
• "Best Mobile Action Game" (Assassin's Creed)
• "Best Mobile Visual Design" (Assassin's Creed)
• "Best Action Game" (Heroes: The Official Mobile Game).

Assassin's Creed was the most nominated mobile game of the year.

In 2008, Gameloft went home with top honors for the revamped classic hit The Oregon Trail, which won "Mobile Game of the Year".

IGN Awards

IGN (formerly known as the Imagine Games Network) is a leading entertainment news and reviews website whose Wireless [1] section focuses on the video game industry. Each year the website publishes their of "Best Of" Awards.

In 2007, Gameloft was the recipient of the following awards:

• "Best Strategy Game" (Rise of the Lost Empires)
  • "Rise of the Lost Empires is an exceedingly deep strategy game pitting humans against orcs in a battle for nothing more than the fate of the world. But you don't necessarily need to choose sides, because Rise has two campaigns — one for each faction — giving it twice the value. Heroes for either side build up strongholds, train new troops, and march into epic battles. Rise dresses up an already involving game with excellent graphics and a great soundtrack, complete with digitized voice".[2]
• "Best Story" (American Popstar: Road to Celebrity)
  • "Mobile games aren't exactly heralded for their storytelling prowess, but Gameloft's American Popstar deserves serious kudos for its ace writing. The game is loaded with whip-smart dialogue that doesn't feel remotely fake or forced and the scenario exposition is very clever — but not too-clever-by-half. Gameloft should definitely keep its writers happy because with winning words like these, the publisher's games will soon read better than most pop culture rags."[3]

The following year (2008) Gameloft had several more noteworthy accomplishments. IGN's "Best of 2008" Awards provided Gameloft with four winning categories:

• "Best Platform Game" (Castle of Magic)
  • "Not every game needs to rewrite the rules of a genre. Gameloft's Castle of Magic is a platformer that takes absolutely no risks and instead delivers a pitch perfect example of the genre: fantastic run-and-jump fun in a fantastical setting. You are a little wizard that must transform into animals and fight off giant snowmen and an octopus. And it all clicks. Castle of Magic feels like a lost eight-bit game you would have played on the NES. And we love it for just that reason." [4]
• "Best Graphics Technology" (Hero of Sparta, iPhone)
  • "It's no secret that the iPhone is a powerful gaming device, but after seeing Hero of Sparta in action, you may want to sell your PSP. Hero of Sparta is hands-down the most console-esque iPhone game yet, featuring incredibly detailed models wrapped in crisp, colorful textures. Rare is the frame rate problem that slows the 'hellzapoppin' action, even when the screen explodes with fantastic lighting effects at the height of an epic boss battle. This will be tough to top. But we'll all benefit as developers try." [5]
• "Best Action Game" (Hero of Sparta, iPhone)
  • "Downloading Gameloft's Hero of Sparta to your iPhone is like ordering a to-go portion of God of War. This hack-and-slasher sends the heroic king Argos into a world crawling with the monsters of Greek mythology, each with a convenient soft spot that's a perfect fit for your sword. Featuring fantastic touch controls that never hamper the game's manic pacing, Hero of Sparta rises to become the premiere action game of the year and a tough act to beat for all that follow."[6]
• "Best Racing/Driving Game" (Asphalt 4: Elite Racing, iPhone)
  • "Because the iPhone's accelerometer essentially turns the device into a portable steering wheel, the racing scene on the device has been popping. But no racer released this year competes with Gameloft's superlative Asphalt 4: Elite Racing. At top speed, Asphalt 4 is a thrill. The responsive controls shame competing racers. Loaded with licensed cars that look awesome zooming through exotic locations and Wi-Fi multiplayer, Asphalt 4 provides a console-like driving experience at an absolute steal."[7]

Podcast

The Gameloft Video Podcast is a monthly video podcast released by the company. It primarily covers games for the iTunes App Store developed for the iPhone, the iPod Touch and the iPad. The show was initially hosted by Josh Goldberg, but after two episodes, Gameloft added a co-host, Naomi Beaudoin. The show focuses on previews, news and features on Gameloft games and upcoming events or contests from the company. Gameloft first began releasing videos on May 29, 2009 with the first episode of the Podcast airing on November 10, 2009. There are currently 5 episodes which can be seen on Youtube

Though it first launched in November 2009, there have already been a steady number of changes in each podcast, including the addition of a co-host from the initial format and a change of set in each episode, though episodes four and five seem to favor a greenscreen format, with changing backgrounds.

Games developed or published by Gameloft

This is a partial list of games developed and/or published by Gameloft. (All games are available on mobile, with additional consoles listed in parentheses)

Alphabetical

3

External links

• Gameloft
• MobileGamesDb Gameloft Ratings - Gameloft game ratings, game reviews, and awards
• Social Networking -> Gameloftlive
• Review Real Football 2010