Tag Games

Tag Games
Video game developer
Industry Computer and video games
Founded 2006
Headquarters Dundee, Scotland
Products Funpark Friends
Car Jack Streets
Astro Ranch
Red Ball Challenge
Tumblebugs
Rock'n'Roll
Dead Water
Number of employees
 30
Website www.tag-games.com

Tag Games Ltd. is an independent, leading video game developer and publisher based in Dundee, Scotland. Established in 2006, it is focused on creating games for mobile, handheld and social gaming platforms. It was one of the first European studios to develop titles for the iPhone.[1] Beyond developing games for a variety of mobile formats (iOS, Android, Blackberry, Windows Mobile, etc.), Tag Games has launched applications for hand-held gaming platforms such as the PlayStation Portable (PSP) and Nintendo DS.

In June 2011 the studio launched its self-publishing brand Tagplay and released its first social mobile game, Funpark Friends, under the brand in October of the same year. Funpark Friends has gone on to receive critical acclaim from the video games industry, being nominated for IMGA, Bafta and Herald Scotland mobile games awards, winning the Herald Scotland best Scottish Mobile Game 2011.[2] The studio is currently working on its next eagerly anticipated[3] release, Car Jack Streets 2.

Tag is a certified member of the UK game industry trade association The Independent Games Developers Association (TIGA).[4]

History

Paul Farley, Jamie Bryan and Robert Henning founded Tag Games in 2006. Paul Farley and Jamie Bryan had previously been part of development teams at DMA Design and Vis Entertainment where they worked on titles such as Grand Theft Auto, Space Station Silicon Valley and State of Emergency.[5]

The firm is based in Scotland, Tayside region, in the city of Dundee, which is a recognised hub for computer game development.[6]

Games development

The studio's output consists of a mix of original IP development such as the self-published (under the studio's Tagplay brand) Car Jack Streets,[7] and commissioned work for a variety of clients including Square Enix, EA, Ubisoft, Namco Bandai, Channel 4, Big Fish Games and Zed. Tag have also published third party content including B-Boy Beats developed by Bristol based developers Mobile Pie.[8]

Tag creates games and applications for the following platforms: Java ME, BREW, Symbian, C++, N-Gage, Android, iOS (iPad, iPhone, iPod), Wii, PSP and Nintendo DS

Tagplay

Due to the studio's increased international reputation[9] for business-to-business game developments, 'Tagplay' - a sister brand to Tag games' - was launched in June 2011 to better differentiate between the studio's self-published and client-driven work. Tagplay has since released its first freemium social mobile game, Funpark Friends. Funpark Friends has received nominations for several prestigious international game awards, including the 2011 IMGA best social game and 2011 BAFTA best mobile game, as well as winning the Herald Scotland 2011 best Scottish mobile game.[10] Additionally several Tag Games in-house titles including Car Jack Streets and Astro Ranch have been moved onto the Tagplay brand.

Games

In chronological order:

Title Release Year Platform Notes
Dead Water -- mobile
Rock'n'Roll -- mobile/iOS
Granny In Paradise -- mobile
Football Pro -- mobile
Love Guru -- mobile
All Stars Darts -- iPhone
Car Jack Streets 2008 mobile/iPhone/DS/PSP/Vita TV Transferred to Tagplay
Smash it Up -- iPhone
Christmas Rock'n'Roll -- iPhone
GUTS -- iPhone
Red Ball Challenge -- iPhone Endemol
B-Boy Beats -- iPhone Mobile Pie
Team Monster -- mobile/iPhone
Astro Ranch 2009 iPhone/iPad iPad launch title. Transferred to Tagplay
True Grit 2010 mobile/Android Paramount
Doctor Who: The Mazes of Time 2011 iOS/Android BBC
Funpark Friends 2011 iOS/Android A Tagplay title
Hotel GB 2012 iOS/Android Channel4
Hotel Vegas 2013 iOS/Android A Tagplay title
Hotel Vegas 2013 iOS/Android A Tagplay title
Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes[11] 2013 iOS/Android Ubisoft
Talking Poppet 2014 iOS/Android/Kindle Mindcandy
Moshi Monsters Village 2014 iOS/Android/kindle Mindcandy
Cat Tap Fever 2014 iOS 505 Games

Technology

Tag Games owns several unique mobile proprietary technologies, known as 'mo' technologies.[12] These include moFlow, a 2D/3D modular mobile games engine which can build iOS and Android applications simultaneously, moFun, a cross platform user profiling technology allowing players to interact with each other across iOS and Android devices, and moData, a data analysis suite.

These technologies have been announced to have been used in Funpark Friends.[13]

References

  1. ↑ Stuart, Keith (16 January 2009). "Tag Games and the wonder of iPhone". London: Guardian.
  2. ↑ "Tag Games' Funpark Friends wins Herald Scotland Digital Business Award 2011 for best Scottish game". Pocket Gamer. 31 October 2011.
  3. ↑ "Making player feedback matter: the social side of Car Jack Streets 2 [interview]". Gamezebo.
  4. ↑ "TIGA: Representing the Games Industry". Retrieved 19 August 2011.
  5. ↑ Jon Jordan. "Daring to be different: Tag Games on the move from GTA to Granny in Paradise (and back again)". Pocket Gamer.
  6. ↑ "Dundee’s Computer Games Industry ‘Vibrant’". Dundee SNP. 1 September 2010.
  7. ↑ "Car Jack Streets Review: A capable clone of Grand Theft Auto". IGN. IGN Entertainment, Inc. 17 March 2010.
  8. ↑ "Exclusive: B-Boy Brawl: Breakin' Fingers breakdance rhythm-action game coming to iPhone". Pocket Gamer.
  9. ↑ http://www.mobile-ent.biz/news/read/me-names-top-50-mobile-innovators/015212
  10. ↑ Matt Sakuraoka-Gilman (31 October 2011). "Tag Games' Funpark Friends wins Herald Scotland Digital Business Award 2011 for - Pocket Gamer.biz - PGbiz". pocketgamer.biz.
  11. ↑ "Might and Magic: Clash of Heroes coming to iOS and Android". Joystiq.
  12. ↑ "Taking the pain out of porting games from iOS to Android". Tech on the Go - News and Reviews covering iPhone, Android and Mobile Computing.
  13. ↑ http://www.tag-games.com/2012/02/03/%E2%80%98moflow%E2%80%99-a-ground-breaking-social-mobile-games-engine-for-ios-and-android

External links