What We're Playing #4

Welcome to the fourth installment of our seminal series detailing what the fine folks in the Chartboost office are playing in their spare time. The aim is to shine some light on games that might otherwise go unnoticed and to give you a peek into our twisted definition of ?fun? when it comes to mobile games.

One thing to note: While we here at Chartboost truly do love our game developer partners and play just about every game that uses our technology, not every game you see here will be a partner title. This is what we play when we?re home from the office with our feet up on the couch looking for a bit of gaming R&R.

*Child pictured above is not an actual Chartboost employee.

Brian Blocker - Senior Master of the Front End
@BrianBlocker

Playing Bastion?by Supergiant Games

I discovered this sweet little (well, not little) gem a few days ago. This is a welcomed change from the local/social/global/multi/buzzword games that currently dominate the app stores. This game is the closest thing I’ve ever seen to controlling a movie. A smooth-voiced storyteller documents your progress while you play, and it’s seamless and NOT annoying. The soundtrack is epic. EPIC. The controls are so basic and simple, it’s almost as if touch devices were created for this game.

This game is WELL worth its very affordable price tag. I tried getting a screen shot with bad guys in it, but they couldn’t survive my awesomeness long enough.

Claire Teter - Publisher Analyst
@cteterita

Playing Plants vs. Zombies?by Popcap

Last week my brother convinced me to try out the classic tower defense Plants vs. Zombies, which has been busy topping the app store charts since it launched in early 2010. It was like the App Store equivalent of watching Pulp Fiction for the first time in 2008- I couldn’t believe what I’d been missing! Since downloading it on Thanksgiving I’ve been doing very little but eat, sleep, and attack zombies with corn kernel-pults (which, pro tip, are way better than cabbage-pults). It’s a classic, and if you’re among the few who haven’t played it you’re seriously missing out.

Christine Lee - Leader of Developing Business
@thecircuscafe

Playing Sky Burger?by Nimblebit

I realize this game has been around, but I still can’t get over how addicting it is! Basically, you build and stack burgers with tasty elements such as pickles, onions, tomatoes, lettuce and meat- the more you stack, the taller the burger gets. Probably not the best game to play while driving, but a perfect way to make a 4 hour flight delay enjoyable at the airport. :) Enjoy this delicious game, can’t wait to see what else Nimblebit comes up with!

Jamie Evans - Advertising Account Manager

Playing Candy Crush Saga?by King.com

As someone who primarily plays games to snoop on their marketing and monetization strategies, I rarely get “addicted” to one. Enter: Candy Crush Saga by King.com. Even though it’s been out on Facebook for a while, I didn’t start playing until the recent release of their iOS app. The game is so accessible now, you basically can’t not play. While I’ve always enjoyed gem-swap style games, the added level of strategy with Candy Crush Saga is what keeps me coming back. Those deliciously colorful candies don’t hurt either.

Kenneth Ballenegger - The Architect
@kob

Playing Letterpress?by atebits

In the startup community, it’s common to describe things by mashing up other things (eg. “Instagram is like Twitter for Camera.app”). Well, you could describe Letterpress and being somewhere in between Scrabble and Chess. You use the letters on the board to make up words, and try to control as much of the board as possible. At first, you’d think it’s just another word game; but soon you will start to realize there is a lot more going on with the spacial strategy aspect. Letterpress was made by Loren Britcher, who wrote the official Twitter app and invented pull-to-refresh.

Nate Barker - Publisher Relations Manager
@kneyght

Playing Burrito Bison?by Ravenous Games

Have you ever pondered how it would feel to be a bison-headed man who is magically transported to Candyland and must endlessly battle gummy bears? With Burrito Bison, you can finally experience that reality. The gameplay is simple - you tap once to randomly launch yourself into the air. Then you watch the bison bounce along, crushing fleeing gummy people and extracting money from them. Occasionally you land on power ups that extend your jump. You can exercise some control by slamming into gummies faster, giving you a greater bounce if you time it right. Eventually you run out of momentum and the round ends. Then; buy a few power ups, rinse, repeat. Simple, yes - but strangely fulfilling…

Flavien Bessede - Analytics Guru
@flavien

Playing Coaster Crazy?by Frontier Development

So, I?ve been playing Coaster Crazy lately. It?s a good, old-style rollercoaster tycoon style game like we all used to play in the olden days. It?s very addictive and has some pretty amazing graphics with little guys that yell with joy or pure terror depending on the ride they?re on. I also like the evolution of the game. The difficulty increases nicely as you progress and there?s always the option to spice things up a bit by going back and adding new loops and turns. The game?s really made to last; highly recommended.

Thanks for reading! Check back in two weeks for our next installment of What We’re Playing!