The Stugan initiative is bearing fruit, Rovio is launching a book publishing house, and Star Wars: Commander is gaining 1 million users in China in 4 days.
1. This summer, the Swedish non-profit initiative Stugan was launched in Sweden. It was assumed that the program would help indie developers to break through with the help of the stars of the game industry. So this initiative is beginning to give the first results. Stugan graduate and former Hollywood special effects artist Clint Siu launches a paid puzzle game. Meditative _Prism offers the player to collect various shapes in order to, quote, “comprehend sacred geometry.” It is still unclear what the project has with commercial prospects. But it looks beautiful.
2. Rovio continues to follow the chosen course and further shifts the focus from mobile development to the entertainment industry. Recently it became known that the studio is launching a subsidiary company that will publish comics and books both under Rovio IP and under third-party licenses. The publishing house is called Kaiken Publishing. The company will be headed by Laura Nevanlinna, who previously served as head of the publishing department at Rovio.
3. The title Star Wars: Commander was adapted for an Asian user and after several months of an advertising campaign launched in China. The game has gained 1 million downloads in 4 days, according to a local publisher. This may mean that studios that are reshaping Western titles for the Asian consumer are on the right track. Or that the advertising support of Disney (which promoted the title) is able to raise any game to the very top of the charts.