Filipino-made game ‘Flippy Bottle Extreme!’ becomes int’l hit

Filipinos are proving to be the “next big name” in the gaming planet.

“Flippy Bottle Extreme!,” a mobile game co-developed by a De La Salle University graduate, has managed to eclipse other top-ranking games on Google Play in more than 20 countries including Austria, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Latvia, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, UK and the US.

Most Played Games CEO and founder Derrick Alain Mapagu was overwhelmed with feedbacks about his addictive game, which he and a fellow game developer engineered for two straight days last month.

Just like him, a large number of game developers fixate their eyes on the American gaming scene. “US talaga ‘yung goal ko,” he said in a phone interview. “Lahat ng developers, US talaga ‘yung target dahil ito ‘yung napalaking market. Ito talaga ‘yung pinakamahirap na market (All the developers target the US because it is the biggest market. This is also the hardest market to enter).”

The game’s success peaked when it ranked No. 1 in the US action category and No. 2 in the overall category last week, just trailing “Plants vs Zombies.” He also admitted that he faced stiff competition from other game developers upon releasing Flippy bottle on the market.

Science of ‘frustrating games’

When asked what made Flippy Bottle Extreme a bestseller in the Western Hemisphere, Mapagu explained that gaming buffs are drawn to “frustrating games” that pressure and challenge them to reach the next levels.

Even from the name itself, it is noticeable that Flippy Bottle has striking similarities to its predecessor, “Flappy Bird.”

“In terms of mechanics, magkaiba sila. Flippy Bottle Extreme uses 3D art while Flappy Bird uses pixelated art or 2D,” he said, noting that unlike other smash-hit games, his company dropped Flippy Bottle with a thousand levels. As of the moment, 3,000 foreign players finished all the levels, the first and top one hailing from Florida, USA.

He thinks that games with “high reward” and “high risk” channel addiction among players and motivate them to play it for a lengthy span of time. “‘Di ko naman matatago na magkaanak si Flippy Bottle Extreme at si Flappy [Bird] when it comes to frustrating genre. The feel is more or less similar, yung feeling of frustration na mamamatay ka kapag nagkamali ka,” he said. (I can’t hide the fact that Flippy Bottle Extreme and Flappy Bird are relatives in to the frustrating genre. The feel is more or less similar, the feeling of frustration that if you lost the game, you might die.)

Likewise, the players who enjoyed other “frustrating games” such as Flappy Bbird are the same customers who play Flippy Bottle. “Iyong ganyang type of games, yun talaga yung expertise ko. (Those types of games are my expertise.) In the future, if I keep on making those kinds of games, with the similar feel, I’m sure there will be people playing the game.”

Filipino game developers ‘have an edge’

Mapagu, a graduate of Computer Science from De La Salle University – Manila, began his love for game developing at a young age when he spent his childhood tinkering with Lego sets and editing maps in “StarCraft.” Before establishing his company last September, he worked for several gaming companies for eight years. Prior to Flippy Bottle Extreme, he engineered nine other games, including “Make Tusok the Fishball,” which raced to the first spot in the local gaming charts, and “Make Tuka Green Archer,” inspired by the fiery Ateneo-La Salle basketball rivalry.

Mapagu believes that Filipinos have an edge in the bustling gaming industry and that enthusiasm, eagerness and sheer creativity can secure Filipino game developers a spot in the action field. “I consider game development in the Philippines as [a] young industry compared to others. Our main edge is we’re really an energetic industry with good momentum,” he said.

With an increasing number of schools offering game development programs, Mapagu is sanguine that one day game inventors like him can stand out and hone their skills. “Actually, we are the most skilled in Southeast Asia, ang problema, creators. Kulang tayo ng developers na gumagawa ng games at nagtatayo ng sariling company (The problem is that there is a lack of creators. We lack developers who make games and establish their own company),” he observed.

For game developers who want to chisel their names in the gaming arena, Mapagu left a motivational advice: “I believe Filipinos are world-class talents. We can really compete on the international scene in terms of creativeness. Have confidence that your games will reach somewhere, have more trust in yourself that you can do it, and learn from your failures.”

“I’m inclined to stay in the Philippines…I want to be an advocate of Philippine game development [and] I want to inspire others to create more games.”

Learn more about Most Played Games on their website and Facebook page.  Gianna Francesca Catolico