More Than 6 Billion Hours of the Original Match-3 Puzzler Played Worldwide
Since 2000
SEATTLE, Aug. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- PopCap Games, the leading developer
and publisher of casual games, today provided updated statistics on its
flagship franchise Bejeweled(R), the most popular casual video game of the
21st century. Based on updated information from distribution partners
across Web, mobile, retail, in-flight and other channels, Bejeweled and
Bejeweled 2 have collectively sold more than 25 million units across all
platforms since the game first appeared in late 2000.
"Considering we tried to sell Bejeweled outright to more than one
industry giant back in the early days of our company, and got no takers
even after reducing our asking price to $60,000, this little game has done
all right for itself," said Jason Kapalka, chief creative officer and
co-founder of PopCap, and the original designer of Bejeweled and its
sequel. "I vividly recall prospective buyers telling us 'It's not even a
game,' while showing us the door," Kapalka laughed.
While the casual games "audience" is estimated at between 350 million
and 450 million, this estimate is based on "regular" players, consumers who
enjoy casual games on a monthly or more frequent basis; hundreds of
millions of additional consumers have experienced a casual game, most often
Bejeweled, at least once in their lives. More than 350 million copies of
the Bejeweled/Bejeweled 2 have been downloaded from the Web, accounting for
nearly a third of the 1 billion-plus downloads of all PopCap(R) titles.
Tens of millions of copies of Bejeweled have been installed on mobile
phones worldwide, and more than 25 million units of the game have been sold
across all platforms, amounting to over $300 million in consumer spending
over the history of the game. (Additionally, Bejeweled has garnered tens of
millions of dollars in online advertising.)
For the past three years and counting, Bejeweled has consistently been
among the top three "family entertainment" software titles sold at retail,
while most hit video games achieve such ranking for one or two months.
Likewise, the game has been one of the top three sellers among mobile games
for more than three years running. Among PopCap's own customer base,
exposure to Bejeweled is exceptionally high: a survey of 13,000 PopCap
customers conducted in April 2008 found that fully 95% of them had played
Bejeweled in some form.
The Bejeweled franchise is also one of the most ubiquitous and
accessible in the history of video games, with versions of the game
available for Web, PCs and Macs, mobile phones, Xbox and PlayStation
consoles, PDAs and Blackberrys, iPods and iPhone, in-flight on leading
airlines, on-demand TV systems in hotels -- even scratch-off lottery
tickets in many states. All told, Bejeweled and Bejeweled 2 have
collectively been enjoyed for an estimated 6 billion hours -- the
equivalent of 60 people playing the game 24 hours a day since the last Ice
Age 11,400 years ago.
About PopCap
PopCap Games (http://www.popcap.com) is the leading multi-platform
provider of "casual games" -- fun, easy-to-learn, captivating computer
games that appeal to everyone from age 6 to 106. Based in Seattle,
Washington, PopCap was founded in 2000 and has a worldwide staff of over
200 people in Seattle, San Francisco, Chicago, Vancouver, B.C., Dublin,
Ireland and Shanghai. Its games have been downloaded more than 1 billion
times by consumers worldwide, and its flagship title, Bejeweled(R), has
sold more than 25 million units across all platforms. Constantly acclaimed
by consumers and critics, PopCap's games are played on the Web, desktop
computers, myriad mobile devices (cell phones, smartphones, PDAs, Pocket
PCs, iPod and more), popular game consoles (such as Xbox), and in-flight
entertainment systems. PopCap is the only casual games developer with
leading market share across all major sales channels, including Web
portals, retail stores, mobile phones and MP3 players, and game device
manufacturers.
The PopCap logo and all other trademarks used herein that are listed at
http://www.popcap.com/trademarks are owned by PopCap Games, Inc. or its
licensors and may be registered in some countries. Other company and
product names used herein may be trademarks of their respective owners and
are used for the benefit of those owners.
SOURCE PopCap Games, Inc.
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Related links:
http://www.popcap.com/
CONTACT:
North America, Garth Chouteau,
+1-415-602-8147, garth@popcap.com, or International, Cathy Orr,
+353 1 480 6286, corr@popcap.com, both of PopCap Games, Inc.
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