CARY, N.C.- The casual game development market is about to get a little more crowd with a new startup that is being spun out of 3Dsolve.
Rett Crocker, vice president of research and development at 3Dsolve, and Frank Boosman, 3Dsolve’s chief operating officer, are heading up Republic of Fun. Organizational pieces are still being put in place, according to Crocker, but its first titles could be announced in the near future.
Casual games are much more simple to play – and many people say more fun, too – than sophisticated shooter games such as Epic Games; “Gears of War,” which was developed in the Triangle.
Merscom in Chapel Hill is also focused on casual games.
Republic of Fun will be an “aggressive company,” developing numerous games and using many of the lessons learned in gaming at 3Dsolve, which is a world leader in simulation development.
“Our entire focus is on innovative game play,” Crocker told WRAL Local Tech Wire. “Most games you buy today are derivatives of others. Most of us in the gaming industry tend to make the same game over and over.”
At Republic of Fun, however, Crocker said developers will focus on what he called the “innovation gap.”
Games will be downloadable over the Internet and will cost $20 or less.
One title is already under development and another two will be launched soon, with work being done at 3Dsolve, Crocker added. However, he wouldn’t disclose titles.
“I wouldn’t be surprised that within a couple of years we are developing games for all different genres,” Crocker said
By focuses on casual games, Republic of Fun also can develop titles much more cheaply. “We’re not spending $20 million to create a game,” he added. “We’ll spend from $500,000 to $1 million per title.”
Republic of Fun will be “boot strapped” for funding to start, but Crocker said “it is conceivable” the company will “take” financing.
