Zynga vs. Astro Ape: CEO Chieh Huang says, 'we build a better product'

Astro Ape is beating its chest right out of the gate. The studio's CEO, Chieh Huang (pictured center), is already making claims that it builds a better product than the compeition, namely Zynga, Pocketgamer.biz reports. Astro Ape makes mobile social games like Dessert Heroes and Office Heroes, which Huang claims enjoy 70 percent retention, meaning 70 percent of its players are regular customers. Unlike Facebook, the mobile space has yet to find one dominant creator, so Astro Ape just might have a chance at becoming that company.

However, with Zynga laser-focused on mobile thanks to Newtoy and its improvements to Mafia Wars and FarmVile for iPhone, that window of opportunity is quite small. Astro Ape about to release Monsterz Revenge, its third game, doing the same thing it has always done: launch games with polish. That's exactly how the studio plans to defeat Zynga:

    It sounds like a basic concept, but I think it's getting lost a bit today in social gaming. Our users come into our apps because they want to play our games, not because we spam them with invites, requests and other offers. Monsterz Revenge is really a convergence of this new stream of talent that we've brought in, and the lessons we learned from Office Heroes and Dessert Heroes. It's definitely our best title to date.

Those sure sound like fighting words, but we'll see soon enough if Astro Ape has the oomph to back them up. Until then, mobile is fair game, so jump right in.

[Image Credit: NY Post]

Have tried either of Astro Ape's current games? Do you think this studio has a shot against Zynga and the other big developers?

Finally, GREE reveals what everyone actually cares about: the games

Japan's mobile social gaming network GREE has leaked details regarding its global expansion through OpenFeint ever so slowly. Painfully so, in fact. Now, Andriasang reports that DeNA's archenemy has finally announced a number of big time games that will be right there with GREE's launch on iPhones and Android phones in the US and abroad. How does some DDR sound?

Konami revealed that it's bringing the iconic dance machine arcade-gone-mobile game, DanceDanceRevolution, to GREE. Capcom is in on the global GREE launch, set to happen between April and June 2012, with a mobile version of Resident Evil Mercenaries VS and Monster Hunter Dynamic Hunting, which is already available for iPhone. Tecmo Koei is bringing over a version of its hit Dynasty Warriors franchise to GREE as well.

This is all well and good, but we have one concern: All of these games, including those from Japanese game makers we didn't mention, appeal to a very niche, dare we say "hardcore" audience. While part of GREE's global expansion is to merge with OpenFeint (and likely many of games under that Western service's umbrella), the network is going to need games that appeal to a mass audience to live up to its expectations of beating Nintendo.

GREE claims that, after the merge with OpenFeint, its games will be exposed to 150 million players. But 150 million players or not, those players are going to need all types of games to be interested in. Granted, we're still a long ways away from the GREE global launch. Oh ... about that.

Zynga thinks it could double its paying players after going public

How? No clue, but Zynga CEO Mark Pincus seems to think it's possible. That's what the head of the FarmVille maker told 100 investors at a luncheon (with chicken, mashed potatoes and spinach salad) held in a Boston hotel, according to Reuters. "We could see that doubling," Pincus told the room during a presentation likely similar to the one posted online last week ahead of going public.

However, the Zynga chief gave no time line for the lofty claim, nor how the company would make it happen. As it stands, about 7.7 million of the social game giant's 219 million monthly players were payers for 12 months prior to Sept. 30, according to Reuters. However, Zynga did reveal that it now welcomes 13 million daily players across mobile devices, way up from the recently reported 11.1 million

A hefty chunk of those daily players seems to come from Words With Friends. You know, the game so addicting that it supposedly drove Alec Baldwin to throw a fit on an American Airlines plane? That one. "He wanted to play it even if it meant getting off his flight to play it," Pincus said, revealing that the game gained some 8 million players in the past year.

And, when you think about it, mobile could be exactly where Zynga doubles its paying players. Zynga is full steam ahead on both iPhone and Android phones, having released eight games for the platforms in 2011 alone. The battle plan? Zynga could reach audiences outside of its massive network by gaining prominence on various app stores. And that just might work.

What do you think of Zynga's mobile games thus far? Could the company grow its 3 percent of paying players into 6 or even 10 percent through iPhone and Android?