Spring is in the air and it’s out with the old and in with the new, gaming app that is. OMGPop has recently launched its first truly successful gaming app, Draw Something, a Pictionary-based game for Apple and Android devices. With hundreds of words to choose from, this game is hard to get tired of. Prompts include items like painter, wonder woman and Easter, but also occasionally offer pop-culture icons such as Justin Bieber, Rihanna and Snooki. This makes for a fun challenge for both the drawer and the guesser. The creative aspect of this app also makes it almost necessary for opponents to know each other personally in order to guess what their drawing might mean. While the design does admit random opponents, many players agree that it is much easier when you know the person you are playing. “It’s really about relationships. How well do I know you and can guess what you drew. That is part of the fun,” stated the chief executive of OMGPop, Dan Porter.
As with hits like Angry Birds, Words With Friends and Fruit Ninja, Draw Something has become a sensation practically overnight. Porter stated, “For a long time we made games that did not get any traction; [Draw Something] was a crazy, out of the box success.” There are two versions of the game: the free – add driven version, and the $0.99 version which comes with extra “coins” which players can use to buy different colors to draw with, or “bombs” which either eliminate letters when guessing or give you a new choice of words to draw. Both versions are widely popular, though users tend to try the free version first. While users are certainly hooked, they have some general complaints over the quirkiness of this app, including lags in gameplay and some unexplained reboots of the app. The company will attempt to resolve these issues though, according to Porter. “Our main priority is working on spin offs and managing the brand,” he said.
Draw Something originated as a website game, then was linked to Facebook before the company finally got the desired response when they added the ability to play on IOS and Android devices. Many users agree that, similar to Words With Friends, Draw Something is a good game to be able to pick up when they have some down time, as opposed to designating a specific time to play online. Games of this sort are becoming more and more popular among our fast-paced society, especially on college campuses. Erin Ledford, senior and English major said of the app, “Although my drawing skills are horrific, the game is fun to play because it allows me to be silly and laugh at myself which is a nice contrast to the piles of homework I constantly have.” While she agrees that the game may need some improvement, she admits, “I’m hooked.”
Stephanie Phillips, a senior English major stated, “Although Draw Something occasionally has some glitches, like not loading my games, it has become my favorite app.” She further explained that one of the most alluring aspects of the game is the amusement of “drawing something that is just completely terrible.” With the use of only your fingertip and a three-inch screen, intricate designs are difficult to accomplish and users often end up including words or multiple pages of a drawing to get their point across.
One major concept that separates Draw Something from many of its rival apps is the lack of a clean-cut goal. Aside from accurately depicting a pirate or guessing the word “pickle,” there is no winner or loser, though you still play with opponents. Phillips enjoys this aspect and stated, “Draw Something is less about getting points or beating your opponent and more about laughing at yourself and your friends.”
With over 25 million downloads and 10 million daily users, Draw Something has become one of the most popular games on the market since the emergence of smartphones. Porter gives much of the credit for the game’s success to the timing of the launch, “We’re …benefitting from hitting at a time when a lot of people are moving from featured phones to smartphones,” he stated. The company of only 42 employees plans to improve the game by adding additional features like chat capabilities and the ability to save drawings in the future.