Remember when OMGPop was worth $200 million? Yeah, those days are over.
OMGPop, creator of Draw Something, will be shut down for good by the end of September. The studio itself shut down earlier this year, but some remnants – like the website – still exist. September’s when its website closes, but before that happens four of its Facebook games – Cupcake Corner, Gem Rush, Pool World Champ and Snoops – will close down August 29th. None of those titles were that popular, attracting perhaps 50,000 active monthly users, but Draw Something and its sequel will continue to be supported. This was done, according to Zynga, “to make way for new and exciting gaming opportunities,” but it’s a sad end for the studio that Zynga bought for something in the region of $200 million.
Former OMGPop employees tried to buy back the website and some of OMGPop’s assets. Even if Draw Something was off the table, anything Zynga was willing to sell would have attracted an offer. According to Zynga, this would have taken far too much legal work, and it wasn’t in any hurry to sell anything. If you’re at all curious about what’s being shut down, take a look over here. Maybe even stick around and play a game or two.
Back when Zynga shut down the OMGPop studio, there was much rejoicing amongst the newly unemployed staff. “You imagine big corporate settings where security is there to lead people out of the office so they don’t make a scene. This was the opposite,” said a OMGPop staffer. “Music was being played loudly, and people were ripping up Zynga hoodies and T-shirts. Anything that was Zynga was completely left there. The sentiment felt positive.” Looks as though Zynga – intentionally or otherwise – may have responded to that farewell party.
Source: Eurogamer
