You might think making a game based on a film that's all about games would be a simple thing.

Think again.

According to Jim Molinets, GM of mobile games at Disney's Glendale studio, the challenge when it came to the tie-in game for Wreck-It Ralph was too much scope.

"We spent a lot of time prototyping to figure out what would be reverential to the concept of a film about arcade games," he explains

"We ended up with plenty of prototypes but in testing they proved too complex."

Theory of fun

Perhaps part of the issue was that unlike many rushed movie tie-ins, the Disney movie makers got the Disney game makers (helped by Canadian developer Sarbarkan) into the process early.

"We had a close relationship with the animation group," Molinets says. "We had access to the assets and worked simultaneously with them during production."

Lots of time, lots of access and lots of opportunity then; and eventually this boiled down to a back-to-basics approach.

"We thought, 'What's the film about?' Molinets ponders. "It's about the fun of gaming so that's when we decided on the idea of a wrapper."

Three ways to play

Released for iOS and Android, the Wreck-It Ralph game consists of three simple mini-games.

There's Fix-it Felix Jr, in which Ralph takes the roles of Donkey Kong in homage to Nintendo's classic; a Doodle Jump-inspired game called Sweet Climber; and topdown wave-based shooter Hero's Duty.

Fix-it Felix Jr has been released as a standalone free game too, in order to gain a wider audience, which can then be upsold the full 99c experience.

Each has its own leaderboards, with the overall concept structured around the umbrella of the Game Central Station.

"I think it proves a familiar feel for players, even those who are too young to have experienced arcades," argues Molinets.

New hope rises

In addition, the mini-game concept enables Disney to add new content, with a racing mini-game already highlighted within the app as the next update.

"It provides us with a long-tail," Molinets says. "If you connect with users, you can have a game that lasts in the App Store for 24, 36 or 48 months."

Equally, he points out that Disney's resurgence as a mobile games company, thanks to titles such as Where My Water?, Where's My Perry? and Temple Run Brave, show the opportunities that are available when it uses its characters in a flexible manner.

"We have the ability and freedom to mix and match characters in our games," he says, when asked if Where My Water?'s Swampy could ended up with his own mini-game in Ralph.

This week's news also places Star Wars as the phantom elephant into the conversation (Molinets won't bite), but clearly that's just one - if an important - element of what Disney plans be bringing to the App Store in future.