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Gamelab 2012: Freemium devs like Zynga are 'degrading the whole industry', says Novarama CEO

F2P is a 'renting scheme'

Gamelab 2012: Freemium devs like Zynga are 'degrading the whole industry', says Novarama CEO
Novarama CEO Dani Sánchez-Crespo revealed his disdain for the free-to-play model at the Gamelab Mobile conference in Barcelona, claiming that F2P devs are "degrading the whole industry".

Speaking in defence of premium games, the Reality Fighters helmer expressed his mistrust of the freemium model which is quickly dominating the mobile landscape.

He even claimed that games which adhere to this model - which he labelled the "taxi model" - are not games at all.

You get what you pay for

"When you buy an app, it's not a game. You think it's a game, but it's not. It's a renting scheme," Sánchez-Crespo stated.

"When I see Farmville and Uncharted both called 'games', it really gives me the creeps."

Sánchez-Crespo's Barcelona-based studio, which entered into an exclusivity deal with Sony in June 2011, produces augmented reality titles for PSP and PS Vita.

Ignoring the PS Vita's flagging sales, the Novarama CEO was keen to stress that Sony's latest portable console offers high-quality premium gaming experiences - quality which is deserving of a reasonable price tag.

He was also quick to point out Farmville developer Zynga's recent downward swing on the stock market, something he believes is evidence of consumers wising-up to the limitations of F2P.
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Enchanted from a young age by colour, motion, and sound, James divides his time between obsessing over all things digital and lamenting the death of VHS. He looks forward to a future where machines rule the earth and all political disputes are solved via one round of rock-paper-scissors.