Few startups within the UK mobile games dev scene generate as much positive noise as Spilt Milk Studios, thanks to company MD Andrew John Smith.

Such noise is paying off, however, if the latest stats for the outift's debut release Hard Lines are anything to go by.

According to Smith, total downloads for the game now sit at more than 270,000 since launch on June 9, meaning the game's average comes in at around 54,000 downloads a month.

Hard Lines, solid sales

In that time, Smith states players have amassed more than 1.6 million game sessions, which equates to 3.68 million minutes, 61,000 hours, more than 2,500 days, or 7 years of play time, if you're so inclined.

"I'm flabbergasted," Smith said via email.

"I knew Hard Lines was popular, but this is just crazy. Not only have more people downloaded the game than live in Barbados, those people have been playing it a lot more than I would've expected."

Spilt Milk has been notable for its willingness to adopt a flexible approach to pushing the game on the App Store, selling Hard Lines for free on more than one occasion – the first in honour of Smith's 29th birthday.

Hard Lines also made the leap to Android in October, with Smith claiming he expects the game to continue to move "onwards and upwards" in the coming months.