The Hindu Business Line : Game for more?

The company is trying to remove the niche from the games and remove the blood and gore from it. FX Labs, which is launching its first games this month, is making ‘casual’, arcade games (such as bowling) that the whole family can enjoy, not just men and boys.
“FX Labs is exploring the possibility of aggressive pricing for the games. ‘Lifestyle shopping’ is here to stay and people don’t mind shelling out the money if they see the value in it.”

Sravanthi Challapalli

The Archie's Riverdale Run game, based on the popular Archies comics

It comes as a surprise when Viren Thambidorai of FX Labs tells you that there are many women aged 40-60 taking to gaming in a big way. For a long time, most of the games available for play on a console or a PC were mostly boys’ games, full of action, cars, violence and such. The few that women liked were those like Tetris and the Super Mario Bros series which were full of strategy and adventure, which didn’t call for aggression which didn’t come all that naturally to women. Then came in games based on TV shows such as Powerpuff Girls and Pokemon, which were not so violent, and women took to them a little more. On the whole, however, a large number of women haven’t played these games, and FX Labs claims to have understood the difference in the way games are played in India.

“We’re trying to remove the niche from the games,” says Thambidorai, Vice-President (Operations), “remove the blood and gore from it.”

As a result, FX Labs, which is launching its first game this month, is making ‘casual’, arcade games (such as bowling) that the whole family can enjoy, not just for men and boys.

FX Labs sees the PC as the next popular platform. In the last two years, 40-45 lakh PCs have been sold and studies put the estimate at over 55 lakh this year. Consoles, such as the X-Box or PlayStation II, are selling only in the thousands in India, Thambidorai says, adding that his lab’s games can be played on both.

The PC’s somewhat like the refrigerator now, it’s necessary and unlike a console, has many uses. It’s a more stable platform and the game experience is richer, he explains.

Capitalising on these factors, FX Labs is developing and releasing a few games for Indian tastes.

One of them is based on the movie Dhoom. The players get to assume the role of their favourite characters from the movie and make their way through numerous challenges and mini-games.

From action-packed car chases to stealthy gadget-heavy heists, this game promises to recreate and personalise the movie experience.

“Bollywood content is a perfect cultural fit,” says Thambidorai. Acceptance levels are higher and it allows women, children and even grandparents to participate in or view the game.

Another game is Archie’s Riverdale Run, based on the popular Archies comics. The attraction for family players here is the romance, nostalgia, and the challenge — not to kill — but based on familiar character traits – the scheming Veronica, the honest Betty and so on.

One can play as their favourite Archie character and explore the town of Riverdale, complete several thrilling missions, and drive a variety of vehicles.

Inferno, releasing this month, pits players against the denizens of the underworld. Players can control up to four distinct characters fighting a wide assortment of creatures. This game promises a compelling and richly detailed gaming experience.

Another tactic the lab has adopted to make these games appeal to their feminine audiences is enable the players to dress the characters from a menu of costumes, change the sound track and save the progress of the game, which can be picked up from the stage it was saved at a later moment.

Obviously, FX Labs is upbeat about the success of these games. For one, partner Suresh Productions’ experience in movies comes in handy when it comes to spotting trends and preferences, cinema-viewing habits and fashion likes and dislikes.

The cost of developing a game ranges between $200,00 and $400,000, including buying the rights, design and technology.

The games are priced between Rs 500 and Rs 1,500 each. Demand for a popular feature will be provided as an add-on that comes for a separate price. However, Rs 700 is a healthy price, says Thambidorai, adding that similar games cost between $15 and $30 in the US.

“FX Labs is exploring the possibility of aggressive pricing for the games,” says Thambidorai. “Lifestyle shopping is here to stay and people don’t mind shelling out the money if they see the value in it."

FX Labs is the first to make content for Indians by Indians, the look and feel of the game, the story telling, the graphics, and the experience will be totally identifiable, he adds.

A three-year-old company, FX Labs also does production work for other, international clients, and so has good exposure to cutting-edge, next-generation technology which is a learning experience for it. It has four games in production right now. Inferno is being released this month, one in December and another in early March.

The development cycle for a high-quality, deep-level (nine-ten levels) game is now 15-18 months but this will need to be shortened to 9-12 months as demand picks up and supply has to match it, says Thambidorai.

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