Zynga buys casual gaming startup Wild Needle
updated 12:23 pm EDT, Mon May 14, 2012
Wild Needle team joins Zynga following talent-sized purchase
Social gaming giant Zynga has bought casual games company Wild Needle. The female-oriented startup was bought for an undisclosed amount following the release of its first title Shoptown Hero in March, which was pulled from the App Store two weeks ago.
According to TechCrunch, the deal was “talent-sized”, likely to be around the $5 to $20 million range. The amount is a far cry from the OMGPOP deal, where Zynga paid $180 million in cash and an extra $30 million on staff retention. That deal was primarily for the highly popular Draw Something, however OMGPOP had a stable of other online games showcasing the team's capabilities. Wild Needle did not have a catalog of titles, with the only release Shoptown Hero proving to be a moderate success in its short lifespan.
Zynga has been working at moving away from its reliance on Facebook as a primary revenue source, hoping the move to mobile and creating its own platform will diversify its income streams.
