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Did you know that 90 percent of kids play computer games? That said, you’d be mistaken in thinking that games are mainly played by children. The average age of a gamer is actually 33 years old. At Spil Games we’re passionate about games — especially online games. Did you know several studies have shown that playing games is good for you? Well, here are some benefits for regular gamers.

Games increase creativity

Boys and girls who play video games tend to be more creative. A Michigan State University study of 491 12-year-olds found that those kids who were playing video games showed more creativity in activities such as drawing pictures or writing stories. The research could not find a relation between creativity and the use of cell phones, the Internet or computers (other than for games).

More detailed sight

Professor Daphne Bavelier has researched into whether playing video games has a negative effect on eyesight. Lots of people say that playing video games for many hours will harm your sight. According to the research of Bavelier, the sight of gamers was even better than non-gamers. The gamers showed better capacities of seeing small details.

Improved concentration and attention

The research of Bavelier also indicated that regular gamers show better levels of concentration and are able to solve problems faster. It seems that playing games improves our capability to remain focused on the most important tasks. Gamers are also less easily distracted by factors in their environments.

Girl gamers are happier

In 2011 researchers from Brigham Young University looked at the impact of games on children’s happiness. They found out that girls who play games with a parent benefit in several ways. They seemed to behave better, felt more connected to their families and had stronger mental health. While girls proved to become happier, boys showed no change in happiness when co-playing a game with a parent.

Daphne Bavelier at a TED conference

Game on

Ok, enough said! It’s time to train your brain by playing some cool puzzle games, racing games or the popular Bubble Shooter.

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Fashion isn’t just important—it’s critical.

We’ve seen the pictures of our idols—Justin, Taylor, Harry—and we’ve seen how it can all go so wrong. At GirlsgoGames we believe it’s important for each and every starlet to be prepared for the big bold fashion world. That’s why we’re helping tweens find their fashion mojo in Fashion Party Dress Up, a free-to-play 3D game.

Fashion Party Dress Up is the best place to experience what it’s like to be a style star.

Here’s just some of what you can expect from the game:

• Shop ’til you drop with thousands of styles
• Strike a pose and capture the moment in exciting photoshoots
• Personalized clothing, accessories, cosmetics, hairstyles…and even pets
• Explore over 30 fashion genres, 600 boutique items, 24 levels, and 8 fashion crews
• Master the Style Catch mini-game to earn more coins for shopping.

Download Fashion Party Dress Up

This innovative game features all the aspects of a real fashion party and, as a final touch, players’ creations can be printed, shared, and set as avatars. No more red carpet wardrobe malfunctions, no more paparazzi disasters. Thanks to Fashion Party Dress Up, the future of fashion is bright and sparkly. Download the app for free from Google Play, Amazon, or iTunes.

Have you downloaded the game? We love the cool graphics and the photoshoots, but what’s your favorite part? Let us know in the comments or on Facebook.

A world of glamor awaits!

Read more...]]> A monster truck game with penguins? AbsoTruckinLutely!

We interview Aldo Bruno Baffo, the developer of the game

It’s not every day you get to share an elevator ride with a CEO. Now we have the chance, let’s spend a couple of minutes with Aldo Bruno Baffo, CEO of Baffo Games, who developed the infamous AbsoTruckinLutely! Here’s a man who connects horse riding, Dravidian history, and violence against penguins, all in a short Q&A. It’s amazing what you can learn…

Aldo, why did you choose to make a monster truck game?

We’d originally signed a contract to make a Bocce Ball title with A10, but then we learned the majority of Bocce Ball players are old guys who don’t actually have computers. Unfortunately, we’d already spent the advance money, so A10 then proposed we make a game based on the Muy Fun Pony series on Argentinian TV.

However, the developer on a new monster truck title suddenly disappeared, so we were pushed into that slot instead. That does in part explain why the game we finally made has all that horse riding code in it, which is notable in the later levels.

What makes AbsoTruckinLutely! different from other monster truck games?

We’re pretty sure that AbsoTruckinLutely! is the first monster truck game that features penguins. We did a lot of research into what people like to destroy in these kinds of games. Surprisingly, it turns out that penguins often feature 5^th or 6^th on the list for our target demographic.

What’s next for Baffo Games?

Contractually, we’ll need to spend the next few weeks fixing some of the latency bugs in the multiplayer version of Nine Finger Typing. As soon as those problems are resolved, and the court releases the rendering farm machines that the sheriff impounded, we’ll probably get on with our upcoming freemuim MMORPG for tablets.

We also got some interest from a publisher in Sri Lanka concerning our Pink Zombie Hairdresser concept, so we’ll likely be brushing up on Tamil religious history, just to make sure we don’t step on anybody’s toes like we did with the Falafel Dash game last summer. 

And with that the bell chimes and the elevator doors slide open. We wish Aldo success and wave him goodbye as he gallops off into the sunset. Thanks very much for your time, Aldo, and let us know when your Pink Zombie Hairdresser game comes to life—now there’s one place we’d love to curl up and dye.

If you’re a fan of penguin genocide, equine-coded racing games, or seriously good fun, look out for AbsoTruckinLutely! – coming soon to an app store near you!

Read more...]]> ‘Unite the world in play’ is Spil Games’ often-quoted and ambitious mission. For the most part this means uniting millions of players across 7 continents via our games platforms. Occasionally, though, we manage to pull off something quite special. Recently we succeeded in  reuniting virtual friends by actual employment.

Collaborating across continents

Erik Sombroek is a Content Marketer for A10, a platform that offers casual online games for boys.
In 2005, at the age of 15, he had already developed his first flash game engine for a shooter game, and he needed a graphic artist to collaborate with. Erik used newgrounds.com to connect with Eduardo Mojica, a 21year old Dominican. They worked together over a virtual connection and released their first game using flash in 2006.

Because the game was a such huge success (1 million gameplays in the first week, with players demanding a sequel), Eduardo and Erik stayed in contact and worked together on several projects over the following years.

Recommending old friends

Some years later, Erik finished his studies and turned his hobby into employment when he joined Spil Games in 2012. When Erik was asked if he knew someone with the same passion and knowledge of free online games, he immediately contacted his old-time gaming buddy Eduardo. A few months later, Eduardo arrived in the Netherlands.

Touching reunion

Eduardo had never visited Europe before, and he certainly wasn’t used to the cold Dutch winter. But after 8 years of virtual friendship he finally met Erik in real life, and their hug was so heartwarming that, for a moment, it felt like the Spil Games Campus was located in the Dominican Republic.

Eduardo now lives in Hilversum and also works as a Content Marketer for Spil Games local brands. With his desk only 5 meters away from Erik, the former-virtual friends are literally closer than ever.