How to close down a game: the right way.
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How to close down a game: the right way.
Last year a company called Slide was purchased by Google. Slide makes online apps and games for Facebook. One of these was a game called SuperPoke! Pets (btw, you did not need a Facebook account to play this game). In August, Google announced that Slide was going to be shut down (as many businesses acquired by Google). This means that services like SPP will cease to exist.
SPP isn't abandoning their users, though (like a certain other company we know). Instead they sent out this email to all their users:
As you'll remember, GoPets never even sent emails to all its customers letting them know of the shutdown. SPP not only liaised with the people that made the game successful but even provided a way for users to enjoy their pets even after the servers themselves cease to exist.
Of course, SPP has all the power of Google behind them and it is well within their abilities (financially and otherwise) to pull something like this off. But GoPets wasn't acquired by what one would consider a "small" company either. GoPets and Zanga could have made the shutdown a lot less painful. In any case... just thought I'd share.
SPP isn't abandoning their users, though (like a certain other company we know). Instead they sent out this email to all their users:
Hi there! We have some new information regarding the export options. As you know, when we announced the closure of SPP, we said that we were looking into options that would allow you to continue enjoying your Pets. Our team has been hard at work and we've found a couple of solutions that we're really pleased to be able to offer you!
The first of these features is an easy way for you to quickly download your Snapshots from your Scrapbook onto your desktop or laptop.
The second tool that we're very excited to bring you is SPP Lite! While this is not a downloadable version of the full SPP experience, this application will act as a standalone program on your desktop that allows you to continue enjoying your beloved Pets long after March 6. SPP Lite will work on Windows, Mac and Linux machines.
Please remember that we still have six months left for you to decorate and upload all of your favorite Habitats. There is no limit on how many habitats you can download, so please feel free to save as many as you can.
For further instructions on how to install SPP Lite on your computer, please visit this Forum Thread
We hope that you enjoy these new tools and as always, we appreciate your support of SPP!
-- The SuperPoke! Pets Team
As you'll remember, GoPets never even sent emails to all its customers letting them know of the shutdown. SPP not only liaised with the people that made the game successful but even provided a way for users to enjoy their pets even after the servers themselves cease to exist.
Of course, SPP has all the power of Google behind them and it is well within their abilities (financially and otherwise) to pull something like this off. But GoPets wasn't acquired by what one would consider a "small" company either. GoPets and Zanga could have made the shutdown a lot less painful. In any case... just thought I'd share.
KittyJuan- V.I.P.
- Posts : 104
Join date : 2009-10-10
Age : 30
Location : Seattle, WA
Re: How to close down a game: the right way.
Thank you for the info! I'm not sure there is a right way, though. After looking around the SuperPoke forum, people do not sound comforted by the download. They're mad at Google and guessing Google never intended to keep SSP running. People just don't like having their games and communities yanked away.
At this point it doesn't sound like you can do much of anything in the lite version, although they may be working on making it so you can decorate. Without that there isn't much to do, there was never much to the "game" but to buy things and decorate. And some people really just liked the interaction with friends in the game so they're pretty unhappy.
My poor chicken was pretty neglected. I never bonded when they changed the models. I think Kazoo will be happy to roam the internet and explore, along with my GoPets, FooPets, and my Facebook game pets, too, at this point, since I have those apps blocked. XD
At this point it doesn't sound like you can do much of anything in the lite version, although they may be working on making it so you can decorate. Without that there isn't much to do, there was never much to the "game" but to buy things and decorate. And some people really just liked the interaction with friends in the game so they're pretty unhappy.
My poor chicken was pretty neglected. I never bonded when they changed the models. I think Kazoo will be happy to roam the internet and explore, along with my GoPets, FooPets, and my Facebook game pets, too, at this point, since I have those apps blocked. XD
Re: How to close down a game: the right way.
Hmm, never read about this until now. I kind of like their method, even if a game I enjoy is being shut down. I always secretly hoped that GoPets would be able to run as an offline program even if it would never update. Ah, I miss my pets so much.
Chiswick- Team Player
- Posts : 86
Join date : 2009-10-10
Location : 213 , 256
Re: How to close down a game: the right way.
If there was a stand alone version of GoPets, I know I'd never play. I'd feel my cuties were missing all their friends! I think of all the pets now running around together on the internet, playing, dancing, bouncing on all the sofas for sale on eBay.
Re: How to close down a game: the right way.
Haha, it might just be me then. I usually don't join in on a game's community unless I have to like say for trading or such. I think GoPets is probably the only game where I've been very socially immersed in.
Chiswick- Team Player
- Posts : 86
Join date : 2009-10-10
Location : 213 , 256
Re: How to close down a game: the right way.
Well, I guess there is no "right way". People will always be upset. However, SuperPoke! Pets did a better job than GoPets. Perhaps there wouldn't have been quite as many hard feelings if GoPets did more to notify all its users and didn't shutdown so abruptly. And providing some kind of option to play with your pets afterwards would probably have pleased a lot of people.
KittyJuan- V.I.P.
- Posts : 104
Join date : 2009-10-10
Age : 30
Location : Seattle, WA
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