Frogmind is an independent videogame studio that was created back in 2012 by two diamonds in the rough. Just a few months after launching their game Badland, these two Finnish partners were sent to stardom around the world. Thanks to this game, which includes absolutely beautiful audio and visuals, the studio has reaped a bunch of important awards such as the 2012 Game Connection Europe SCEE Award, the Nordic Indie Sensation Award or the 2012 Game Connection Europe Best Project Award. The company has attracted millions of users since and Supercell did not take long to acquire 51% of its shares in Septemeber 2016. Frogmind’s economic potential continues to increase as evidenced by the company’s new hit with Rumble Stars. This recent project allows users to create different strategies to score goals during entertaining and unique games.
A total hit in very different countries
Although the first Rumble Stars versions saw the light in January 2019, the stable version wasn’t available worldwide until April. The game’s success continues to increase week by week and it didn’t take long for it to surpass one million downloads in Google Play. In fact, the project has taken its spot among the 100 most download apps and games in 59 different countries.
According to App Annie, Rumble Stars has reached the number one most downloaded app in Israel. But that’s not all, the game has also made an appearance in the top 10 in nine different countries like Spain, Portugal, Hungry, Bulgary and Croatia. Badland Brawl, Frogmind’s earlier hit also reached a hefty number of users in a lot of these European countries.
A bunch of characters and possible options
There is no shortage of options when it comes to soccer games available for your smartphone. However, games that offer unique sports gameplays are always a nice change of scenery. Rumble Stars challenges you to introduce the ball in your opponent’s goal, but not in the same-old way. You’ll have to unlock characters that have different features to help you score those goals.
The most interesting part about Rumble Stars is that the characters are not soccer players. Now we got your attention, right? The teams are made up of wild animals, pets, and other living objects such as canons and magnets. A very peculiar casting that’s sure to keep you entertained while you discover their different offensive and defensive roles. You can choose the members of your team that’ll enter the action using the main menu.
A simple and addicting gameplay
Yet another key aspect in Rumble Stars is its very simple gameplay. All you really need to do is to play a few rounds to become familiar with each characters’ features. Some of the protagonists will help you increase your offensive potential and other ones will fit like a glove when you need to defend yourself against your rival’s attacks. Controls are really user-friendly and simply require you to tap on the character you want to use and trace the trajectory without letting go of the screen.
You can watch the time limit at all times on the upper side of the interface. This will help you calculate accurately if the score is enough to defend yourself or if you need to attack in order to come back stronger. It should be noted that the visuals are really well-designed and this game is just another example of how Frogmind pays attention to detail when it comes to its designs. Plus, it’s inevitable to forego the similarities it shares with the Clash Royale universe. The Supercell investment in its fellow Finnish studio had to show somehow.
As you continue winning rounds, you can start investing your rewards on unlocking new characters. You can also get different soccer balls that’ll influence each pass differently. Another awesome feature is that can increase each of your characters’ scores to make them more powerful inside the field. Basically, your main objective is to create an efficient team that can defeat any rival so you can ascend to a higher league. But it won’t be easy because as you continue playing games, you’ll encounter other players that’ll use more refined movement strategies.
The videogame industry in Finland
Nokia’s collapse was one of the events that caused Finland to fall into a severe economic depression. However, this Scandinavian country reinvented itself by supporting the creation of small startups that took advantage of the talents located within its borders. As a result, many videogame studios were born and they helped the economy grow by creating multiple job opportunities. To this day, Android is the preferred platform for developers in this Nordic country.
According to NeoGames, the number of employees within the Finnish videogame sector has increased to 3,200 employees, which amounts to a 16% increase compared to 2016. However, it’s worth mentioning that there are lots of changes happening in the market and the number of studios has decreased. This phenomenon could be caused by the merges between the bigger companies and independent developers.
Something is clear to see though, Finland radiates character and the constant strive for growth. The vast majority of the studios stand out because they create really well-designed games that include interesting narratives for their users. Plus, colorful settings and soundtracks that perfectly adjust to the videogame sector in this country. Supercell is up there in a list of companies that are playing for high stakes with Android. Only time will tell if they’re doing the right thing. Currently, the average invoicing for Finnish studios that have participated in the NeoGames study has increased by 40% compared to 2016. These numbers award the chance that the entire country is taking on this rising market.
