Today at the Tokyo Game Show, Nokia and G-mode, a leading casual games developer, announced that they are collaborating to bring more mobile multiplayer games to the global market. G-mode is developing Chess a Moment, an online and turn-based chess game, based on the Nokia SNAP Mobile platform. Players can compete in up to eight live games simultaneously, and have up to 30 hours to ponder their next move. Players can also review the move histories of their opponents at any time during a game. Consumers can expect to get their hands on G-mode’s Chess a Moment in the fourth quarter of 2007.
“Our cooperation with SNAP Mobile started when we entered and won the SingTel Game Quest competition in 2006. From concept to deployment, SNAP Mobile has provided the right foundation to take our concept and turn it into a reality,” said Takeshi Miyaji President of G-mode.
Antoine Doumenc, Head of SNAP Mobile added, “Chess a Moment is a winning example of how to build an innovative and fun mobile multiplayer game that transcends many of today’s network limitations. G-mode effectively brings more entertainment to mobile chess by allowing players to interact online with friends versus playing alone against a computer.”
In Chess a Moment, each game is played against a live opponent; however players can also make a move against an offline player. Not just for the pros, beginners can also join in the fun as a no-clock feature allows players to learn chess at their own pace. Key multiplayer gaming features include chat, presence, and rankings. The game also supports multiple languages, enabling players to text opponents who do not necessarily speak the same language.
Nokia plans to distribute Chess a Moment on select Nokia handsets, and make the game available for global operator-assisted download.
G-mode and SNAP Mobile will be demonstrating Chess a Moment at the Tokyo Game Show. Executives from both companies will jointly present a case analysis on taking a casual game global and mobile in the TGS Forum on September 21, 2007 from 2:15- 3:15 p.m. local time at the Makuhari Messe in Tokyo, Japan. More information on the event can be found at: http://tgs.cesa.or.jp/english/