Posts tagged word mix

I had an itch to try to write a game app.  I had thought about writing a game for a while but kept saving that project for “later”.   Two years ago I decided to give it a go.  I created Word Mix for fun in my spare time.  It was my exercise in creating an Android app.  I was pretty happy with the game’s structure and playability so even though the graphics were quickly done and not up to my standards, I decided to release it on the Android market.  I watched the stats with great anticipation and Word Mix started moving up the charts.  It gained over 10k in its first 6 weeks.  Not too shabby.  At this point I realized my experiment might really take off.  I decided to take it all more seriously and started work on an update.  This update included better graphics and a global leader board.  Downloads kept exceeding expectations and reached over 250k at the 8 month mark, all the while maintaining a 4.5 star average rating.  Both versions made it into the top 50 in their category during this time.

After about 10 months of being released, the decision was made to team up with OpenFeint to manage high scores and achievements for Word Mix.  In October of 2010, Word Mix was featured by OpenFeint.  For this opportunity, I released another update.  With it came the current revision of graphics for Word Mix (and the most widely received).  This brought a big boost in downloads and a lot of new users.

The next big thing for Word Mix was being featured as the Amazon Free App of the Day in September 2011.  A lot of work went into a major update for Word Mix for the Amazon promotion.  Added were rewards that are given at certain scoring levels in the game as well as official support for tablets and large screen devices.  This promotion was very successful because it brought in over 100k new users in a 24 hour period.  The app was well received by the new users and (thankfully) maintained a 3+ star rating.

The most recent news for Word Mix has been it being released on the Nook Market for the Nook Color.  This move has been very positive!  During the initial release, Word Mix almost surpassed Angry Birds in rank.  Almost…ok, about 6 spots below it, but still!  The version of Word Mix for the Nook Color is slightly different than other versions, the most notable difference was the use of Scoreloop to handle the high scores and achievements.  Word Master is also available for the Nook and Word Frenzy is currently in review, soon to be released.

What does the future hold?  Well, more updates to Word Mix!  A new theme is in the works that should be released by late November.  There are also a few new apps in the oven, not quite yet fully baked.  I have also been developing the services side of Greenrift Software.  If you have an iPhone app that you want ported to Android or if you have any app ideas, please feel free to contact Greenrift Software.  The most recent project has been porting “hAPPy family” by Mobile Parent Inc. to Android.

From the beginning of this experiment, I knew that I wanted to be a good steward to my users.  I am so grateful for all the feedback I have received.  I take customer service very seriously and respond to all emails in a timely and friendly manner no matter if the issue is big or small.  If the customer cares enough about my game to write me an email about an issue they are experiencing or a question about game-play then I want to show them the same consideration and more.  I like to think that this attitude and attention played a big part in making Word Mix the success is has become.   My little app is growing up so fast and I am proud of what it has accomplished.