NimbleBit fiercely disputes Zynga's 'common evolution' argument

By Mike Jackson for computerandvideogames.com

Tiny Tower indie developer NimbleBit has blasted Zynga's for the argument that its games aren't clones, but "improved" iterations of games before them.

It's the latest in a war of words between the two firms, after NB kicked off with an open letter to Zynga last week pointing out the overwhelming similarities between Tiny Tower and Zynga's more recently-released Dream Heights.

Zynga responded earlier today with the argument that its titles aren't clones, but improved evolutions over those before it, drawing comparisons to the arrival and growth of Google and Facebook.

But, unsurisingly, NB disagrees. In a new statement to Touch Arcade, NimbleBit's Ian Marsh criticised Zynga for trying to trying to twist the situation, and that "poorly hidden" and "uninspired" iOS clones have "become Zynga's trademark".

Here's the full statement:

"It is a smart idea for Mark Pincus and Zynga to try and lump all games with the name Tower together as an actual genre whose games borrow from each other. Unfortunately sharing a name or setting does not a genre make. The games Pincus mentions couldn't be more different. Sim Tower is a true "sim" with macroscopic management and fine tuning of a buildings facilities. Tower Bloxx is a timing based high score game.

"If you take a quick look before "pulling the lens back" as Pincus suggests, you'll find an innumerable number of details in the game that were painstakingly crafted to be identical to Tiny Tower. These are core gameplay mechanics and rules, not similar settings or themes that games in the same genre might share.

"Why are there 5 different business types like Tiny Tower? Why do 5 people fit in an apartment instead of 4 or 6? Why are there VIP elevator riders that perform the same functions as Tiny Tower? Why do businesses employ exactly 3 workers and produce exactly 3 products that are stocked in exactly the same way as Tiny Tower. Even the tutorials at the beginning of the game follow the exact same steps.

"All of these things are poorly hidden underneath an uninspired veneer which has become Zynga's trademark."