Atom Split Games and Brian McCarthy are proud to announce that The Power Game is now available on iOS, Android, Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 devices in English, French, German, Dutch and Italian.
One of the most successful board games across Northern Europe in the period 1975 – 1978 called “The Power Game” is launched again as a superb digital re-birth of the game. It sold over 1 million copies in 1975/76 and was distributed by the big wholesalers such as Vedes in Germany, Borka in Belgium and Clipper in the Netherlands, Angel Toy Group, U.K. and Dujardin in France.
The Power Game was one of a range of 4 ‘Thinking games’ by Irish inventor, Brian McCarthy and its appeal centred on being very quick and easy to learn how to play – having only three rules of play- but difficult to win. The playing pieces were gears which intermeshed with each other with the end objective of turning the opponent’s Master Gear (with an arrow on it) before your own Master Gear was turned.
Brian is now 72 years of age but completely enthralled the young game developers at a digital games convention in Ireland in March 2013 when he introduced them to the Power Game which their fathers remembered playing when they were young! A deal was quickly struck with Atom Split Games and, nine months later, the digital version with sound, light and great movement is a reality.
While the Power Game broke new ground as a board game by using gears as the playing pieces, it is breaking new ground again as a digital game with the purchasing limit for all in-game goodies set at €19.99 when everything is automatically unlocked. This is a response to the serious questions being asked of some game developers who are cynically leading young people to make unlimited purchases (usually with their parent’s credit cards ) which have been known to amount to many 100’s of Euro.
Because it is a game which rewards strategic thinking instead of the speed of one’s reflexes, the in-game purchases are focused only on changing the play environment but do not affect the actual play so, no play advantage can be bought.
Instead of getting onto the shelves in Hamleys, De Bijenkorf, Kaufhof or Gallerie Lafayette, it is now on, Microsoft, Android and iOS for download from anywhere around the world.“ And another big difference is that, back then, the game was a finished product when it was sold but now it is always a “work-in-progress” sold 24 hours a day and 12 months a year. Plus ça change!”
In the US, Brian appeared on the Today Show and wound up playing Danny Boy on a guitar (acting out the real Irish leprechaun for them!) He also played members of the public during promotional events, literally “for the shirt off their backs” and gave them all T-shirts with “I lost my shirt playing Power Game “emblazoned” across the front.
The Power Game is out now at for Windows 8 and Surface devices and Windows Phone 8. It is also available for Android and IOS devices. The game is currently released in five languages, French, German, Dutch Italian and English. Find out more information about the game at www.thepowergameapp.com, twitter.com/powergamegame or facbook.com/powergamedigital. A game trailer and videos about the game’s history are available at http://youtube.com/thepowergameapp