Developers Now Working With Google+ Social Gaming Team

You knew it had to happen, it was just a matter of, what it turns out to be as, hours. A few game developers who have thus far made their bulks of cash from working with Facebook for social gaming have spoken with the folks at Gamasutra on how they plan on working with Google as soon as possible to have their games interact to the maximum using the Circles functionality, in some way or another, on Google+ and their brand new burgeoning social media platform. Just busting at the seams with people trying to get in on all the new action.

First on the list is Kevin Chou, CEO of Kabam, a group whose main claim to fame is the core-gamer focused Kingdoms of Camelot. He expresses his glee at the fact that Google's managed to create a Facebook-like interface with all the interactivity and more, all in a rather fabulous looking package:

"In terms of first impressions, I think what's impressive is that Google has dealt products that connect multiple Google properties, and that has achieved, more or less, feature-parity with Facebook. It's a very impressive feat, and I think Google has shown that they can build a high-quality product with a high-touch user interface, with design in mind," said Chou, "We'll see how consumer adoption goes across that platform, but I think the initial look of the product is very impressive."

One of the things Chou and other game creators are interested in specifically is the opt-in nature of Google Circles, tying contacts to one another based on specific interests rather than Facebook's friends which are a much more general sort of connection — on the other hand, Google's Circles allows for business contacts working with one another in a slightly less-personal environment than Facebook's specific "friends" name. Jonathan Knight, SVP of Games at RockYou, a group responsible for Zoo World on Facebook, noted the following:

"People who play games on social networks typically have groups of people they play games with, who don't necessarily overlap with 'true' friends they see socially," noted Knight, "We are definitely energized by Google Plus and the work that is happening there...We look forward to watching their platform evolve, and to working with them on projects in the future."

Knight also mentioned that he and some other developers have been working with a "social gaming team" at Google and had early access to the network for some time before the Beta. Arjun Sethi, CEO of developer group at Lolapps, a group responsible for Facebook's Ravenwood Fair, noted the following:

"Google Plus is a great step for Google. It's clear that they've built it from the ground up with the idea of improving communication with the social web in mind." Sethi went on to note that "Their approach is simple yet apparent across their Google products. It will be exciting to see how millions of consumers start adapting to it. For Lolapps specifically, Google Plus will give us the opportunity to extend the ways that we are already innovating upon other social platforms and to see what Google has to offer."

Finally, Google themselves had a very similar thing to say to what we've heard thus far, that the program is just beginning:

"We don't have any specific details to share on our plans around incorporating games into Google Plus. But, it's important to keep in mind this is an ongoing project and this is just the beginning. We plan to add a lot of features and functionality to Google Plus over time. We're just excited to get started." – Google senior manager of global communications and public affairs Katie Watson

Games ahoy!

Check out our review of the mobile app and full guide of the web-based Google+ to get majorly educated!