It sounds like Zynga’s move from social to mobile games is in full swing, with the company announcing a range of high-profile licensing agreements.
Zynga has acquired licenses for the Tiger Woods brand, the NFL and NFL Players Inc. that will allow it to publish official American Football and golf mobile games.
The new titles will be released under the company’s new banner; Zynga Sports, with the first – NFL Showdown – already in development.
NFL Showdown will be a managerial-style mobile game in which players build their teams with access to a roster of real stars from NFL teams.
“As a sports fan, I am particularly excited about our Sports expansion and being able to share this exciting news with you,” said COO Clive Downie.
Tiger Woods previously headlined EA’s PGA Tour titles on consoles, until the two ended their 15-year partnership in October last year. EA also produces the long-running series of Madden NFL games. This will mark the respective mobile gaming debut of both properties.
Zynga has already hired feature designers who worked on EA’s Tiger Woods franchise to work on the new titles.
It is unclear whether Zynga’s Tiger Woods game will be like the console incarnation
“I believe that by combining our expertise with the NFL, NFL Players Inc. and Tiger Woods, we can create next-generation mobile football and golf games for consumers around the world.”
Zynga has also signed a multi-year deal with Warner Bros. to license the Looney Tunes brand. There’s no word yet on how the company will use this brand. We can only hope that they bag the NBA license and decide to make a Space Jam mobile game.
Zynga’s push into official sports games should not come as a surprise as the firm recently hired former Xbox boss Don Mattrick as its new CEO.
Zynga was previously known for its Facebook games that included Farmville and its sequel, and Zynga Poker – both of which it has created mobile ports of.
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