But what's next? Welch argues that the developments which led to the popularity of hidden object and click-management titles can only be built upon. "At PlayFirst we introduced character and narrative to our games -- we obsessed on meta-structural devices such as story development and even simple-sounding aspects like map screens and expert levels, all in service of answering the player's question, 'Why am I doing this?' which wasn't being answered by abstract match-3 games. "

"Our consumers could say, 'Oh, I'm solving this level to help Flo fix up her restaurant and become a successful entrepreneur.' The ability to nurture our consumers' connection to the characters and provide them with a clear sense of objective through storylines has proven very powerful," he continued.

"I believe that the next step... is to create a similar metastructure to answer the question, 'Why did I do that last night?' We need to help the player get something or somewhere more tangible, maybe to another level of status, or fill out a collection, or help a friend, or in some other manner to achieve something worth talking about. But keep it simple, or it won't be relevant to the masses. "

"A lot more focus is placed on story than previously was," agreed Carroll, but he did note that regardless, "Bejeweled is still one of the top sellers in the casual space." As a result his argument may seem surprising to those who forsee an increase in complexity in casual games as a result of increased importance of story -- growth should be maintained by "simplifying games and making them immediately accessible."

"This will open up the marketplace to a wider range of people," he explained. "Becoming more complex is a way to continue selling to existing customers, but it isn't the best way to find new customers. Instead of becoming more complex, casual games should (and are) increasing the amount of content that consumers enjoy to keep them interested. You can see, at least within the downloadable sector, a strong correlation between less complexity and higher sales."

"Hidden object games, for example, offer perhaps the least complex type of game play ever found in a game. At the base level, all you have to do is see an object and click on it. There is no real interaction at all. In match-3 you had to consider the board and move pieces, now with hidden object you just have to identify a game piece... and click on it... and you're done!"

"While the gameplay in casual games I think has clearly become easier, the polish, including stories, has become much more involved," he continued. "Hidden object games really lend themselves well to stories, as well as light adventure games, and both have been explored a little bit."

"However, what casual gamers seem to hunger for is more of the same. It's like watching a TV show. After it is over, if it's good, you want to see another episode. Casual game players are looking for additional episodes, providing another fun experience to them in a familiar framework. The market is willing to try out new game types, but they tend to stick to the current favorites."

PlayFirst's Diner Dash: Hometown Hero

Welch agreed completely with this. "The biggest thing we're doing right now to keep consumers excited is the release of monthly new episodes for Diner Dash: Hometown Hero. There's an audience that just can't get enough of Flo, and every time we expand PlayFirst's Dash brand universe, our players get excited -- it's like a new episode of Lost in that you never know where you're going to find your beloved cast of characters next -- and you certainly don't want to miss an episode."