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Outspark Teams With EA To Publish Western Adaptaton of J2M's Debut
by Leigh Alexander, Christian Nutt [PC, Console/PC, Exclusive]
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September 1, 2009
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Free-to-play MMO publisher Outspark will launch a Western adaptation of Debut, a "casual online rhythm and dancing game" developed by Electronic Arts' Korean J2M studio.
The game, which offers customizable avatars in a social dance environment, is the first offering from EA's Korean arm to make it Westward, says Outspark. The company will customize the game for North American audiences with interface and design enhancements, targeted social networking features and other market-specific adaptations.
Outspark will assume responsibility for operating Debut's Western edition, including monetizing the game, marketing it, and supporting its user base through community management and customer service support.
"Debut has been operating in Korea since 2008, and we're looking forward to bringing its adaptation to a broad North American audience," said EA Korea's Savannah Hahn in a statement. "This is a fun, immersive music rhythm game, and with Outspark's expertise in creating rich, social online gaming experiences, we think it will bring a new type of gaming environment to entertainment seekers online."
Gamasutra also got the opportunity to quiz Outspark CEO Susan Choe on the partnership:
Can you describe the process of licensing this title from EA for the North American market?
Outspark had a prior relationship with J2M/EA. During the past few years, as Outspark demonstrated rapid growth and leadership in the North American free-to-play MMO and mid-session market segments, game developers noticed. Several months of discussion culminated the agreement between J2M/EA and Outspark to publish Debut in North America.
As we looked to introduce more casual and social games for our 13-35 audience, we recognized that Debut offers fun, immersive gameplay that music gamers and virtual world audiences would recognize as the next level in social gaming.
Prior to finalizing the relationship, EA performed an assessment of Outspark's team, along with other North American- based publishers of casual MMO's and free-to-play games. It was after that process that EA/J2M decided to partner with us.
Why didn’t EA US launch the title in the West themselves? Is there a larger relationship with EA than just this title?
We can’t speak for EA, but our track record and history of success likely made for a good match. As for a larger relationship, right now, we’re focused on the launch of this game.
What about this title is appealing to your audience?
Outspark players are very active and social... and our audience has more females than the traditional MMO user base. All of our players love the ability to customize their characters, chat and gift items to friends, and we know that seasonal fashion-focused music, fashion, customization, and socialization will entertain Outspark players immensely.
Most importantly, this is a quality title from a leading developer of MMOGs, bringing our players a new opportunity to meet people, hang out, and have fun in a shared social space.
Can you integrate this EA developed title fully into your own Outspark Platform?
We’ve had our teams working on this since the deal was signed. It will be completely integrated into the Outspark platform.
Outspark had previously spoken of forthcoming relationships with big name publishers. Can we still expect that in the future?
It's premature to make additional announcements, but I can say based on discussions that Outspark is clearly being recognized as a leading partner for developers who want to bring their online games to North America.
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