作者：Latoyi

Google社交平台已经面世，并受到外界的广泛赞誉。这个颇有前途的新社交平台为Google带来了许多机遇，他们现在也进驻了获利颇丰的社交游戏行业。

尽管Facebook之类的社交平台目前在游戏行业有个良好的立足点，但这并不表示这个市场已经没有足够的空间进驻新平台。事实上，Google在社交媒介中新颖独特的地位以及公司的手机操作系统Android和微交易系统都预示着社交游戏无疑是公司下一步的发展目标。

Google+ VS Facebook)from cnbeta.com)

社交游戏已取得成功

社交游戏无疑是Google+的竞争对手——社交网络Facebook的关键成功要素和盈利来源。在路透社的报道中，互联网优秀企业家及网络营销巨头DoubleClick前领导人Kevin Ryan声称，本财政年度社交游戏将为这个世界上最大的社交网络平台产生近10亿美元的收入，其中部分来自广告和Facebook Credits。

Facebook上最大的社交游戏开发商Zynga表示，他们在2011年第1季度获得了2.35亿美元的盈利，这个数据表明这家位于加州的游戏开发商今年盈利可能突破10亿美元。如果不是借助Facebook平台，这个数字几乎不可能实现。Zynga随后表示：Facebook平台为我们带来了大量的盈利和玩家，我们于将来可预见的时期内准备继续采用这种做法。

由于社交游戏市场正不断向前发展，因而到2014年市场总价值可能达到15亿美元，Google+也能够从中分一杯羹。

Google+足以夺取一席之地

根据Engadget的报道，Google+的源代码中深藏着某些与游戏相关的服务，或许我们以后便可以见到。有些代码蕴含着明显的游戏特征，比如有代码的意思是“已发送游戏邀请，更多内容请见Google Plus Games”。

这种设计或许并不会让众人大感惊奇，Google去年积极收购Slide和SocialDeck之类的游戏设计公司，正计划成立自己的游戏团队。

Google+ Games或许将成为这个搜索巨头与Facebook Games和苹果的Game Center等一系列优秀社交游戏站点竞争的有力工具。

在社交游戏领域，Facebook显然是众多网站中的冠军，但它仍然缺乏让顾客在游戏中协作的核心方式。我猜想，如果Google+需要独自处理单个平台上的不同社交游戏，可能采取与苹果Game Center相似的方法。如果这种做法在社交网络中实施得当，足可视为一种成就。

游戏开发商的看法

尽管Google此刻还未准备讨论社交网络的游戏计划，但这并不意味着游戏不在其考虑之内。Google全球交流和公共事务高级管理人员Katie Watson表示：现在我们还未有将游戏整合至Google Plus中的具体计划。但是，你必须谨记这确实是个正在进展中的项目。随着时间推移，我们想在Google Plus中增加许多新功能。我们对此很有激情。

硬核游戏开发商Kabam首席执行官Kevin Chou在Gamasutra的采访中说道：“就第一印象而言，我认为最令人印象深刻的事物在于，Google所创造出的产品有多种Google特性，而且其完善性和功能性与Facebook旗鼓相当。我相信Google已经向外界证明他们会开发出符合你心中所想的高质量产品。”

褒赏Google+的不只是Kabam，RockYou高级副总裁Jonathan Dark说道：“每个在网络上玩游戏的玩家都有各种各样与他们一起玩游戏的人，这些人或许并非他们现实中的社交对象。”

《Ravenwood Fair》开发商Lolapps首席执行官Arjun Sethi表示，Google Plus是Google迈出的重要一步，很显然他们能够加强用户间的交流。

Circles是玩家的理想之物

或许Google制作社交网络的最大及最新原动力便是所谓的Circles，这项功能使得用户获取他人共享信息的方式变得简单。

Circles真正令人惊异的因素在于，它不像Facebook那样是个需要玩家互相间产生关系的组织，Google+采用异步的方法来形成整个组织。这很适合那些想与他人玩游戏但又不想让玩伴了解个人生活的玩家。

PlayHaven产品经理Ryan Hoover说道：“Facebook社交游戏玩家经常随机添加他人为好友或在各种社群站点中寻找游戏玩伴，只为能够照料他人的作物（游戏邦注：指代那些农场类的社交游戏）。不幸的是，这种做法使用户的社交图谱混乱，也使Facebook的主要用途——社交互动的价值下降。”

Google+采取的做法更贴合玩家的需求，使得他们可以很快找到所需的社交群体，改善游戏和社交体验。

这种休闲关系可能对某些玩家很有吸引力，他们需要的是无需添加好友也能够比较分数、发送邀请和谈论游戏。

Google+的潜力

与Facebook不同的是，Google还有其自有的操作系统Android，以目前的成长速度这或许可能在短期内成为引领手机市场的系统。尽管在社交游戏方面它可能受到Facebook的挑战，但Google手上有着一个很大的优势：Android平台的手机游戏健全生态系统。

假如Google+转变为游戏平台，我们更期望能看到手机游戏与社交游戏的结合产物。这种基于手机系统的整合使得Google可以创造出Facebook所不能及的产物。

假设运行Android操作系统的产品中含有Google+的内置游戏平台，顾客可以同时采用手机和社交网络两种方法使用游戏、成就和社交图谱，那么产生的效果之大不言而喻，完全可以看成是苹果Game Center的巨大威胁。

总体来说，这对游戏设计方和用户都有好处，因为竞争越强越能出现创新产品。（本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译，如需转载请联系：游戏邦）

Google+ is placed to accept social gaming industry by storm

Latoyi

Google’s lengthy-looked forward to social project has arrived also it has been met with general approval in the early adopters. The promising new social platform reveals many possibilities for Google, also it can now take advantage of the lucrative social gaming industry.

Although the kind of Facebook curently have a good footing within the gaming industry, it doesn t imply that there’s no room for an additional platform to participate in. Actually, because of the fresh, unique take of Google on social media, combined with its mobile operating-system, Android, along with a micropayment system, social gaming is definitely an apparent route for Google to visit lower.

Social Gaming: An Established Success

Social gaming is undoubtedly among the key success factors and revenue causes of Google+’s rival social networking, Facebook. Inside a Reuters report, Kevin Ryan, a number one Internet entrepreneur and former Leader of internet marketing giant DoubleClick, claims the world’s greatest social networking is on the right course to create $1 billion in revenue this season from social gaming, many of which will come from advertising and Facebook Credits.

Zynga, the greatest social gaming developer on Facebook, revealed it alone produced $235 million in revenue throughout the very first quarter of 2011, which indicates the California-based game maker may likely hit $1 billion in revenue this season which wouldn’t happen to be possible whether it hadn’t been for Facebook. Zynga lately stated: We generate substantially our revenue and gamers with the Facebook platform and be prepared to continue doing so for that expected future.

Because of the pace where the social gaming market is going, the marketplace in general might be worth $1.5bn by 2014 by that point, Google+ may possess a fairly hefty slice from the social gaming cake.

Google+ is able to Play

Based on an Engadget report, deep within Google+’s source code really are a couple of hints of services that people could see later on, one of these is really a gaming feature of sorts having a type of code that reads: have sent you Game invites and much more from Google Plus Games.

This can come as no real surprise to a lot of, thinking about that Google was actively obtaining game designers like Slide and SocialDeck this past year and it has been prospecting for positions on the gaming team.

Google+ Games may be the search giant’s undertake Facebook Games and Apple’s Game Center, a couple of the greatest social gaming sites.

Facebook is a obvious champion one of the internet sites within the social gaming sphere, still it lacks a centralized method to allow customers to collaborate at gaming. The way in which I imagine Google+ would handle games could be much like Apple’s Game Center when it comes to the way it single-handedly handles different social games in a single platform, and this can be a recipe for achievement if implemented well on the social networking.

Designers are Impressed

So you will find there’s platform that’s very able to running social games, also it appears like this is receiving targeted reactions from game designers too. While Google isn’t quite prepared to discuss the gaming plans because of its social networking at this time, it doesn’t imply that gaming is this is not on its radar. Katie Watson, senior manager of global communications and public matters at Google, stated: We do not have specific particulars to talk about on our plans around integrating games into Google Plus. But, this is vital that you bear in mind it is really an ongoing project and case the start. We intend to add lots of features and functionality to Google Plus with time. We’re just excited to obtain began.

Within an interview with Gamasutra, Kevin Chou, Boss of core-gamer focused developer Kabam, stated: When it comes to first impressions, I believe what’s impressive is the fact that Google has worked items that connect multiple Google qualities, which has accomplished, pretty much, feature-parity with Facebook. This is an extremely impressive task, and I believe Google has proven that they’ll develop a high-quality product having a high-touch interface, with design in your mind.

Obviously, this is not only Kabam that’s thinking about what Google+’s Circles needs to offer. Jonathan Dark night, SVP of Games RockYou, stated: Individuals who play games on internet sites routinely have categories of people they play games with, who do not always overlap with true buddies they see socially.

And Arjun Sethi, Boss of Ravenwood Fair maker Lolapps, stated: Google Plus is a superb step for Google. This is obvious they’ve built it in the ground-up with the thought of enhancing communication using the social web in your mind.

Circles: Ideal for Players

Possibly the greatest also in Google’s latest attempt to produce a social networking is exactly what it calls Circles, the feature that causes it to be simple to gain in treatments for who they share things with and just how.

The truly amazing factor about Circles is the fact that unlike Facebook where associations are needed to become mutual, Google+ assumes an asymmetric approach in mapping out associations. This is often handy for players who wish to delicately add buddies, without needing to allow them to in on the personal lives.

Ryan Hoover, Product Manager at PlayHaven, expressed exactly the same sentiment on Quora: This is common for Facebook social players to friend random other people or seek fellow game-gamers on various community sites to assist manage one another’s crops. Regrettably, this pollutes the consumer’s social graph, devaluing Facebook’s primary utility social interaction.

Google+ puts lists (as Circles) fundamentally from the consumer experience as well as on-boarding flow. This enables customers to define explicit social groups to produce a better gaming and social experience.

This type of casual relationship may be attractive to players within the sense that certain doesn’t need to be mutual buddies to check scores, send invites, and talk about games along with other gamers inside a particular Circle.

The potential for Google+

Unlike Facebook, Google features its own operating-system (OS), Android, which in the rate its growing may be the market leader fairly soon. Despite trailing Facebook when it comes to social gaming experience, Google holds one large advantage: a wealthy ecosystem of mobile games with the Android platform.

Assuming Google+ turns into a gaming platform, we ought to most likely expect an overlap between mobile and social, having a uniform obligations infrastructure underlying both. An OS-level integration enables Google to innovate beyond what Facebook is capable of doing in a few respects.

Imagine products running Android Operating System having a built-in gaming platform powered by Google+, that provides customers use of almost all their games, accomplishments, and buddies lists both on mobile as well as on the social networking all under one umbrella. This is likely to be huge and it’ll be considered a massive threat to Apple’s Game Center.

Overall, this is ideal for both game designers and customers because high’s competition, there’s innovation. (Source: Live Journal)