South African game developer Thoopid, of Snailboy fame, has released a new game called Tap the Coin. It is available for iOS (iPhone and iPad) and is free to download. An Android version has also just been launched.
Tap the Coin requires the player to tap coins while bouncing forward to progress. It gets challenging when coins, which are unlocked as one plays, come in from different angles. Players start with bronze coins, then silver, followed by gold, diamond, platinum and “rainbow”.
The game bears a strong resemblance to the rudimentary but hugely popular game Flappy Bird, which was pulled from app stores by its developer, Dong Nguyen, last month. Nguyen said he didn’t want the fame that came with the game’s success.
Both Flappy Bird and Tap the Coin have a similar pixellated design and game play is identical.
Lead developer and MD of Thoopid RW Leibenberg says inspiration was taken from Flappy Bird for its simplicity, but not necessarily for character or difficulty.
The Cape Town-based company began working on the game two weeks ago, when Liebenberg was challenged to make a game in an hour. “It took me an hour to come up with the prototype but afterwards we spent more time on graphics and sound.”
Tap the Coin trailer (via YouTube):
The game was conceptualised, developed and published in two weeks, with one week for Apple App Store approval.
Liebenberg says the Android version will be submitted to the Google Play Store shortly. The company will monetise the game through ads — iAds on iOS and, once approved on the Play Store, through AdMob.
Thoopid released its first game, Snailboy, last October. It quickly climbed the US App Store charts and has been downloaded more than 200 000 times across all platforms, including the Samsung and Amazon app stores. The company plans to release Snailboy on Google Play soon. It is also working on a follow-up to Snailboy. — (c) 2014 NewsCentral Media
See also: SA-made game tops iTunes charts
