Zynga withdraws from China, the rise of the times on the bones of another era

Four years ago, a famous computer master of computers in the United States, Tom (a pseudonym), gave up Google Microsoft's offer, returned to join Zynga China. Andy Tian, who interviewed him, Tian a Boston consulting firm and Google, and founded Hippede Information Technology (Beijing) Co., which was later acquired by Zynga and subsequently became Zynga China. To his satisfaction, Zynga was paid even more than some of its top-tier gaming firms. But the welfare of the foreign company does not have to say, afternoon tea, annual leave, year-end award ... No overtime on weekends.

But two years later, he left. In the same year, Tian, general manager of Zynga China, left the business.

In 2015, Lisa (a pseudonym), who joined Zynga China less than half a year ago, heard from former colleagues that headquarters was shutting down the Chinese studio. Italy field, she did not very surprised, in the mind calculate oneself will get "n+4" compensation, to the micro-letter concerned about their former colleagues sent a "smile" expression.

The starting point of China tour

Headquartered in San Francisco, Zynga, founded in 2007, can be said to have grown up with social networks such as Facebook and MySpace. Zynga, the hottest gaming developer on Facebook with a series of casual social games such as "City Ville", "Farm Ville" and "Zynga Poker", is also embarking on global expansion.

In May 2010, Zynga announced the acquisition of China social game developer Hippede Information Technology (Beijing) Co., Ltd., established the Zynga China branch, and Siped founder Tian became the managing director of Zynga China. Two months ago, Zynga opened its first overseas office in Bangalore, India. Hippede Information Technology (Beijing) Co., Ltd. was the fourth of Zynga's acquisitions, before which Zynga bought YoVille, investigative business and my Mini three companies.

Zynga, which was successfully listed in Nasdaq in 2011, calculated at the closing price of the day, when Zynga was at $6.7 billion trillion, roughly equivalent to its rivals, EA, one of America's biggest gaming companies.

The inability performance of ACE products

The first game that Zynga brought to China in 2011 was the "Star City", launched by Tencent, which was formerly known as the Social game Ville, which was released by Zynga a few years ago on Facebook. Despite the good results, but today, many people still think, "Star City" is a failure.

The domestic game market and overseas market "time difference", so that the domestic social game market rapidly decline, coupled with Tencent has been "happy farm" into the under the under, Tencent although the game has some support, but "Star City" overall back to this ability far behind the local game.

The domestic flash game originated in 09, brilliant in 2011, basically with "City Ville" ("Star Good Cities" edition prototype) synchronization. Starting in 2011, the Moderate page tour overall revenue stronger than the light game, in the game results oriented market, "Star City" in China's ability to become natural can not compare already in the domestic development of the "legendary Department" page tour. At this point, Zynga China did not make the appropriate decisions and changes, the game's operating model or copy Europe and the United States. The failure of ACE products in the domestic market has made Zynga suspicious of the domestic market.

Just as all global companies are frustrated by overseas expansion, the data-driven Zynga first response is also "closed". And in the large company layer Shong system, a lot of games just the project spent nearly six months of time, a common planning in the introduction of the game demo idea, need to undergo a layer of audit, but also through the overseas data Evaluation and Headquarters authorized party can go. At this time of domestic, half a year, a not too successful page tour can already recover the cost.

The loss of products that have been developed against the Chinese market has highlighted the pitfalls of Zynga's hiring at the start of China's creation. Zynga's experience with the returnees, high education, foreign companies background, in the unwritten, no threshold of the Chinese game market is only a piece of paper. Based on the casual gaming of home users, and the lack of genes for Chinese native f2p web games, Zynga has struggled to develop at home.

"I think this is a problem at the company's conceptual level, there are almost no hardcore gamers at the top," Tom told reporters, "I was in the [Product manager] team has a very wonderful phenomenon, except I have no one has a product operation experience or the game industry related experience. These people come from a variety of computer-related industries, in other words, the team doesn't really know the game. We can see many successful games in the country, its product manager is first and foremost a fanatical gamer, who has his own game belief, and has a passion and ideal drive to do a game and finally succeeds, but Zynga, from top to bottom, I don't see this kind of employee who is passionate about the game.

The end of the mobile internet age

Around 2010, smartphones grew in the world, especially in Europe and the US, and social-networking users began to churn out mobile-end products. In the face of rivals from the mobile side, Zynga is unresponsive and tries to move the web game to the mobile end in a "brute-transplant" fashion. With the spirit of "allowing PC users to play without a computer", Zynga has also tried to move the game, but it has never been as good as the original app development King.

Now afterwards it seems to be related to the truth is very simple, the game on the mobile side of the operating mode and the PC Web side of the operating mode is very different, forced transplant will cause very poor user experience, but contrary to the original intention of retaining users. Mobile end game development than circumstance but Supercell, King and other Up-and-comer, the original PC-side social gaming system can not bear to give up, so "big ship difficult to turn" dilemma for Zynga after the plight of the foreshadowing.

By the year 2013, Zynga, in the face of the rise of mobile gaming, had bought several products from the "Zynga Poker" several years ago, after a few major acquisitions of game developers, and Zynga China's focus has shifted from the domestic market to game development and localization of overseas games to the development of overseas games.

"Zynga is in a very awkward position and, in the eyes of overseas companies, Zynga is too wolf, and many people are unwilling to join Zynga and buy game companies but not keep the talent." At home, Zynga's employees in China have been dropping, working overtime, rewinding India's American jet lag, and finding the project canceled. "This is also related to the Google-style office atmosphere of many of the same companies in the United States, a relaxed and free environment is conducive to the divergence of creative thinking, so we can see that Americans are creative and adept at seizing the market," he said. But after the market has opened up, the subsequent competition is unlikely to be met. And China's game market is a very open and competitive market, the United States relatively easy office model focus on research and development of the process rather than focus on results, such ideas are not suitable for full competition in the market environment. ”

"and the strong ability to absorb gold accompanied by the company's thriving beautiful scene and the early arrival of luxurious enjoyment." I was on a business trip to headquarters in early 2011, when the company was filled with a busy but relaxing atmosphere. Many teams work overtime for a week, the weekend department leaders directly with the team straight to Las Vegas happy, of course, the cost is the company reimbursement. Every Friday night the company has a big meal, the finest Kobe beef on the ice sculpture carved into Zynga, or a seafood feast dominated by Alaska snow crabs. Zynga was not on the market at the time, and it made a lot of money, so there was no pressure on cost control. Although not listed, many of the early employees who took a large share of their shares had already made a fortune by trading in the two-tier market, buying luxury cars. "This is one of the game producers who worked in Zynga China," recalls the massive layoffs of Zynga in 2013.

After the IPO, Zynga was forced to shrink by the pressure of performance, starting with closures of overseas studios and layoffs.

Beijing studio shutdown is accidental?

After the strategic adjustment, from 2012 onwards, the Beijing studio overall income balance and a slight surplus. But this year, Zynga still chooses to close down Chinese companies, which many see as "strategic considerations". In a straightforward sense, Beijing studios have little to lose and a slight surplus, but have almost no contribution to Zynga's overall. Moreover, Zynga's performance in overseas markets is not ideal, and the life cycle of several Trump products has come to an end, with limited resources to be redistributed.

February 13, Zynga released 2014 Q4 and its full-year earnings. The report shows that the company Q4 revenue of 1.209 billion yuan, up 9% year-on-year, net loss of 281 million yuan, down 180% year-on-year. 2014 annual revenue of 4.308 billion yuan, the year-on-year decline of 21%; net loss of 1.411 billion yuan.

The author has collected some notable news from Zynga in China in the past 2013-2015 years:

April 15, 2013: Zynga CEO's first visit to China, launched by its novice tour

April 25, 2013: The number of Zynga active users declines 13%, and 4 games will be closed in China

June 26, 2013: Zynga's top management is in turmoil and China's general manager leaves office

October 14, 2013: Former Zynga Chinese executive Tian entrepreneurship, targeting mobile social applications

February 27, 2014: Zynga buys Chinese social game development company XPD to expand Asia market

November 27, 2014: Zynga's Village vacation in farm towns landed in China

February 11, 2015: Zynga China company officially disbanded on 11th, with more than 100 employees of Zynga Chinese companies being cut

It can be seen that Zynga's actions in China still target the market of social games, including the previous 2012 cooperation with Tencent on the platform to see Tencent's position in China's social sphere, but the industry agreed that the game to the heavy development of the trend has been irreversible, Pure social game slowly fade out of the mainstream situation is also difficult to recover, like the previous defeat of everyone game also lost in custody wrong treasure.

"Closing the Beijing studio is an accidental injury," he said. But it also means that Zynga is withdrawing from the Chinese market, a decision that is regrettable. "Zynga is caught in a vicious circle of buying other studios-culture not and-loss of staff-the stock price is not ideal," a former senior executive from Zynga told reporters. Many times, the management is also very confused, asking us to find the "bright spot" in the work, these bright spots as long as it seems meaningful on the line, sometimes may not have a dime income. ”

Zynga, a gene-deficient, has once again validated the phrase "the success of a particular game product is not replicable," while relying heavily on data-driven, the Chinese studios lack the corresponding data samples and experience. Zynga is not the only overseas tycoon to break the Chinese market, and EA has also shut down the Chinese studio, which recently Konami China, while most of the subsidiaries of overseas companies that live in the country are still alive.

Written here, a lot of people are almost called "the future of the world game belongs to Chinese companies", but when we think carefully, we will find that these overseas giants in the domestic experience, domestic companies will also encounter overseas. Just as a friend told me recently, "Current events make heroes, but can heroes not adapt to all ages?" "Zynga's withdrawal from China has also made everyone realize that the rise of an era is often a step in the bones of another era."