Zynga UK established in studio acquisition

Social games giant Zynga has made its first acquisition of a UK development outfit.

Wonderland Software, creator of iPhone title GodFinger, is to be renamed Zynga Mobile UK.

Wonderland Software staff will now be working for Zynga, while the studio’s former CEO – Matthew Wiggins – takes the role of General Manager.

“Wonderland is composed of an amazingly talented, creative team, known for developing deeply engaging and innovative games,” said David Ko, senior vice president of mobile at Zynga.

“This is a team that has developed novel game technology to tell engrossing stories and I’m incredibly excited to have Wonderland join Zynga as we build a presence in the UK.”

Wonderland was founded in 2009 from former studio staff at Lionhead, Codemasters and others, according to details provided by Zynga.

The studio’s breakthrough game, GodFinger, has not been purchased, Zynga said. The fate of that IP, and who owns it, is unknown.

UNPRECEDENTED GROWTH

The latest acquisition continues an alarming burst of growth for the Facebook games titan.

In the past thirty days alone, Zynga is thought to have hired four key execs (1, 2, 3, 4), two new studios (1, 2) and a further two development groups (1, 2).

The Wonderland buyout is the ninth announcement of growth. It comes just days after Reuters reported that EA’s second-in-command, John Scappert, has joined the company.

Zynga, now valued over $7 billion, boasts over 250 million monthly active users. The company is one of the most high-profile in the west toi have cracked the free-to-play monetisation model.

The firm is buying with fury in mobile Space too. Last year it acquired ‘Words With Friends’ creators NewToy, as well as New York mobile studio Area/Code.