Category Archives: BlackBerry

Predicting BlackBerry’s Q1 sales

Given the popularity of the free game Pixelated I have a healthy data set in order to publish statistics on the BlackBerry ecosystem which I have been lead to believe are fairly accurate. As such I have decided to use this data in order to predict BlackBerry’s sales for Q1 2014 (which ended June 1st and will be reported in the morning on June 28th).

Working on the assumption that there is a correlation between downloads of Pixelated and sales of BlackBerry 10, my model predicts that BlackBerry sold 5.09M BB10 phones in Q1.

As a disclaimer I should point out that there is a possibility that I am spectacularly wrong. Just because I have a mathematical formula doesn’t mean that my assumption are correct. Really the only way to test and verify my model is to publicly post the result and see how it does.

BlackBerry, BlackBerry10, Statistics

Runaway Trains now at version 2.5

Runaway Trains has been updated to version 2.5 in BlackBerry World, and Google Play. This update adds ten new levels and makes some improvements to the app’s active frame on BlackBerry 10 phones. Additionally a few of the early levels have been redesigned to give an easier start to the game.

IMG_00000047

About Runaway Trains

Runaway Trains is a colorful strategy game for all ages where you must route the trains to the proper station. Each level progresses in difficulty and presents an unique puzzle which you must solve by finding a way to guide the coloured trains causing a collision or running out of track.

This is done by touching the intersections to toggle the open path of the tracks. If at any time the trains crash or end up at the wrong station, you will have lost and have to try again.

Links & Information

Android app on Google Play
Android, BlackBerry, BlackBerry10, Nook, Runaway Trains

Stuff I Need gets multiple lists

CampingListCropThe Stuff I Need app gets support for multiple lists in version 2.0 of the app which in now available for download through BlackBerry World. The app also includes other improvements such as the use of more explicit keyboard shortcuts, but the ability to have multiple lists is the biggest change.

About Stuff I Need

Originally conceived as a grocery list app, this minimalistic checklist can be used to keep track of the stuff you need to get, or the stuff that you need to do. Items on the list can be edited (or deleted) by giving them a long press.

Multiple Lists

Lists can be switched by pulling down on the tab at the top of the screen. This will expose a spinner that shows all of your current lists. New lists can be added by using the “+” button on the right side of the tab. Long pressing on the list name, will allow you to rename a list. Any lists with zero items will be automatically deleted once you exit the app. By default you are limited to just two lists, but you can get unlimited lists with a $1.99 in-app purchase.

Links & Information

BB_World_Small

BlackBerry, BlackBerry10, Stuff I Need

How to link to Facebook and Twitter in Cascades

In cascades it is possible to link directly to a particular Facebook or Twitter profile using the following code.


void MyApp::invokeTwitter()
{
bb::system::InvokeManager* m_invokeManager;
m_invokeManager = new InvokeManager(this);
InvokeRequest request;
request.setTarget("com.twitter.urihandler");
request.setAction("bb.action.VIEW");
request.setUri("twitter:connect:ebscer");
m_invokeManager->invoke(request);
}

void MyApp::invokeFacebook()
{
bb::system::InvokeManager* m_invokeManager;
m_invokeManager = new InvokeManager(this);
InvokeRequest request;
request.setTarget("com.rim.bb.app.facebook");
request.setAction("bb.action.OPEN");
QVariantMap payload;
payload["object_type"] = "page";
payload["object_id"] = "152370494833193";
request.setMetadata(payload);
m_invokeManager->invoke(request);
}

Calling this code will directly open the Twitter and Facebook pages for Ebscer.

BlackBerry, BlackBerry10, code

Simple Dice updated to version 2.2

IMG_00000047The Simple Dice app has been update to version 2.2 in BlackBerry World. This version adds direct links to my Twitter and Facebook, as well as dynamically posting the price for the in-app purchase that can be used in order to remove the advertising from the app.

About Simple Dice

This free app is exactly what it sounds like, just a virtual die that you can roll to get a random number between one and six. The app can also be downloaded from BlackBerry World for both BlackBerry 10 and older touchscreen BlackBerry phones.

Links & Information

BlackBerry, BlackBerry10, Simple Dice

Four years of Pixelated

Capture15_25_44Four years ago today I sold my first three copies of Pixelated Plus. Since then the game has been written from the ground up five different times in four different languages. The game The game has gone from just supporting the Storm to supporting every BlackBerry phone that ran OS 4.6 and everything newer including the PlayBook, and BlackBerry 10, and even to other platforms such as the Nook Color and Windows 8. The result is over six million downloads and enough income for this to be my full time job for the past two and a half years.

I hate when people ask me where I see myself in the next five years, because five years ago I certainly did not see this…

BlackBerry, Pixelated

Another 10 levels for Xploding Boxes

IMG_00000017Xploding Boxes has been updated to version 4.5 with an additional 10 levels. This brings the total number of levels in the game up to 390. This update also brings a few other improvements to the app as well. On Android devices (including the Nook) improvements were made to the fonts used in various parts of the app. On Windows the live tile for the game was improved, while the active frame on the Q10 also got an overhaul.

About Xploding Boxes

Xploding Boxes is a strategy game for BlackBerry, Android, Nook, Windows 8, and BlackBerry 10 where the goal of the game is to start a chain reaction that will explode all of the boxes on the screen. Each level gives you a different number of touches, and requires a different strategy to solve.

The game itself, and the first 25 levels are available for free, while an in-app purchase can be used to access the rest of the levels for just $2.99 while maintaining your progress from the free levels.

Links & Information

Android, BlackBerry, BlackBerry10, Nook, Windows, Xploding Boxes

Newer BBOS versions continue to see small gains

StatsApr2013

The use of BlackBerry OS 7.0+ and 6.0+ increased a bit for the second straight month in April. The use of OS 7.0+ is now up to 36.9% while the use of OS 6.0+ is now up to 65.8% of BlackBerry OS users. While these statistics become less important as users (and developers) start to migrate over to the BlackBerry 10 platform, it is still good to see more users on the newer versions of the operating system.

This data was taken from downloads of the free BlackBerry strategy game Pixelated. Data shown on the chart is from the beginning of April 2012 through the end of April 2013, and does not include BlackBerry 10 or PlayBook devices.

BlackBerry, Statistics

Presenting today at BlackBerry Live

ShapeItLevel2 - CopyI am presenting session JAM42 today with Brian Scheirer today at 1pm. The topic of our talk is on creating games in Cascades, where we will shows off some of the details (and code!) for a game we have created especially for this event, as well as talk about our experiences creating games like Pixelated, Visual Connection, and Starbeams.

The source code for the sample app can be found at github. An early version of the slides can be found at on my site.

BlackBerry, BlackBerry10, Events