PopCap: You won't believe the freemium games we've got planned

Once upon a time, freemium games were seen as the awkward offspring of free releases, housing cynical in-app purchases designed to get you to part with your cash on the sly.

Now, if stats are to be believed, they're one of the most popular categories of game on the App Store, and gamers positively salivate at the prospect of parting with a few more pounds to pump up their favourite games.

No wonder PopCap - previously a strict proponent of the paid model - is equally enthusiastic about employing in-app purchases in its upcoming iOS releases.

Speaking to our sister site PocketGamer.biz, PopCap senior director of product and business strategy for mobile Giordano Contestabile said freemium games in particular will be something of a focus for the publisher moving forward.

"While we typically don't disclose much about our future plans, I can say that you're in for a lot of surprises for us in the coming months, and that in-app transactions and the freemium model are going to feature prominently," Contestabile commented.

"At the end, for us it's more about creating a great game and delivering in a way that feels right and that provides players with the opportunity to make informed choices, rather than focusing on a specific business model."

Contestabile added that PopCap had already enjoyed a great deal of success with in-app purchases in the publisher's paid-for games.

Both Plants vs. Zombies and Bejeweled 2 + Blitz, for example, now include DLC - and the IAP available in the latter, in particular, are proving popular.

"We are seeing it with Bejeweled 2 + Blitz, where revenue for in-app transactions - to purchase boosts which can be used in the Blitz game mode - have recently surpassed revenues for purchases of the game," Contestabile concluded.

You can read the rest of the interview over on PocketGamer.biz.