Dec
9
My friend Scott and I used to frequently commiserate over our miserable work commutes. We drove in opposite directions, but both of us had become all too intimately familiar with missed dinners, tense daycare pickup routines, and every square inch of the freeways between Seattle and the Eastside.
Then at around the same time last year we both took the heart-seizing leap of moving on from our office jobs. I went into freelancing, and he started his own business.
Scott’s company recently launched their first iOS game, called Tiny Tiger. Tiny Tiger is a $2.99 kid’s app for iPhone and iPad, and it’s freaking adorable. I bought it a couple days ago and both boys absolutely went nuts for it—I had predicted that it would be more appealing to Dylan, but they were both shrieking with laughter to the point where I had to turn off the game for a while because they were spitting all over my goddamned phone.
Kids can dress up a character (Tiger, Hippo, or Monkey), take photos of their creation, play a surprisingly-appealing-to-this-37-year-old game called “Poke-a-Nose,” or play hide and seek. The graphics are super cute, the games are silly and fun, and the whole thing is just wonderfully designed and awesome.
Actually, here, Scott’s daughter Sofia does a much better job of explaining Tiny Tiger:
(Could you die. I love Sofia.)
I wanted to tell you about Tiny Tiger because I truly think your kid will like it. I’m also just so thrilled about Scott’s new endeavor, and I wish him all the success in the world. If you love it, please share the word about Tiny Tiger, or leave a review on iTunes. Word of mouth is everything for small developers, and I know this game will be a big hit if enough people see it.
Thank you, friends.
This looks like so much fun. Please tell them they’d have at least one customer (me) if they developed an Android compatible version.
Downloading…now!!
My seven year old loves these kinds of things! Thanks for sharing your recommendation.
If it hits the Android market, I am all over it. This would keep the boy occupied while having to sit through boring ballet. :)
Linda, thanks so much for sharing this. There is nothing I like more than supporting small and local businesses, and people who are following their dreams. I hope Scott’s game is a smashing success — I know your devoted fanbase will be amongst the first big wave of purchasers as we know you wouldn’t steer us wrong. The game looks perfect for kids. And also, Sofia? WOW. A career in TV awaits!
Aw, this is one reason I need the iPhone and not the Droid. Soon!
Count us in if they develop it for Windows Phone!
Downloading now! Very cute
Getting it!
Maeve and Harriet MUST. HAVE. IT. NOW!
Dang, I’m stuck with a droid! Looks really cute. Wishing I had an iphone.
This is adorable! I, too, hope they’ll consider developing an Droid version. But I’ll definitely share on my Facebook for all my iPhone using friends!
Downloading now. Cute. Lulu will love it.
Another wish for Android! Specifically for the Kindle Fire, since I’m selfish and don’t like to share my phone with my kids.
Love that you are supporting your friend by spreading the word! I’ll tell my sister who has kids in the target age…mine are teens.
Had to comment on all the Droid owners …come to the dark side…we have cookies AND Tiny Tigers… *cue evil laugh*
Downloaded!
Just bought it! My 3 yo LOVES it! Always happy to support small business!
Awesome! I would totally buy it but the only i thing I have is my son iAN :) but I will tell my friends about it!
That is so cute! Too bad I don’t have an iPhone or an iPad.
Cute! I posted a link on my FB page for it.
Hi, everyone! This is Scott. Thanks sooo much for all of the kind words, and huge thanks to Linda for mentioning us! We’re so humbled. Your reviews, link sharing, and purchases are so incredibly helpful!
For those wishing for Android and Windows Phone versions: us too! Unfortunately, our company is only two people, and we’ve got our hands full with the iPhone version. But if we ever manage to port it to other platforms, you guys will be the first to know.
Second, I wanted to let you know that we’re going to be doing some promotional events, both in Seattle and online. No purchase (or iPhone) is necessary! Follow us on Twitter (@curiodept) or Facebook (The Curio Dept.) to stay up-to-date on the details. Our first event will be this Monday from 3-5 at the West Seattle Cupcake Royale. We’ll have free art prints, free cupcakes for the first 30 kids, and a giveaway of signed Ella the Elephant books by our illustrator, Steve D’Amico. Hope to see you there!
Finally (and most nerdily) I know that a lot of you are parents, so I thought you might be interested in reading some of our thinking about how the game was designed. We take kids games pretty seriously, and we tried to set a high bar for ourselves. If you’re interested, you can read more on our blog here: http://blog.curiodept.com/post/12919550636/tiny-tiger-and-friends-design-notes
Thanks again to everyone in the Sundry-verse. Please email or DM me if I can answer any questions!
Scott
I may not be a kid, but am obviously one at heart because I would totally buy that game for myself.