Purina® Friskies® Announces Winner of First-Ever GamesforCats.com Hackathon
Winning Beta Version to be Considered for Future Release as Part of the Friskies® Gaming Portfolio
ST. LOUIS – (March 25, 2013) – Friskies® is proud to announce Team Catastrophe comprised of Jeremiah Ingham, Arthur Danskin, J. Spencer Kennedy and Peter Brown from the Los Angeles area the winner of the first-ever Friskies GamesforCats.com Hackathon. To further support the launch of Friskies’ newest tablet and mobile game, “Happy Wings,” the brand put gamers and developers to the test. Friskies invited teams of developers to take part in a brain-pixelating weekend to come up with new ways for cats to play by creating the next great game in the Friskies Games For Cats portfolio.
The winning team’s game “Catastrophe” combined their expertise in music with interactive visual elements to allow cats to make interesting music with their paws while defending the universe in a play-like manner.
“This was so much fun, it was a really great experience for our entire team,” said J. Spencer Kennedy of Team Catastrophe. “I’m really proud of our team, we were able to come up with the concept on the first day and we worked at a remarkable pace to complete our vision for the game.”
More than 50 gamers and developers were joined by a solid lineup of judges including gaming industry expert Amir Rahimi from Zynga as well as Amplify co-founder Jeff Solomon, Fosforus creative director Eric Sutherland and Friskies assistant brand manager Alison Coburn. Three prizes were awarded including Team Catastrophe, the grand prize winner who took home $15,000. Team Cat Tales/Give Us The Milk won second place and took home $3,000 and third place winner, Team Frisky Owls took home $2,000.
“In addition to taking home $15,000, the grand prize winner’s beta version game will be further evaluated by the Friskies team. The winning prototype may be developed by Friskies to be included within our existing gaming portfolio,” said Friskies assistant brand manager, Alison Coburn.
To find out more information about the Hackathon, please visit GamesforCats.com.
About Friskies
The Friskies® brand offers a complete line of great-tasting cat foods, including more than 60 wet, dry and treat varieties. Friskies is manufactured by Nestlé Purina PetCare, a global leader in the pet care industry. Nestlé Purina PetCare promotes responsible pet care, humane education, community involvement and the positive bond between people and their pets. The North American headquarters for Nestlé Purina PetCare is located at Checkerboard Square in St. Louis; Mo. Nestlé Purina PetCare is part of Swiss-based Nestlé S.A. – the world’s largest food company. All trademarks are owned by Société des Produits Nestlé S.A. or used with permission.
About Happy Wings
Happy Wings welcomes cats to an electronic garden full of flittering critters, including a charming hummingbird, an irresistible moth and a life-size little dragonfly, bringing the richness and fun of the great outdoors inside. The birds, moths and dragonflies dance across the screen to attract the cat’s attention. When the cat captures a certain number of creatures, the setting changes and the game becomes more challenging with quicker patterns and multiple creatures appearing on screen simultaneously. Happy Wings is available for download now at www.GamesforCats.com.
Media Contacts:
Julie Voss Catron
Julie.VossCatron@Purina.Nestle.com
314-982-3064 Office
314-614-2553 Mobile
Jennifer Knoeppel
JKnoeppel@taylorstrategy.com
212-714-5732 Office
732-245-5249 Mobile