Infinite Interactive

Infinite Interactive founder, Steve Fawkner, discusses in a bit more detail to smartcompany.com.au how two well-known Melbourne-based games developers, Firemint and Infinite Interactive, came to the idea of a merger and how they handled integrating two separate game companies i

Games studio Firemint today announced that it has acquired fellow Australian studio, Infinite Interactive. The move further boosts Firemint’s strength in designing and developing original games, while providing the Infinite Interactive team with a channel for independent publishing.

Bejeweled is a puzzle game phenomenom. Making over $500 million dollars in revenue for PopCap, it is one of the top 10 bestselling videogames of all time. It's also one of just two puzzle games that have been inducted into the Computer Gaming World Hall of Fame (the other is Tetris) and the Guinness World Records has Bejewled listed as "The Most Popular Puzzle Game Series of the Century."

Jungalist caught a post E3, post Puzzle Quest 2 interview with game development veteran, Steve Fawkner, for a three-part feature at Kotaku AU. Kotaku AU readers provided a great range of questions for the Infinite Interactive CEO and Lead designer that touch on the big issues, news, and features concerning Puzzle Quest, Galactrix, and the recently released Puzzle Quest 2. From the Kotaku AU interview...

Why do you think Galactrix didn't do as well as Puzzle Quest?

When Infinite Interactive published a playable flash version of the highly addictive puzzle-RPG hybrid, Galactrix, many wondered when the Melbourne based developer would dip their feet into the Facebook app space, where casual games like Bejeweled are raking in some serious player numbers.

Are we tired of these stories yet?

Gamepro have revealed what a blurred out portion on the front cover preview of their January 2010 magazine is, and it's none other than the sequel Melbourne's Infinite Interactive's popular RPG / Puzzle hybrid, Puzzle Quest.

If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then I wonder how Steve Fawkner and Infinite Interactive feel after hearing the news that casual game giant, PopCap games, and RPG mega giant, Square Enix, have combined forces to create what looks like the ultimate Puzzle Quest:Challenge of the Warlords clone called Gyromancer.

The match-3 puzzle and RPG elements are there, as well as spells, combos, story mode etc. Heck, it's even in the fantasy genre as well.

Take a peek at the trailer below:

Here are some details on the game:

An opportunity exists at Infinite Interactive for a number of short term casual QA positions.