Android App Review - Tangram by Bendroid

I’ve been meaning to get a post out about the Android apps I’ve purchased since I first asked people to buy more Android apps.  I put out a couple emails to companies and developers who’ve built apps for the Android Market and Bendroid was the first ones to respond.  I’m not sure if I’m going to request questions for all the apps that I review, but I thought it’d be a cool way to start.  It also gives me a way to ask successful Android developers questions that will hopefully help me be more successful also.

Onto the review!

The employees of Bendroid have been working together for several years now making web apps.  About 9 months ago they began developing for the Android platform.  One of their projects consisted of recreating Tangram puzzles for Android.

Tangram is a puzzle game where you are given a number of basic shapes, and use them to fill in different puzzles.   This game is right up my alley…don’t get me wrong, I like the action/arcade games like Abduction, Battle for Mars and Robo Defense.  But it’s nice to not have a time limit, more bad guys, or some other obstacle that keeps on “killing” you.  This isn’t to say that Tangram isn’t challenging, but it’s much lighter and easier to play for 2 or 3 minutes, put down, then pick it up again later.

I love the inviting design and warm graphics, it’s definitely got polish.  I think my favorite feature is the UI for rotating the puzzle pieces.  It works very well on devices with touch screen like the G1s, and adds a nice touch to the look and feel of the game.  Bendroid provided 300 unique Tangram puzzles with 6 skins to choose from.

Go check Tangram out on the Android Makret, there’s a Trial and Pro version for $0.99.  As always, if you like the app, please show Bendroid some luv and purchase the Pro version to show your support and ensure future development for all their apps.  I asked several  questions and had intentions of trying to work them into the review, but they did such a good job answering them I think I’d rather just let them stand by themselves below.

1. Where is Bendroid based out of?

We are based in Central Europe, Belarus, Minsk.

2. How many people does Bendroid support?  Are you all developers and designers?  Any business development folks?

There 5 people in Bendroid: Designer, Java/PHP/C++ Developer, 3d/AS developer, 2 business analysts (one from Belarus, second one from US)

3. How long has Bendroid been in operation?  How did it start?

We’ve been working together for a long time, several years already, mostly dealing with web projects/technologies. But only about 9 months ago we decided to try developing Android games/applications ourselves.

4. Do you feel the Android platform has been profitable for you yet?  Are you doing anything special to try to make it more profitable?

Frankly speaking, we have not earned much with the Android platform. When comparing Android and iPhone, iPhone developers can earn millions or more. When Android developers are hardly reaching thousands. The main problem is that the users are not get used to pay. They want to get everything for free and do not appreciate all the hard work done by the developers.

5. What do you like most about the Android platform? What do you dislike the most?

We like it very much, especially because of the absence of an “approval” process.  We’ve read/heard lots of stories where great games and apps were rejected by apple for example. Android platform is more open for the developers and ideas they have.

6. I really like the UI in Tangram for rotating the pieces, was that the most challenging feature to create?

The most challenging was to calculate the movement of the pieces. After rotating we need to know the exact place and coordinates of that piece.

7. Can you give any words of advice to other Android developers trying to develop apps for the Android market?

Try to be creative and remember 2 things:

-          Try not to copy the existing and successful games from other mobile platforms

-          Make the game or application as a solid piece. Try to think of all the details and at the same time do not forget about the usability.

8. I heard you’re also developing for iPhone as well, any comments on differences between the platforms?  Is there one you like more?

iPhone is a great product, there is no doubt. But the audience/users are too sophisticated and a little bit lazy to search for the new games. We all know that about 1,000 games are being published to App store daily, and you can’t even imagine how many excellent games are getting lost. It’s a real challenge for the developer to get to the top or at least be noticed by someone.

9. Are you working on anything new for Android?

Yeah, we have some upcoming games. It’s still a secret but more games are coming and they will be great. Believe us!

10. Any general comments about Tangram, Bendroid or Android?

Hmmm…really do not know what to add…we do really appreciate and want to thank all the people who’ve tried our games and became Bendroid’s friends.