Doodle Jump. Ever heard of it? If you’re an iPhone owner — or at least, someone who’s ever gone anywhere near the iOS App Store — you probably have. While it’s hovering somewhere around the 10th place slot these days, Doodle Jump’s addictive gameplay and near-constant updates had it locked into the #1 spot for months.
Today, the folks behind Doodle Jump are pushin’ out an update with a feature that might just help it win back the throne: multiplayer.
Like the original, forever-alone version of Doodle Jump, the goal of the multiplayer game is to get your lil’ ever-jumping dude (Doodle the Doodler) up a series of randomly placed platforms while avoiding a bevy of things that want you dead. Unlike the single player game, however, this one’s not about climbing as high as you can — it’s about climbing as fast as you can. Once you’ve connected to your buddy through Game Center, the goal is to get from point A to point B before they do, collecting power-ups along the way.
When it comes to livin’ the Indie Developer’s dream, Lima Sky (the two brother team behind Doodle Jump) is pretty much the perfect example. They’ve kept operations small, kept users happy with a seemingly endless series of updates, and have played the App Store game perfectly. Their best trick: properly pacing their releases to maximize the download spikes that come with. (Hell, I’d be willing to bet this multiplayer update has been done for some time, and they’re just releasing it now to counter a dip in downloads.)
In the off chance that Doodle Jump hasn’t already found its way onto your device, you can find it in the App Store right over here. Doodle Jump is also available for Android, though there’s no word yet when (or if) that port will be gettin’ the multiplayer treatment.
