Zynga Releases ForestVille For iOS

Social games company Zynga has released ForestVille, the next in the Ville management series, just ahead of its initial public offering. The game's release via the iOS platform comes as part of Zynga's move into the smartphone space. The company currently sees 94 percent of its revenue generated from its Facebook titles. The game has been released for iOS devices, and features similar town-building gameplay to that seen in other Ville titles, but with a forest and woodland animals theme. As with the likes of Farmville and CityVille, Forestville is a free-to-play title with in-app purchases available. Zynga is set to begin trading of its IPO tomorrow (December 16), and is looking to raise between $850 million and $1 billion as part of the IPO, with a $5.9 billion to $6.99 billion valuation. Earlier this week, analyst group Sterne Agee initiated coverage of the company with an "Underperform" rating, noting that while the potential for social games is definitely present, Zynga's growth has slowed down rapidly in recent months.