Zynga Acquires Company Behind 'Clumsy Ninja' App [iOS Blog]

Zynga today acquired NaturalMotion, the company that developed the Clumsy Ninja app, for a total of $527 million in cash and stock. Clumsy Ninja, which was released in November of 2013 after a long development period, was highlighted by Apple during the iPhone 5 media event in September of 2012.

Following its initial debut, the app and the company behind it received a lot of attention for the natural movement styles of the ragdoll ninja character.

Founded by Torsten Reil, a former evolutionary biologist, NaturalMotion specializes in high quality games that use realistic animations, which is a bit of a departure from Zynga's typical game style.

Along with Clumsy Ninja, NaturalMotion has also released several other iOS apps, including Jenga , Icebreaker Hockey , and CSR Racing . According to Zynga CEO Don Mattrick, NaturalMotion will expand Zynga's creative pipeline and bring next-generation tools to the company.

NaturalMotion expands Zynga's creative pipeline, accelerates our mobile growth, and brings next-generation technology and tools to Zynga that will fast-track our ability to deliver consumers more hit games. Bringing Zynga and NaturalMotion together is a bold step in the right direction at the right time.

Combining NaturalMotion's strengths with Zynga's ability to develop breakthrough social features while sustaining live games over time, offers us a huge opportunity to redefine the gaming industry and deliver consumers blockbuster entertainment experiences.

Alongside the acquisition of NaturalMotion, Zynga also announced that it is laying off a total of 314 employees, or 15 percent of its workforce, as part of a cost reduction plan that is expected to save the company up to $35 million. During 2013, Zynga saw $873.3 million in revenue, but ultimately had a net loss of $37 million.