BANGALORE : US-based social games developer Zynga Inc, which had launched operations in India a year ago, today announced the official launch of Zynga Studio-I in Bangalore.

The expanded studio will develop new game mechanics, in-game features and creative elements of an array of Zynga’s most popular games.

Zynga also announced plans to double the headcount in India during 2011, further reinforcing its commitment to this market.

Zynga plans user-focused initiatives along with activities such as fan and community events. It has held an event with its fan community in Bangalore some time ago.
 
The expansion of its India operations comes on the heels of the recent launch of Zynga Game Cards in India, which provide an easy way for players to purchase virtual goods within games.

As the largest Zynga studio outside of the US, Studio-I will focus on innovative game development to create new features that it says will delight players. Additionally, the studio will be engaged in full life-cycle game development, the same as other already existing studios.

To aid this growth, Zynga India will continue to recruit engineers, product managers, game designers, artists and senior management to strategically grow operations. These professionals are expected to have an eye for gaming and experience of handling large volume environments, graphics, networking, cloud computing and security among other expertise. 
 
“In only one year, India has made exciting advancements in technology that have truly improved efficiency for the entire company,” said Zynga India Country Manager Shan Kadavil. “With the launch of Studio-I, we are expanding our capabilities to leverage the amount of creative talent based in India for new features within Zynga’s popular games. We are looking for more people with an entrepreneurial drive combined with engineering and artistic skills to join our exciting and growing team.”

Zynga is known across the globe for its widely popular games such as CityVille, FarmVille, Mafia Wars, YoVille and FishVille.