Snake charmer or snake oil? Beware this game that offers a $1 million cash prize

I recently received a pitch from a Singapore-based startup. The first press release hailed it as “an app with a million dollar cash prize, available soon on both iOS and Android devices.” The game in question is called SnakeItUp, a multiplayer reimagining of the classic Nokia phone game Snake, with 26 levels of obstacles. It’s already available on Androidand iOS.

The startup behind SnakeItUp is called HouApp, and its founder is Hou De Jin. He wrote in the email that the game would have a challenge mode where players would be matched up against each other. The winner of each would progress to the next level, while the loser would start from level one again. Once two players reached level 26, they would qualify for a live “final showdown,” which would be held at an event in Singapore and streamed online. This showdown would see both players either splitting US$1 million in prize money or trying to steal one half from each other. Should both players fail to steal the prize money, the cash would snowball to the next live showdown.

Hou said to Tech in Asia that since “humans are greedy in nature,” spectators would be in for some entertainment.

Players from all over the world would be able to participate in this challenge. Hou named both Marina Bay Sands and Singapore Airlines as potential sponsors he wanted to approach, but neither are confirmed sponsors (and their legal teams may be annoyed at being dragged into this). Hou added that he was confident he would be able to get another hotel or airline onboard if both declined.

How can someone earn US$1 million from a mobile game?


HouApp was set up this year, and it’s unfathomable that a self-funded company in Singapore, headed by a 20-year-old who has just enlisted in National Service (the country’s mandatory conscription), and with no history of shipping a game, can provide US$1 million as a cash prize on top of convincing two big brands to sponsor a competition. My disbelief was compounded when I actually tried the SnakeItUp game.