Apple tears Temple Run clone (and much more) from the App Store

With 30 million downloads, it's clear that more people than just us here at Games.com dig Temple Run. But what about Temple Jump? At one point, developer Anton Sinelnikov's game hit the top of the paid charts on the App Store, though you'll be hard pressed to find that icon today. According to VideoGameWriters, Apple has swooped in, tearing that game from its marketplace along with 58 other apps.

Among those other apps were games like Plant vs. Zombie and Angry Ninja Birds. You can probably already see where this is going: The games were knockoffs of best-selling games on the App Store. Temple Run creator Imangi Studios has spoken out on the copy, claiming that it was a scam. It's certainly a blessing for Apple to intervene, but could the damage have already been done?

"It was upsetting to us to see some people suggesting we had anything to do with this scam app. We work very hard to create polished products, and this was damaging our brand," Temple Run co-creator Natalia Luckyanova told VentureBeat. "Due to the popularity of Temple Run, which has had over 30 million downloads, this scam got to #1 Top Paid app two days after launch. Having something like this sit at #1, with thousands of angry reviews and a whopping 1 star review average, clearly hurts the App Store customer experience"

Concern over copycatting in social and mobile games has come to head in 2012, and this is no exception. It's interesting to see a platform holder like Apple step in. Both Facebook and the Android Market are like the Wild West compared to Apple's precious walled garden, which approves all that comes in. Perhaps the two stand to learn a thing or two from the iPhone maker.

Do you think Apple was right in stepping in on this situation? Do you wish Facebook and other platform providers would do the same? Sound off in the comments. Add Comment.