Rediff.com has introduced PlayGully, a casual games offering for its users, which has been integrated with social MyPage profiles feature. Most of these games publish a feed to the Rediff MyPage, making them socially engaging. The game catalog is casual-but-engaging, ranging from arcade, racing, puzzle to strategy - games like Dummy Never Fails, Kart On, Escaping the Prison, Learn To Fly. I found Learn To Fly particularly addictive. What's also interesting is that Rediff has adopted a platform strategy for PlayGully, allowing game developers to integrate their games with the platform. Among the first developers to bring their games to Rediff.com, is Canadian Revlry.com. More details on Rediff's API's for PlayGully here. Rediff had previously released its Sociali API , but eventually had to scrap that initiative. Rediff's tryst with gaming hasn't been particularly successful either: the company first launched boonty-like downloadable games at http://games.rediff.com in 2007, an initiative that was discontinued. The company then, in 2009, had to write off a million dollars in investment in a gaming rollout: the company subcontracted for the coding was acquired by a French company, for whom the Rediff games project wasn't a priority, and development slowed down. Rediff decided to write off that investment. So it's good to see a gaming related initiative from Rediff, and even better that these are engaging casual games. These might help users spend more time on its site. Note that Rediff will announce its financial results on 29th July: in case you have any questions for the company, let…
