Can Bugs Bunny, Tweety Bird Jump-start Zynga’s Profits?

The San Francisco company previewed a game Tuesday with characters from the decades-old Warner Bros. cartoon series for a soon-to-be released mobile game called “Looney Tunes Dash,” which will compete in a category of “runner” games best known for the popular “Temple Run” series. “Runner games are built to be fast-paced, high-energy and unpredictably fun, and I can think of no better world than Looney Tunes — filled with falling anvils, wacky gadgets, dramatic explosions, and so much more — to captivate and entertain fans,” Zynga General Manager John vanSuchtelen said in a blog post. Zynga could be looking for the kind of financial boost Electronic Arts received from a free-to-play mobile game based on the Fox television network hit “The Simpsons.” Zynga surged into the nascent social gaming market with the hugely popular title “Farmville,” which took over Facebook feeds in 2009. The game joins Zynga’s other entry into the runner category, “Stampede Run” — originally named “Running With Friends” to tie into the company’s successful “Words With Friends” game.