They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. No wonder NimbleBit, developers of the "iPhone Game of the Year" Tiny Tower, is so flattered by Zynga's latest release.

In a passive-aggressive open letter to Zynga, NimbleBit congratulates the social games behemoth on their newest release, Dream Heights. With a similar premise and gameplay mechanic, the letter calls Zynga "big fans" of Tiny Tower. The letter ends: "we are looking forward to inspiring you with our future games!"

NimbleBit's Ian Marsh claims that Zynga did attempt to acquire the company before making the clone. "They did go the honest route and try to acquire us first," he tweeted.

Zynga's Dream Heights has yet to see a worldwide release, however Canadians with early access to the game have already left some damning user reviews. "This is an awesome, awesome rip-off," one review notes. "Way better than when they screwed over the developers of that farming game by ripping THEM off." Undoubtedly, given Tiny Towers' high-profile success, the game's global release will be met with even more furious user reviews.

(via Touch Arcade)