If you've ever felt uneasy about the possibility of other players, or even NPCs attacking and invading your island(s) in Empires & Allies, you now have the supplies necessary to strike back with more than adequate force via a new feature that is now rolling out to players: Strike Teams. Strike Teams come in three flavors (more on that later) but all serve a similar purpose: to immediately clear an Invasion (or all Invasions, depending on the team) from your island, rewarding you in the process.
First things first, you'll need to build a Strike Team HQ in your empire to access this feature. From the inside of this building, you can select one of three kinds of Strike Teams. You're only allowed to send out "Ambush" teams at first, with those teams removing a single Invasion from your land. Once this is done five times, you'll unlock Mind Control Strike Teams. Deploy ten total Strike Teams and you'll unlock the final version - Total Ambush. Here are the specifics of each:
Ambush - Removes a single enemy Invasion. Rewards you with 3x the payout that the invader received when they attacked you.
Mind Control - Removes a single enemy Invasion. Rewards you with 3x the payout that the invader received, and the same units that they used to invade you will now counter-invade their own land.
Total Ambush - Removes all enemy Invasions on your entire map. Rewards you with 4x the payout your invader received when they attacked you. You'll receive this 4x payout bonus for each individual invasion you clear in this way.
Before you can launch a Strike Team, you'll need to ask for your friends' help in assembling them. Unfortunately, this seems to negate the usefulness of the feature a bit (as it slows down the entire process), unless your invader was so overpowered that you have no way of defeating them yourself.
There's the possibility of a fourth Strike Team (and beyond) being launched in the game, as we can see from the in-game menu above. Just how much more deadly those teams will become (or how much more profitable they will be for you) remains to be seen, but we'll make sure to let you know when they launch in the future.
[Via and Image Credit: Zynga]
What do you think of this Strike Team feature in Empires & Allies? Will you continue to do battle with Invaders, or will you take the time to build these Strike Teams to eliminate them with a single click?
Thứ Ba, 13 tháng 3, 2012
FarmVille: Free rides to Winter Wonderland available now!
If you're ready to take a trip to FarmVille's Winter Wonderland in anticipation of the holiday season, but don't want to spend 55 Farm Cash to do so, you'll be thrilled to learn that tonight marks the launch of free train rides to this newest farm within the game! That's right, the wait is over, as every user now has access to the farm, that is, as soon as this actually rolls out to you. This entire process should see you being invited to Winter Wonderland sometime this evening, if not incredibly early tomorrow morning.
If you don't see an in-game pop-up inviting you to visit, you'll need to look at the left side of your farm, outside of your farm's boundaries, for a billboard advertising the farm [pictured]. There, you'll see a button saying "Let's Go" that will trigger your trip to the Winter Wonderland farm, where you can begin planting new crops, upgrading your Polar Train Station, building a Winter Animal Pen and more!
Of course, we'll make sure to bring you continued coverage surrounding all things Winter Wonderland as the farm continues to grow, but for now, just jump in and have fun!
Check out the rest of our Holiday 2011 coverage right here.
Have you received your free trip to Winter Wonderland yet, or are you still waiting for the train to come by and pick you up? What do you think of this fourth farm so far?
If you don't see an in-game pop-up inviting you to visit, you'll need to look at the left side of your farm, outside of your farm's boundaries, for a billboard advertising the farm [pictured]. There, you'll see a button saying "Let's Go" that will trigger your trip to the Winter Wonderland farm, where you can begin planting new crops, upgrading your Polar Train Station, building a Winter Animal Pen and more!
Of course, we'll make sure to bring you continued coverage surrounding all things Winter Wonderland as the farm continues to grow, but for now, just jump in and have fun!
Check out the rest of our Holiday 2011 coverage right here.
Have you received your free trip to Winter Wonderland yet, or are you still waiting for the train to come by and pick you up? What do you think of this fourth farm so far?
FarmVille: Discover Cashback Bonus Castle available now
As promised, we're here with another update on the Discover cross-promotion that's taking place in FarmVille this month, and have some great news! The final free item - the Cashback Bonus Castle - is now available in the game. All you have to do to claim this large building is login to the game and visit Winter Wonderland.
If you've already visited the Discover Farm to receive your free Discover Yeti, you might not even have to visit the Discover Farm a second time. Just make sure to head into your Gift Box both before and after visiting the Discover Farm and search for the Cashback Bonus Castle (yes, that's its real name) to see if it's there. This Castle is themed appropriately for Winter Wonderland, as it's made entirely of ice, save for the orange flags that fly from its towers and the snow that covers its hard edges.
This Castle will only be available in the game through December 14, so while that gives you plenty of time to make sure you claim one for yourself, it also gives you plenty of time to forget it exists! Make sure you claim it sooner, rather than later so that you don't miss out on this exclusive themed item!
Have you already claimed your free Discover Cashback Bonus Castle? Which of the items in this Discover cross promotion has been your favorite?
If you've already visited the Discover Farm to receive your free Discover Yeti, you might not even have to visit the Discover Farm a second time. Just make sure to head into your Gift Box both before and after visiting the Discover Farm and search for the Cashback Bonus Castle (yes, that's its real name) to see if it's there. This Castle is themed appropriately for Winter Wonderland, as it's made entirely of ice, save for the orange flags that fly from its towers and the snow that covers its hard edges.
This Castle will only be available in the game through December 14, so while that gives you plenty of time to make sure you claim one for yourself, it also gives you plenty of time to forget it exists! Make sure you claim it sooner, rather than later so that you don't miss out on this exclusive themed item!
Have you already claimed your free Discover Cashback Bonus Castle? Which of the items in this Discover cross promotion has been your favorite?
The dust finally settles on Zynga, MegaCity maker Vostu's legal battle
This year's proverbial title bout of social game legal disputes has finally come to a close. And walking away from the dust as it settles is Zynga, as Vostu unfortunately limps away in the opposite direction. Hyperbole aside, the two social game makers have settled their multiple disputes in both US and Brazil courts, and sounds like Vostu ended up having to pay. Here's the statement provided to us by both companies:
Zynga and Vostu have settled the copyright lawsuits and counterclaims against each other in the United States and Brazil. As part of the settlement, Vostu made a monetary payment to Zynga and made some changes to four of its games. The parties are pleased to have settled their disputes and to now put these matters behind them.
Unfortunately, it sounds as if Vostu lost out on this one. As for exactly what changes are to be made to four of Vostu's games, neither company could comment. Our guess is that changes will be made to four of the games involved in Zynga's initial lawsuit (filed way back in June of this year)--MegaCity, PetMania, CafeMania, and Mini Fazenda--to reduce their similarities to their Zynga-made counterparts.
CityVille vs MegaCity
Vostu Poker was also part of Zynga's lawsuit, but it's our guess that this game will be left unchanged, because, well, it's poker. While Zynga seems to have won this war, the company is no stranger to copyright disputes. Just recently, the developer opted to thwart Night Owl Games's attempts at creating either a game or game level called DungeonVille based on use of the 'Ville suffix. But that isn't to say the FarmVille maker hasn't had some issues of its own.
What changes do you think will need to made to Vostu's games in order to honor the settlement? Who do you think should have won this dispute?
Zynga and Vostu have settled the copyright lawsuits and counterclaims against each other in the United States and Brazil. As part of the settlement, Vostu made a monetary payment to Zynga and made some changes to four of its games. The parties are pleased to have settled their disputes and to now put these matters behind them.
Unfortunately, it sounds as if Vostu lost out on this one. As for exactly what changes are to be made to four of Vostu's games, neither company could comment. Our guess is that changes will be made to four of the games involved in Zynga's initial lawsuit (filed way back in June of this year)--MegaCity, PetMania, CafeMania, and Mini Fazenda--to reduce their similarities to their Zynga-made counterparts.
CityVille vs MegaCity
Vostu Poker was also part of Zynga's lawsuit, but it's our guess that this game will be left unchanged, because, well, it's poker. While Zynga seems to have won this war, the company is no stranger to copyright disputes. Just recently, the developer opted to thwart Night Owl Games's attempts at creating either a game or game level called DungeonVille based on use of the 'Ville suffix. But that isn't to say the FarmVille maker hasn't had some issues of its own.
What changes do you think will need to made to Vostu's games in order to honor the settlement? Who do you think should have won this dispute?
An Angry Birds 'social' game (and three others) is in the works for 2012
So, we're just going to assume that by "social", Rovio game designer Jaako Iisalo means "Facebook". During the Social Games and Virtual Goods World conference in London, England, the Angry Birds designer told Pocket Gamer that four new Angry Birds games will launch next year. More specifically, one of them will be a "social" game.
And, will you look at that, Angry Birds is already on Google+. Granted, there are versions of the iconic everywhere mobile game on Facebook, but none of which seem legitimate. (One even seems to stream the Google Chrome version of Angry Birds through to Facebook.) While this could just as easily mean an Angry Birds game on a mobile platform with heavier social features, the developer has said in the past that the franchise will hit Facebook.
Honestly, how Angry Birds is available on the Intel AppUp store and in retail stores across Europe before officially on Facebook is beyond us. At any rate, we can likely expect these other three Angry Birds games to tap into new genres, since Rovio has expressed interest in exploring new types of games for its irate avian creatures. And just when you started to grow bored of it.
Would you play Angry Birds on Facebook more than elsewhere? What other genres would you like to see the Angry Birds characters take a part in?
And, will you look at that, Angry Birds is already on Google+. Granted, there are versions of the iconic everywhere mobile game on Facebook, but none of which seem legitimate. (One even seems to stream the Google Chrome version of Angry Birds through to Facebook.) While this could just as easily mean an Angry Birds game on a mobile platform with heavier social features, the developer has said in the past that the franchise will hit Facebook.
Honestly, how Angry Birds is available on the Intel AppUp store and in retail stores across Europe before officially on Facebook is beyond us. At any rate, we can likely expect these other three Angry Birds games to tap into new genres, since Rovio has expressed interest in exploring new types of games for its irate avian creatures. And just when you started to grow bored of it.
Would you play Angry Birds on Facebook more than elsewhere? What other genres would you like to see the Angry Birds characters take a part in?
Thứ Hai, 12 tháng 3, 2012
Game of the Day: Cluster Lander
The Game of the Day is Cluster Lander, an action-packed, space rock maneuvering game. You'll take control of the Cluster Lander, a fast ship designed to maneuver through any obstacle in its path. You'll explore complex levels in search of coordinate sheets that will lead you to the next rock cluster.
Folks, it's not every day you get to play a game like Cluster Lander. This game is challenging, pretty, replayable, and most importantly, super fun. Cluster Lander is unforgiving, you will be punished for your mistakes, but that only makes victory so much sweeter. Enjoy every bit of this game, and when its over, play it again to see if you can beat your records! Check out Cluster lander below.
Click here to play Cluster Lander!
cluster lander game of the day cluster lander game of the day
Were you able to complete all levels?
Five Facebook gaming New Year's resolutions you can stick to
We're officially more than 24 hours into 2012, the inevitable end of days--we mean, the new year. You've recovered from the copious amounts of alcohol consumed into the wee hours of the next year, and probably gained about five pounds from the lot of foodstuffs you gorged on since Christmas morning. Surely, your first resolution for 2012 is to get back in shape--who's isn't?
Of course, that will last for all of a few weeks, if you're lucky. And speaking of which, you are in luck, because we have five New Year's resolutions you can stick to. While they aren't exactly life-changing missions of self improvement, these resolutions will at least be fun. That's because they all revolve your favorite leisure activity: Facebook games. Here are five Facebook gaming New Year's resolutions to stick to:
Try Something New
In other words, play different games than what you're used to returning to every day. Look, the lot of 'Ville games and gems like The Sims Social are great and all, but it's time to broaden your horizons. Try something new that might change your expectations of social gaming. Sure, Facebook game discovery is tough these days, so why not start with our top 11 favorites from 2011? Other notables include strategy games like Woodland Heroes, word games such as Crosswords and goofy games like Glitch.
Lend a Helping Hand
If you're not the type to pay up in a Facebook game, getting help from your friends is basically the lynch pin to your success. Even in the more inventive Facebook games, you're only as successful as the amount of friends you have, since the majority of quests require you to ask your friends for items to advance. While you could comb the endless "Add Me" threads for more helpful friends, you could also guarantee more helpful friends by--gasp--helping them yourself. Trust us, there's definitely something in it for you.
Google+ Games
Explore New Territories
There's no denying that, at the moment, Facebook is the place to play social games. But that's not to say that there are other companies out that are worth their salt in the social gaming space. Google+ made considerable strides in 2011 to become a viable social games platform, and while it still has a ways to go, its current state shows promise. Aside from the most popular alternative to Facebook, why not try out other areas like Bigpoint or Tagged to get your game on? It's all about new experiences.
Add to Friends t-shirtGet a Grip
Your friends might make quips whenever you pull out your iPhone while hanging out to check your FarmVille crops, but what if they're only half-joking? If things like this come up rather often, it might be time to reevaluate your Facebook gaming habits. In short, try to set new boundaries for yourself when it comes to social gaming in an effort to free up time for other things. You know, like, hanging out with people in the real world?
Put the "Social" in Social Games
Being a helpful neighbor is one thing, but making new friends is definitely another. It's a tall order, we know, given the restrictive, sometimes two-dimensional social mechanics of most Facebook games. But there are ways to add a little more character to your social interactions with your fellow Facebook. You could personalize your News Feed posts, for instance, or perhaps be more selective in your friend requests, finding more players with similar interests. Sometimes, all it takes is a private message.
[DL Image Credit: New Year's Resolution Generator]
What resolutions did you make this New Year's? Do you think these Facebook gaming resolutions are reasonable?
Of course, that will last for all of a few weeks, if you're lucky. And speaking of which, you are in luck, because we have five New Year's resolutions you can stick to. While they aren't exactly life-changing missions of self improvement, these resolutions will at least be fun. That's because they all revolve your favorite leisure activity: Facebook games. Here are five Facebook gaming New Year's resolutions to stick to:
Try Something New
In other words, play different games than what you're used to returning to every day. Look, the lot of 'Ville games and gems like The Sims Social are great and all, but it's time to broaden your horizons. Try something new that might change your expectations of social gaming. Sure, Facebook game discovery is tough these days, so why not start with our top 11 favorites from 2011? Other notables include strategy games like Woodland Heroes, word games such as Crosswords and goofy games like Glitch.
Lend a Helping Hand
If you're not the type to pay up in a Facebook game, getting help from your friends is basically the lynch pin to your success. Even in the more inventive Facebook games, you're only as successful as the amount of friends you have, since the majority of quests require you to ask your friends for items to advance. While you could comb the endless "Add Me" threads for more helpful friends, you could also guarantee more helpful friends by--gasp--helping them yourself. Trust us, there's definitely something in it for you.
Google+ Games
Explore New Territories
There's no denying that, at the moment, Facebook is the place to play social games. But that's not to say that there are other companies out that are worth their salt in the social gaming space. Google+ made considerable strides in 2011 to become a viable social games platform, and while it still has a ways to go, its current state shows promise. Aside from the most popular alternative to Facebook, why not try out other areas like Bigpoint or Tagged to get your game on? It's all about new experiences.
Add to Friends t-shirtGet a Grip
Your friends might make quips whenever you pull out your iPhone while hanging out to check your FarmVille crops, but what if they're only half-joking? If things like this come up rather often, it might be time to reevaluate your Facebook gaming habits. In short, try to set new boundaries for yourself when it comes to social gaming in an effort to free up time for other things. You know, like, hanging out with people in the real world?
Put the "Social" in Social Games
Being a helpful neighbor is one thing, but making new friends is definitely another. It's a tall order, we know, given the restrictive, sometimes two-dimensional social mechanics of most Facebook games. But there are ways to add a little more character to your social interactions with your fellow Facebook. You could personalize your News Feed posts, for instance, or perhaps be more selective in your friend requests, finding more players with similar interests. Sometimes, all it takes is a private message.
[DL Image Credit: New Year's Resolution Generator]
What resolutions did you make this New Year's? Do you think these Facebook gaming resolutions are reasonable?
The creator of Zynga Poker ain't down with online gambling yet
Zynga Casino
Now that the lot of social and casual games makers are bound to hop on the imminent online gambling bandwagon in the U.S., it was safe to assume that Zynga would be in on the action. Apparently, that's not so, according to what nameless sources close to the multi-billion-dollar game maker told Business Insider. One source told the website that Zynga hasn't even tried to make online gambling games in countries where laws are less strict.
A source told Business Insider that Zynga doesn't want to "screw up that community," likely referring to the existing online gambling circles of foreign countries. "You might not want to take money from your friends or your mother on Facebook," the anonymous source said. "But at the same time, the people you play with don't have to be your Facebook friends."
Of course, another nameless source agreed that games in which players wager real money would be a huge opportunity for the company. That's especially considering Zynga already has Zynga Poker and plans to release a Zynga Casino suite of games including Zynga Bingo. In short, the company already has the infrastructure to create such a game or multiple games to support online gambling.
According to an anonymous source talking to Business Insider, there have been talks of making such a game within Zynga HQ, but none are planned for the foreseeable future. And, if you ask us, a number of companies already in that space are likely more than willing to partake, like Caesars, DoubleDown Interactive and more. If Zynga comes around to changing its mind, it better do it quick, before the goldmine it's sitting on gets stripped.
[Image Credit: Zynga]
Why do you think Zynga might be wary of entering the online gambling sector? Would you ever wager your real money in a Facebook game?
Now that the lot of social and casual games makers are bound to hop on the imminent online gambling bandwagon in the U.S., it was safe to assume that Zynga would be in on the action. Apparently, that's not so, according to what nameless sources close to the multi-billion-dollar game maker told Business Insider. One source told the website that Zynga hasn't even tried to make online gambling games in countries where laws are less strict.
A source told Business Insider that Zynga doesn't want to "screw up that community," likely referring to the existing online gambling circles of foreign countries. "You might not want to take money from your friends or your mother on Facebook," the anonymous source said. "But at the same time, the people you play with don't have to be your Facebook friends."
Of course, another nameless source agreed that games in which players wager real money would be a huge opportunity for the company. That's especially considering Zynga already has Zynga Poker and plans to release a Zynga Casino suite of games including Zynga Bingo. In short, the company already has the infrastructure to create such a game or multiple games to support online gambling.
According to an anonymous source talking to Business Insider, there have been talks of making such a game within Zynga HQ, but none are planned for the foreseeable future. And, if you ask us, a number of companies already in that space are likely more than willing to partake, like Caesars, DoubleDown Interactive and more. If Zynga comes around to changing its mind, it better do it quick, before the goldmine it's sitting on gets stripped.
[Image Credit: Zynga]
Why do you think Zynga might be wary of entering the online gambling sector? Would you ever wager your real money in a Facebook game?
Adventure World Feathered Serpent Site: Everything you need to know
At the very beginning of Adventure World's life on Facebook, the game contained a few artifacts and relics that could be accessed by expanding your Base Camp. While they looked pretty, these items didn't really serve an overall purpose. For one particular item, however, that has now changed. The Feathered Serpent Site can now be upgraded from its current state at Level 1 all of the way up to Level 4, where the scaffolding is removed, and the entire relic stands high above the ground.
Each level of the Serpent Site comes with different daily rewards. In its starting form, you'll simply gain 550 coins for collecting from the site every day. However, once you get to Levels 2, 3 and eventually 4, you'll receive Gadget Parts (1-4) for collecting from the site once daily. Of course, you won't simply be able to click a few button to make those upgrades happen; you'll need to work for them. The first upgrade (taking you from Level 1 to Level 2, that is) requires 60 ingredients:
10 Fine Brushes
10 Tape Measures
10 Magnifying Glasses
10 Index Cards
10 Sieves
10 Tool Rolls
The Fine Brushes, Magnifying Glasses and Sieves are earned by sending out individual requests to friends, while the other three items can be earned by posting general news items on your wall for all friends to see.
In addition to the Feathered Serpent Site, you can also now excavate and upgrade the Ruins Site (located in another Base Camp expansion) for free XP each day. The process to upgrading is similar, and we'll make sure to bring you a complete look at that particular building upgrade just as soon as we can.
Check out the rest of our Adventure World Cheats & Tips right here.
Have you started to upgrade your Feathered Serpent Site yet? What do you think of the ability to upgrade these dig sites?
Each level of the Serpent Site comes with different daily rewards. In its starting form, you'll simply gain 550 coins for collecting from the site every day. However, once you get to Levels 2, 3 and eventually 4, you'll receive Gadget Parts (1-4) for collecting from the site once daily. Of course, you won't simply be able to click a few button to make those upgrades happen; you'll need to work for them. The first upgrade (taking you from Level 1 to Level 2, that is) requires 60 ingredients:
10 Fine Brushes
10 Tape Measures
10 Magnifying Glasses
10 Index Cards
10 Sieves
10 Tool Rolls
The Fine Brushes, Magnifying Glasses and Sieves are earned by sending out individual requests to friends, while the other three items can be earned by posting general news items on your wall for all friends to see.
In addition to the Feathered Serpent Site, you can also now excavate and upgrade the Ruins Site (located in another Base Camp expansion) for free XP each day. The process to upgrading is similar, and we'll make sure to bring you a complete look at that particular building upgrade just as soon as we can.
Check out the rest of our Adventure World Cheats & Tips right here.
Have you started to upgrade your Feathered Serpent Site yet? What do you think of the ability to upgrade these dig sites?
Adventure World Challenges: Everything you need to know
If you're up for some repetitive work in Adventure World, you'll want to take a look at the new Challenge feature that has been launched in the game. You can access these challenges by clicking on the trophy in the bottom right corner of the gameplay screen. These challenges are given different levels and time limits, so you'll earn better and better prizes as you earn more and more points.
For example, one challenge is called Snake Tamer, and it has four levels of scores and prizes. For each snake you kill, you'll earn points. You'll have a four day time period to kill as many as possible. If you can earn a score of 10 points, you'll receive 250 coins and some XP. If you can make it to 25 points, you'll receive 5 Snake Bait. Earn 100 points and you'll double that prize to 10 Snake Baits and finally, if you can earn a whopping 500 points in just four days, you can earn the Bullwhip.
For another challenge called Friend to Many, you'll be rewarded for hiring friends as crew members within Expeditions or main story quests. This isn't simply for asking friends to be on your crew, it's for actually hiring them once you get them back into your game. The first level comes at just three friends, and it gives you 250 coins and some XP. For hiring 10 friends, you'll receive two Bonus Crew. At 25 points, you'll receive 5 Bonus Crew, and finally, at 150 points you'll receive the Efficient Crew bonus. You have six days to accumulate as many points as you can for this particular challenge.
As more and more challenges are added to the game, we'll make sure to let you know, but for now, start killing snakes and hiring all of the friends you can to earn these rewards in your own game!
What do you think of these two challenges? Do you routinely hire friends anyway, or will you now start to complete this challenge?
Adventure World Volcano Quests: Everything you need to know
If you've yet to open the door to El Dorado on your Base Camp in Adventure World, but have already made your way through collecting the Monkey, Bird and Snake idols, you'll have just one left: the Jaguar Idol. The Jaguar Idol is found in the Volcano quest set, and if you've waited this long to start it, you'll need just five each of Food, Fuel and Water to begin. You'll also need to ask 10 of your friends to come be a crew on your journey.
Volcano Main Quests
Recover the Jaguar Idol Part 1
Use Master Key to Raise 1st Step
Use Master Key to Raise 2nd Step
Use Master Key to Raise 3rd Step
Use Master Key to Raise 4th Step
The Master Key was earned way back at the beginning of the game, so you'll need to navigate your way through this hot land, flipping vent switches and attacking snakes along the way. While you can take the map mostly in a linear fashion, there are a few points where you'll have the option of blowing up rocks with dynamite or using grappling hooks to create shortcuts. Your exact path will be up to you.
Recover the Jaguar Idol Part 2
Recover the Jaguar Idol
The Jaguar Idol is up a set of stone stairs (that you've created by opening the master key holes). It's blocked by a snake that has six hit points. Just take that one out and climb the stairs to recover the idol once and for all!
Recover the Jaguar Idol Part 3
Return to Base Camp
Place the Jaguar Idol
Use Master Key to Open El Dorado
This is it! The moment we've been working so hard for! Rush back to Base Camp and place the final idol outside the door to El Dorado! What will you find inside? Well... we won't spoil that just yet.
Volcano Side Quests
Society Work
Get 23 Jade Vases
Get 12 Ruby Vases
Get 3 Azure Skulls
Get Obsidian Grip from Weapons Collection
The items in the Weapons Collection can be earned on any map set in a volcano, so you might be lucky enough to receive one before actually finishing your work here. Either way, the other three items are scattered around the map, but unfortunately might be blocked by Snakes or Vent traps that you would otherwise be able to skip, if not for trying to complete this quest.
Find Volcano Flowers
Get 10 Volcano Flowers
Get 5 Volcano Sunflowers
Get 6 Volcano Cactuses
This is more busy work than anything else. The general rule of thumb is to scour each individual path in this Volcano map, as you'll likely need something at the end of it, whether it be a Jade or Ruby Vase or one of these plants. If you work under the mentality of clearing out the entire map, you'll come across these flowers over time.
Extra Crispy
Break 7 Rocks to Release Lava
Shortly after you've activated your third Master Key hole, you'll run into a villager with a BBQ. The rocks are right next to the BBQ pit, but the lava is blocking the "river" of lava from flowing to actually cook his meal. Each rock has eight points, so you'll likely need to spend a few energy on each to clear them out.
Crazy Carl's Flame Show!
Open Prize Door 1
Open Prize Door 2
Open Prize Door 3
Shortly after meeting the villager with the BBQ quest, you'll see a odd-looking man in a pirate hat standing next to three doors. You're told to open these three doors, which takes just one energy each, but you don't actually have to enter the doors to finish this quest. If you're running low on energy, feel free to just unlock each and move on. If, however, you want to go inside, you might find Jade or Ruby Vases, or even snakes inside. Again, you can come back to them at any time, so if a room has snakes inside that you just don't want to fight, make a mental note of it and come back later.
When you finally finish all of these quests, you will be ready to head back to Base Camp and unlock El Dorado! Of course, we won't ruin the surprise of what happens next, so hurry into your game to find out!
Check out the rest of our Adventure World cheats and tips right here.
Have you finished all four of these main story quests in Adventure World?
CityVille Skyscrapers: Everything you need to know
If you're a fan of skyscrapers, or just need to add more citizens to your town in CityVille without taking up tons of space, you'll want to check out the new Skyscrapers feature in the game. This feature is unlocked to users Level 50 and above, and it works similarly to the City Center feature (specifically in its menu design). You'll start out with a pair of towers on a single base and will be able to upgrade through to Level 6, earning prizes as you go.
For instance, the upgrade to Level 2 requires 5 Cement Trucks, 5 Elevators and 5 Cast Iron Plates. The Cement Trucks and Elevators are earned through general news posts on your wall while the Cast Iron Plates are earned by sending individual requests to friends. When you finish this first upgrade, your Skyscraper Residence will offer a population of 300-500 citizens and will offer 323 coins in rent every day (at its basic Level 1 state, it offers just 100 citizens in population).
As you upgrade the building by collecting more parts, these stats will increase. If you can make it all the way to Level 6, you'll be left with a much larger and much more impressive building visually that offers 4,500 citizens in population and 545 coins a day in rent. If, for whatever reason, you decide to delete the Skyscrapers from your town, you can rebuild them at the same state you left them later on. That is, you won't have to upgrade from Level 1 all over again.
Unfortunately, you can't have anymore than one set of towers in your town, so once you've fully upgraded this particular structure, you'll be left adding citizens to your town the old fashioned way. Still, this building is a great boost in your overall population, especially if you're short on space, so I'd definitely suggest building it. As you do, you'll also be able to work on an accompanying quest that will give you 1 million coins as its reward (just be warned - it's definitely not an easy quest to complete)!
What do you think of this Skyscrapers feature in CityVille? Will you build this upgradeable project in your city, or are you still working on too many other things right now?
For instance, the upgrade to Level 2 requires 5 Cement Trucks, 5 Elevators and 5 Cast Iron Plates. The Cement Trucks and Elevators are earned through general news posts on your wall while the Cast Iron Plates are earned by sending individual requests to friends. When you finish this first upgrade, your Skyscraper Residence will offer a population of 300-500 citizens and will offer 323 coins in rent every day (at its basic Level 1 state, it offers just 100 citizens in population).
As you upgrade the building by collecting more parts, these stats will increase. If you can make it all the way to Level 6, you'll be left with a much larger and much more impressive building visually that offers 4,500 citizens in population and 545 coins a day in rent. If, for whatever reason, you decide to delete the Skyscrapers from your town, you can rebuild them at the same state you left them later on. That is, you won't have to upgrade from Level 1 all over again.
Unfortunately, you can't have anymore than one set of towers in your town, so once you've fully upgraded this particular structure, you'll be left adding citizens to your town the old fashioned way. Still, this building is a great boost in your overall population, especially if you're short on space, so I'd definitely suggest building it. As you do, you'll also be able to work on an accompanying quest that will give you 1 million coins as its reward (just be warned - it's definitely not an easy quest to complete)!
What do you think of this Skyscrapers feature in CityVille? Will you build this upgradeable project in your city, or are you still working on too many other things right now?
Thứ Tư, 7 tháng 3, 2012
Slingo CEO: 'Zynga was awesome at finding what was missing'
The old guard of casual gamers remember the name "Slingo" well. Since its online debut on AOL nearly 20 years ago, the slots-meets-bingo game has reached far more than the peak 16 million unique monthly players it enjoyed on AOL. From discs to downloads to smartphones and even real-life slot machines, Slingo was everywhere ... except Facebook.
Of course, Zynga helped make that all better with yesterday's release of Zynga Slingo (with some coddling courtesy of Zynga board member Bing Gordon and a certain game designer's wife). But this wasn't Slingo's first shot at a successful social game. We're told that Slingo had been working on its own version of Slingo for Facebook. But, if you ask Slingo CEO Rich Roberts, the company might be thankful that it waited for Zynga to come along.
"This game has ... gone through a number of iterations. That's because you know it when it's right, and you know it when it's wrong," Roberts admits. "You start seeing things that are the right idea, but the play tests are like, 'It's missing something.' And Zynga was awesome at figuring out what it was missing."
Roberts has a storied history in the games scene, having served the likes of Berkley Systems, Viacom, Hasbro Interactive, Atari, Playfirst and now Slingo over the past 20 years or so. The video game veteran joined Slingo after leaving Playfirst with one mission: to give an already evergreen brand "some pop." But Roberts quickly realized that the scope of a successful Facebook game might be too much for Slingo's surprisingly small team of 20 to handle.
Gallery: Zynga Slingo on Facebook
"Coming from Playfirst, where we had done a number of social games [like] Chocolatier and Diner Dash, it's not the same as a casual game, a download game," Roberts tells us. "The amount of metrics needed to actually be successful, the amount of data--you need four 20-person teams if you want to compete in the space."
With that, Slingo licensed the legendary brand to Zynga, and consulted on the game over its development period. And now, the slots-meets-bingo favorite is alive on Facebook, given the Zyngafication. (Which we imagine isn't terribly different from slapping Slingo on a table in a dark tower, pulling a lever and striking it with some good old lightning.) But wasn't Slingo already a social game ... technically?
Slingo CEO Rich Roberts"[Zynga has] taken the true aspects of what Slingo is--if you really break it down to the basics, Slingo is a match-one game. I don't know if it's fair or not, but Slingo is truly a social game in its birth," Roberts claims. "You were chatting around playing the game. The game was primary, the chatting was secondary, but you were socializing when you were playing. And Slingo can bring a lot of that to the social game arena."
In fact, Slingo plans on bringing those social gaming mechanics to the various Slingo slot machines across the country through IGT. (You know, the casino company that just bought DoubleDown Casino for $500 million?) We're told that, based on an internal survey at Slingo of 25,000 players, 20 percent of online Slingo players went back to real casinos to play the official Slingo slot machines.
Slingo isn't just an online game brand, but a gambling brand, too, according to Roberts. Money-printing Facebook gaming opportunities aside, that's what Slingo is truly excited about: iGaming, or online gambling through games. And now that Zynga has likely taken care of the social side of Slingo, the company can focus on its strengths (and intense interests).
"It keeps us on track of who we are. Our focus has always been on our website. That's where the 20 people here is all built around: building the best website experience," Roberts says. "And we branched out to the best download game experience. We just sat back and said, 'What do we know the best about? Online and gambling.' And what's the peanut butter and chocolate? iGaming."
With the slow progress online gambling has made in the U.S, however, Roberts doesn't expect iGaming to explode until 2013 at least. (If you look at Zynga's recent releases, you'll notice that the two are likely on the same page.) And in the games world (both creatively and financially), timing is everything. Despite that, Roberts remains confident: "Whether we're late or early, I don't know--we're right."
Have you tried out Zynga Slingo on Facebook yet? Are you an old-time Slingo player, and if so, where have you played the game before?
Of course, Zynga helped make that all better with yesterday's release of Zynga Slingo (with some coddling courtesy of Zynga board member Bing Gordon and a certain game designer's wife). But this wasn't Slingo's first shot at a successful social game. We're told that Slingo had been working on its own version of Slingo for Facebook. But, if you ask Slingo CEO Rich Roberts, the company might be thankful that it waited for Zynga to come along.
"This game has ... gone through a number of iterations. That's because you know it when it's right, and you know it when it's wrong," Roberts admits. "You start seeing things that are the right idea, but the play tests are like, 'It's missing something.' And Zynga was awesome at figuring out what it was missing."
Roberts has a storied history in the games scene, having served the likes of Berkley Systems, Viacom, Hasbro Interactive, Atari, Playfirst and now Slingo over the past 20 years or so. The video game veteran joined Slingo after leaving Playfirst with one mission: to give an already evergreen brand "some pop." But Roberts quickly realized that the scope of a successful Facebook game might be too much for Slingo's surprisingly small team of 20 to handle.
Gallery: Zynga Slingo on Facebook
"Coming from Playfirst, where we had done a number of social games [like] Chocolatier and Diner Dash, it's not the same as a casual game, a download game," Roberts tells us. "The amount of metrics needed to actually be successful, the amount of data--you need four 20-person teams if you want to compete in the space."
With that, Slingo licensed the legendary brand to Zynga, and consulted on the game over its development period. And now, the slots-meets-bingo favorite is alive on Facebook, given the Zyngafication. (Which we imagine isn't terribly different from slapping Slingo on a table in a dark tower, pulling a lever and striking it with some good old lightning.) But wasn't Slingo already a social game ... technically?
Slingo CEO Rich Roberts"[Zynga has] taken the true aspects of what Slingo is--if you really break it down to the basics, Slingo is a match-one game. I don't know if it's fair or not, but Slingo is truly a social game in its birth," Roberts claims. "You were chatting around playing the game. The game was primary, the chatting was secondary, but you were socializing when you were playing. And Slingo can bring a lot of that to the social game arena."
In fact, Slingo plans on bringing those social gaming mechanics to the various Slingo slot machines across the country through IGT. (You know, the casino company that just bought DoubleDown Casino for $500 million?) We're told that, based on an internal survey at Slingo of 25,000 players, 20 percent of online Slingo players went back to real casinos to play the official Slingo slot machines.
Slingo isn't just an online game brand, but a gambling brand, too, according to Roberts. Money-printing Facebook gaming opportunities aside, that's what Slingo is truly excited about: iGaming, or online gambling through games. And now that Zynga has likely taken care of the social side of Slingo, the company can focus on its strengths (and intense interests).
"It keeps us on track of who we are. Our focus has always been on our website. That's where the 20 people here is all built around: building the best website experience," Roberts says. "And we branched out to the best download game experience. We just sat back and said, 'What do we know the best about? Online and gambling.' And what's the peanut butter and chocolate? iGaming."
With the slow progress online gambling has made in the U.S, however, Roberts doesn't expect iGaming to explode until 2013 at least. (If you look at Zynga's recent releases, you'll notice that the two are likely on the same page.) And in the games world (both creatively and financially), timing is everything. Despite that, Roberts remains confident: "Whether we're late or early, I don't know--we're right."
Have you tried out Zynga Slingo on Facebook yet? Are you an old-time Slingo player, and if so, where have you played the game before?
ESRB to parents: Hel-lo, games have ratings!
The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) has launched a new ad campaign to let parents know that a.) Video game boxes have big black letters on them and b.) Those letters mean something to parents who are trying to keep tabs on their children's media consumption.
Instead of printing up generic in-store flyers and signs that discuss what the ratings mean, the ratings board hired the team behind the popular video game comic 'Penny Arcade' to create a series of ads that are fairly clever and compelling (and really spell out the point of the ratings). My personal favorite is the one that stars Joshua (above), who "reminds his friends (at least the ones that [sic] have kids) that they all have big black letters on the box..." Seriously, they are pretty hard to miss.
Surveys by the ESRB finds that 85% of the parents they asked say they are aware that video games have ratings, and 65% regularly check a game's rating before buying it. Those are pretty respectable numbers overall, but from personal experience running mom's video game boot camps, there are still plenty of folks out there who are not in the know.
In addition to promoting the ratings and the organization, this new ad campaign is also promoting the new(ish) ESRB mobile app, designed to help parents quickly find additional information about a game while they're on the go.
To see the entire ESRB/Penny Arcade campaign, go here.
Monsters, pirates and mermaids (oh my?) pay Wonder Cruise a visit
Wonder Cruise on Facebook
Wonder Cruise, Nexon and Thingsoft's take on the obligatory management game on Facebook, sure does look adorable. But entertaining those guests for the umpteenth time gets a bit stale. Thankfully, developer Thingsoft realized this and looks to bring some spontaneity to Wonder Cruise in its first major update with interesting features like Wildcard Events.
Wonder Cruise MonsterSince Wonder Cruise is all about entertaining guests on cruises around the globe, these random events occur when a player sets sail in the middle of the vessel's journey to wherever. Wildcard Events can bring sea monsters, mermaids, dolphins, whales, ancient water gods, storms and even pirates to the side of your ship. The outcome of a player's cruises now depends on not just skilled management, but how well he or she can handle what the sea spits up.
Of course, this is a management game, so Thingsoft has revamped Wonder Cruise's Tycoon system to consider Gold, one of the game's primary resources, even more. Players will have to build new venues, like restaurants and casinos, on their cruisers to produce the Gold needed for upgrades. Goods are needed to supply those businesses, which can now be found through a new fishing system that has players searching for and clicking nodes in the water.
Wonder Cruise has also finally received a daily bonus system, which rewards players with Gold, Goods, Energy or a free spin of the Wheel of Wonder for logging in daily. The latter of which can result in Wonders for players to place on their vessels that attract even more passengers. As of this writing, Wonder Cruise welcomes just 30,000 monthly players, so maybe this is just what it needs to get gamers all aboard.
Have you tried Wonder Cruise on Facebook yet? What do you think of Nexon's games on Facebook so far?
Wonder Cruise, Nexon and Thingsoft's take on the obligatory management game on Facebook, sure does look adorable. But entertaining those guests for the umpteenth time gets a bit stale. Thankfully, developer Thingsoft realized this and looks to bring some spontaneity to Wonder Cruise in its first major update with interesting features like Wildcard Events.
Wonder Cruise MonsterSince Wonder Cruise is all about entertaining guests on cruises around the globe, these random events occur when a player sets sail in the middle of the vessel's journey to wherever. Wildcard Events can bring sea monsters, mermaids, dolphins, whales, ancient water gods, storms and even pirates to the side of your ship. The outcome of a player's cruises now depends on not just skilled management, but how well he or she can handle what the sea spits up.
Of course, this is a management game, so Thingsoft has revamped Wonder Cruise's Tycoon system to consider Gold, one of the game's primary resources, even more. Players will have to build new venues, like restaurants and casinos, on their cruisers to produce the Gold needed for upgrades. Goods are needed to supply those businesses, which can now be found through a new fishing system that has players searching for and clicking nodes in the water.
Wonder Cruise has also finally received a daily bonus system, which rewards players with Gold, Goods, Energy or a free spin of the Wheel of Wonder for logging in daily. The latter of which can result in Wonders for players to place on their vessels that attract even more passengers. As of this writing, Wonder Cruise welcomes just 30,000 monthly players, so maybe this is just what it needs to get gamers all aboard.
Have you tried Wonder Cruise on Facebook yet? What do you think of Nexon's games on Facebook so far?
Rick Santorum has mad Temple Run skills, his kids say
If you're Republican, here's another reason to love presidential candidate and former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum. If you happen to be a Democrat, well, we're sure you'll find a way to hate the guy over this. According to Santorum's spawn, John and Elizabeth, the presidential hopeful is hooked on Imangi Studios' Temple Run, one of our favorite iPhone games of 2011.
In fact, according to Santorum's daughter, the guy has scored over 1 million points in Temple Run, the running game in which players endlessly attempt to escape a temple filled with angry monkeys. And it's all their fault, Santorum says, for putting the game on his iPad in the first place. "I'm addicted to it," Santorum told Flip the Media. "It used to be Angry Birds, but now it's Temple Run."
Between this, Words With Friends getting famous on a plane (twice) and Emma Stone confessing her FarmVille addiction, do not be surprised to see more celebrities come out with their closet gaming habits. The more people in the public eye playing video games, the cooler, but just don't end up like this dude and you're golden.
[Via Kotaku]
Are you surprised to find that Rick Santorum is an avid mobile gamer? What mobile games are you hooked on right now?
In fact, according to Santorum's daughter, the guy has scored over 1 million points in Temple Run, the running game in which players endlessly attempt to escape a temple filled with angry monkeys. And it's all their fault, Santorum says, for putting the game on his iPad in the first place. "I'm addicted to it," Santorum told Flip the Media. "It used to be Angry Birds, but now it's Temple Run."
Between this, Words With Friends getting famous on a plane (twice) and Emma Stone confessing her FarmVille addiction, do not be surprised to see more celebrities come out with their closet gaming habits. The more people in the public eye playing video games, the cooler, but just don't end up like this dude and you're golden.
[Via Kotaku]
Are you surprised to find that Rick Santorum is an avid mobile gamer? What mobile games are you hooked on right now?
Flo from Progressive tours The Sims Social in 'Go With The Flo' quest
The Sims Social Go With The Flo
It was all downhill after Sonic the Hedgehog rushed his way into a Progressive TV ad. Now, Flo, everyone's favorite (right?) insurance agent from Progressive, has decided it's her turn to pay the games world a visit in The Sims Social. Yes, Playfish and Progressive have joined forces to bring The Sims Social players even more branded content. Don't let out a sigh just yet.
Should you complete Flo's three-part quest, you'll score a Progressive Unicorn statue that grants your Sim free energy for the next two weeks. You have 14 days to complete the quest, and you'll need at least three friends and some Goodwill along the way. Now, let's get you that one giant Progressive ad Progressive Unicorn.
Go With the Flo Part 1
Go With The Flo Part 1
Look Up Progressive on Computer 2 Times
Watch Flo's Commercials on TV
Just click on any old computer and choose the "Look Up Progressive" option to complete this first task. To watch Flo on TV, choose a TV and then the "Watch Flo on TV" option. You can use your friends' TVs and computers for both of these requirements.
Go With the Flo Part 2
Go With The Flo Part 2
Compose Progressive Jingle on Guitar 3 Times
Ask 3 Sims for Glitter and Unicorns
Search for Squirrels in Trees 2 Times
The first requirement can be completed on your Sim's or your friends' guitars--just click on a guitar and choose the relevant option. However, your Sim will get bored of it after two attempts, so move on to other activities for a few minutes. To ask Sims for glitter and unicorns, just visit three friends, click on them and then the relevant option. Searching for squirrels in trees is, again, as simple as finding trees and choosing the relevant option. You can also search friends' trees.
Go With the Flo Part 3
Go With The Flo Part 3
Have Goodwill
Prepare 3 Tacos in Microwave
Ask 3 Sims if They Love Tacos
To have Goodwill (we guess one Goodwill should suffice), all you need to do is perform friendly actions, like saying nice things or fixing and cleaning things in their houses. To prepare tacos in the microwave, just click on your Sim's microwave the relevant option. Asking Sims if they love tacos is as simple as clicking on your friends' Sims and, again, the relevant option.
After all of this, well, terribly easy work, the Progressive Unicorn will be yours. This nifty item will grants players will one free energy point every 24 hours. Not too shabby for 10 minutes worth of play, huh?
[Via & Image Credit: The Sims Social Fansite]
Have you started the Go With The Flo quest yet? What tips do you have to complete it even faster, and what do you think of the Progressive Unicorn?
It was all downhill after Sonic the Hedgehog rushed his way into a Progressive TV ad. Now, Flo, everyone's favorite (right?) insurance agent from Progressive, has decided it's her turn to pay the games world a visit in The Sims Social. Yes, Playfish and Progressive have joined forces to bring The Sims Social players even more branded content. Don't let out a sigh just yet.
Should you complete Flo's three-part quest, you'll score a Progressive Unicorn statue that grants your Sim free energy for the next two weeks. You have 14 days to complete the quest, and you'll need at least three friends and some Goodwill along the way. Now, let's get you that one giant Progressive ad Progressive Unicorn.
Go With the Flo Part 1
Go With The Flo Part 1
Look Up Progressive on Computer 2 Times
Watch Flo's Commercials on TV
Just click on any old computer and choose the "Look Up Progressive" option to complete this first task. To watch Flo on TV, choose a TV and then the "Watch Flo on TV" option. You can use your friends' TVs and computers for both of these requirements.
Go With the Flo Part 2
Go With The Flo Part 2
Compose Progressive Jingle on Guitar 3 Times
Ask 3 Sims for Glitter and Unicorns
Search for Squirrels in Trees 2 Times
The first requirement can be completed on your Sim's or your friends' guitars--just click on a guitar and choose the relevant option. However, your Sim will get bored of it after two attempts, so move on to other activities for a few minutes. To ask Sims for glitter and unicorns, just visit three friends, click on them and then the relevant option. Searching for squirrels in trees is, again, as simple as finding trees and choosing the relevant option. You can also search friends' trees.
Go With the Flo Part 3
Go With The Flo Part 3
Have Goodwill
Prepare 3 Tacos in Microwave
Ask 3 Sims if They Love Tacos
To have Goodwill (we guess one Goodwill should suffice), all you need to do is perform friendly actions, like saying nice things or fixing and cleaning things in their houses. To prepare tacos in the microwave, just click on your Sim's microwave the relevant option. Asking Sims if they love tacos is as simple as clicking on your friends' Sims and, again, the relevant option.
After all of this, well, terribly easy work, the Progressive Unicorn will be yours. This nifty item will grants players will one free energy point every 24 hours. Not too shabby for 10 minutes worth of play, huh?
[Via & Image Credit: The Sims Social Fansite]
Have you started the Go With The Flo quest yet? What tips do you have to complete it even faster, and what do you think of the Progressive Unicorn?
FarmVille Pic of the Day: March Madness hits Penny Kraemer's farm
As the world celebrates NBA sensation Jeremy Lin of the NY Knicks, one FarmVille player has her sights on the NCAA Basketball's March Madness. Sporting (no pun intended) a tournament bracket design -- you know, those huge charts used to keep track of who played and beat who -- for a background, the caption "MARCH MADNESS", and basketball-in-hoop graphic built entirely of hay bales, Penny's farm also includes three rows of numbers that'd be somewhat mysterious to non-sports fans: 64-32-16, followed by 8-4, and lastly, 2.
These numbers actually represent the number of teams that start during the March Madness season, and as they square off against each other, the competition is whittled down. There was a brief second where we were confused by the 64 teams, because even though that's the traditional number (and it's been that way since 1985), the amount was raised to 68 last year. But the women's division still has it at 64, so that's likely what Penny's rooting for with her farm. Sports-themed farms are a rarity, but so are female sports fans and basketball players. So it's nice to see all three intersect on FarmVille.
What's your favorite sport to watch or play? Have you been swept up by Linsanity yet? Sound off in the comments. Add Comment
If you have an AWESOME FarmVille farm that you want to see featured on Games.com, please email a picture to editors@games.com, Include a few words about the inspiration for your design and maybe a few tips for people who need an assist!
CrowdStar CEO: 'There's confusion about genres and copies' [Interview]
The infamous Dream Heights is now available to all on the App Store, and while reviews are positive overall, a number of them draw comparisons between Zynga's game and NimbleBit's Tiny Tower. After the past month and a half's dramatic David and Goliath scenario, it's not surprising. But It Girl creator CrowdStar has its own tower-building game, Tower Town, and not once has NimbleBit contacted the developer, according to CEO Peter Relan. What gives?
CrowdStar CEO Peter Relan"It was a side-scrolling tower builder--completely different from Tiny Tower. You scroll to the side, you build many towers, you don't just go upwards," Relan tells us. "[NimbleBit] never, ever contacted us to say, 'Hey, Tower Town is a copycat.' Never, ever. We were in the genre and we were not a copycat. We feel that healthy innovation is going on when 1.) new genres are being created, and 2.) within the genres, different styles of games are being created."
While we're not sure whether CrowdStar's game is "completely different," Relan raises an interesting point. CrowdStar launched Tower Town in November 2011 through its StarFund, which backs small-time game developers. NimbleBit launched Tiny Tower in June 2011, long before CrowdStar's game. Perhaps Tower Town was just different enough from Tiny Tower to dodge the indie game developer's snark-filled letters.
"When we made Tower Town a side-scroller and we added mining to create room for new towers, that was a fundamentally new element that makes the game very different," Relan says. "The economy behaves differently and the way you expand your Tower Town, in this case, behaves differently. Once you go that path, then I think the design of the game requires some fundamental thinking and is pretty much a new game design. That's justified."
According to Relan, Tower Town is justified because of how it separates itself from other tower-building games, and thus adds to the overall genre of tower-builders. The CrowdStar CEO thinks that people are a bit cloudy on what constitutes as either a clone or an addition to a genre, and that Zynga, in part, is to blame for that. "It's inaccurate to say, 'Well, there are five other games like that.' That's a genre of games. There's a difference," Relan says. "I think their statement confused the issue."
Tiny Tower
"I think there's a confusion in the industry about genres and copies slash clones. When Zynga stated that there were five other tower games before Tiny Tower, they weren't five clones of Tiny Tower. Let's say there's a pets genre game--four or five pets games. All five pet games have some dogs, cats, rabbits, whatever. You're gonna have the tower-building game as a genre, which I think is a fascinating genre," Relan admits. "There's a genre now. CrowdStar created in the shopping category, then other people enter the genre also. So, genres do get created."
Dream HeightsWith that, Relan thinks that copycatting isn't as pervasive in the games industry as it seems, but rather new genres are being created. A games, nay, an entertainment world without genres would be boring, admittedly, but there is a line to be drawn. The CrowdStar chief does admit to the glaring similarities between Dream Heights and Tiny Tower. If that's the case, then where exactly do you draw the line?
"The choices are many in how you do the user interface. You have lots of creative freedom there," Relan tells us. "But if you choose not to exercise that creative freedom ... that's when you cross the line."
But copycatting, cloning, what have you is nothing new to the games industry. Hell, it's nothing new to the entertainment industry if not the majority of creative works for all time. The chatter over copycatting in the games scene will slowly become (for now), but what happens after the hot topic cools down?
"Fundamentally, people who come into this industry want to create games. [Designers,] by their very nature and their passion are interested in design, not copying," Relan says. "I see this as a particular approach, which has been called 'follower'. That culture and that approach is not the [prevailing] approach in the industry, in my experience, because most people in this industry want to do something different."
What do you think of Relan's take on the copycatting issue in mobile and social games? Have you tried Tower Town or Dream Heights yet?
CrowdStar CEO Peter Relan"It was a side-scrolling tower builder--completely different from Tiny Tower. You scroll to the side, you build many towers, you don't just go upwards," Relan tells us. "[NimbleBit] never, ever contacted us to say, 'Hey, Tower Town is a copycat.' Never, ever. We were in the genre and we were not a copycat. We feel that healthy innovation is going on when 1.) new genres are being created, and 2.) within the genres, different styles of games are being created."
While we're not sure whether CrowdStar's game is "completely different," Relan raises an interesting point. CrowdStar launched Tower Town in November 2011 through its StarFund, which backs small-time game developers. NimbleBit launched Tiny Tower in June 2011, long before CrowdStar's game. Perhaps Tower Town was just different enough from Tiny Tower to dodge the indie game developer's snark-filled letters.
"When we made Tower Town a side-scroller and we added mining to create room for new towers, that was a fundamentally new element that makes the game very different," Relan says. "The economy behaves differently and the way you expand your Tower Town, in this case, behaves differently. Once you go that path, then I think the design of the game requires some fundamental thinking and is pretty much a new game design. That's justified."
According to Relan, Tower Town is justified because of how it separates itself from other tower-building games, and thus adds to the overall genre of tower-builders. The CrowdStar CEO thinks that people are a bit cloudy on what constitutes as either a clone or an addition to a genre, and that Zynga, in part, is to blame for that. "It's inaccurate to say, 'Well, there are five other games like that.' That's a genre of games. There's a difference," Relan says. "I think their statement confused the issue."
Tiny Tower
"I think there's a confusion in the industry about genres and copies slash clones. When Zynga stated that there were five other tower games before Tiny Tower, they weren't five clones of Tiny Tower. Let's say there's a pets genre game--four or five pets games. All five pet games have some dogs, cats, rabbits, whatever. You're gonna have the tower-building game as a genre, which I think is a fascinating genre," Relan admits. "There's a genre now. CrowdStar created in the shopping category, then other people enter the genre also. So, genres do get created."
Dream HeightsWith that, Relan thinks that copycatting isn't as pervasive in the games industry as it seems, but rather new genres are being created. A games, nay, an entertainment world without genres would be boring, admittedly, but there is a line to be drawn. The CrowdStar chief does admit to the glaring similarities between Dream Heights and Tiny Tower. If that's the case, then where exactly do you draw the line?
"The choices are many in how you do the user interface. You have lots of creative freedom there," Relan tells us. "But if you choose not to exercise that creative freedom ... that's when you cross the line."
But copycatting, cloning, what have you is nothing new to the games industry. Hell, it's nothing new to the entertainment industry if not the majority of creative works for all time. The chatter over copycatting in the games scene will slowly become (for now), but what happens after the hot topic cools down?
"Fundamentally, people who come into this industry want to create games. [Designers,] by their very nature and their passion are interested in design, not copying," Relan says. "I see this as a particular approach, which has been called 'follower'. That culture and that approach is not the [prevailing] approach in the industry, in my experience, because most people in this industry want to do something different."
What do you think of Relan's take on the copycatting issue in mobile and social games? Have you tried Tower Town or Dream Heights yet?
Thứ Bảy, 3 tháng 3, 2012
Honor late, great Patrick Swayze in ... a Dirty Dancing Facebook game?
Remember, it's Sept. 9, not April 1, so this is for real. AllFacebook reports that a Facebook game surrounding the iconic 1987 film starring Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey, Dirty Dancing, is in development at Toronto-based studio Social Game Universe. The game will include the tunes you all know from the hit movie, like "(I've Had) The Time of My Life" and "Hungry Eyes," as players rehearse and perform dance numbers at the Kellerman's Resort to level up.
Presented in 8-bit style visuals like the video games of the time, Dirty Dancing on Facebook will have players dancing alongside retro, digitized versions of Baby and Johnny from the movie. (I'd rather think of them as Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze in glorious 8-bit rendering, but to each his own.)
Players will then roam around the resort and drop "Romance Waves" to cause guests to fall in love and stay for awhile longer. Wait, that never happened in the movie!
Anyway, players will perform real dance moves that originated from the film, likely including Baby's infamous "maraca shaking." If any of this tickles your fancy, you can head over to the Facebook page right now and sign up for a chance at an exclusive preview of the game.
However, it looks like Social Game Universe is looking for super fans, here--you've been warned. Dirty Dancing is expected to make its Facebook game debut later this month.
Are you psyched that Dirty Dancing is getting its very own Facebook game? (Hey, anything beats that weird remake released in 2004.) What other nods to the classic movie do you hope to see in this game?
Presented in 8-bit style visuals like the video games of the time, Dirty Dancing on Facebook will have players dancing alongside retro, digitized versions of Baby and Johnny from the movie. (I'd rather think of them as Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze in glorious 8-bit rendering, but to each his own.)
Players will then roam around the resort and drop "Romance Waves" to cause guests to fall in love and stay for awhile longer. Wait, that never happened in the movie!
Anyway, players will perform real dance moves that originated from the film, likely including Baby's infamous "maraca shaking." If any of this tickles your fancy, you can head over to the Facebook page right now and sign up for a chance at an exclusive preview of the game.
However, it looks like Social Game Universe is looking for super fans, here--you've been warned. Dirty Dancing is expected to make its Facebook game debut later this month.
Are you psyched that Dirty Dancing is getting its very own Facebook game? (Hey, anything beats that weird remake released in 2004.) What other nods to the classic movie do you hope to see in this game?
The Sims Social beats FarmVille, attracts second most daily players
Boy, people sure do love to play god. According to Appdata, The Sims Social has surpassed Zynga's iconic FarmVille with the second most daily players of any Facebook game. Since its launch just a month ago today, EA and Playfish's ambitious social rendition of The Sims has amassed over 9.3 million daily players--that's over 1 million more than FarmVille's 8.1 million.
The Sims Social still has a way to go to the number one spot, which is, of course, held by Zynga's most popular game CityVille at just under 14 million daily players. Regardless, it's unprecedented for a game to grow this quickly in daily players, at least for a game that wasn't built by Zynga. Not to mention this is despite the hiccups the game faced along the way including days worth of downtime.
So, that's the power of The Sims, huh? Well, not so fast. While The Sims Social has certainly showed its might when it comes to gripping players (and keeping them there ... so far), the game is still in fourth place in terms of monthly players at just over 34.3 million. This number could grow in time naturally as daily players spread the word and through advertising, but it's nevertheless telling of the limits a Facebook game faces when it doesn't have a massive existing player base, like Zynga's games.
In other words, EA and Playfish have quite a lot of work ahead of them, if they want The Sims Social to be on top in all regards. But judging from the game's performance thus far despite its early setbacks--and in the face of the most popular Facebook games to date--perhaps Simlish could become the dominant language in Facebook gaming.
Have you been one of the over 9 million locked into The Sims Social? What do you think of the game so far?
The Sims Social still has a way to go to the number one spot, which is, of course, held by Zynga's most popular game CityVille at just under 14 million daily players. Regardless, it's unprecedented for a game to grow this quickly in daily players, at least for a game that wasn't built by Zynga. Not to mention this is despite the hiccups the game faced along the way including days worth of downtime.
So, that's the power of The Sims, huh? Well, not so fast. While The Sims Social has certainly showed its might when it comes to gripping players (and keeping them there ... so far), the game is still in fourth place in terms of monthly players at just over 34.3 million. This number could grow in time naturally as daily players spread the word and through advertising, but it's nevertheless telling of the limits a Facebook game faces when it doesn't have a massive existing player base, like Zynga's games.
In other words, EA and Playfish have quite a lot of work ahead of them, if they want The Sims Social to be on top in all regards. But judging from the game's performance thus far despite its early setbacks--and in the face of the most popular Facebook games to date--perhaps Simlish could become the dominant language in Facebook gaming.
Have you been one of the over 9 million locked into The Sims Social? What do you think of the game so far?
Zynga Mobile steals away Disney Interactive exec Adam Sussman
Just despicable: When Zynga isn't buying out companies, it's downright hiring buying out people. According to paidContent, Disney Games SVP Adam Sussman has left the company to join Zynga Mobile, which Disney confirmed to paidContent's Staci D. Kramer. Sussman joined Disney Interactive Media Group (DIMG) in January of this year, coming from EA's mobile division.
The former SVP was responsible for global publishing at Disney's games department, but paidContent believes Sussman will focus solely on mobile games while with Zynga Mobile, working under David Ko. In his move to Zynga Mobile, Sussman joins former Playdom VP of global distribution Paul LaFontaine as the second Disney Games executive to leave this week alone.
Companies like Disney, EA and similar major gaming companies have suffered several losses of high-level executives--including EA COO John Schappert (which has since been confirmed)--to Zynga and other competitors this year. Even a delayed IPO (initial public offering) can't scare high-level games industry execs away from the big red dog.
The continuous string of bad news already had analysts questioning whether Disney and Playdom could hang with its competitors months ago, and the fact that the company is having trouble holding onto its key players doesn't help today. Despite its losses, games like Gardens of Times do consistently well for Disney Playdom.
So, perhaps there is still hope for the company that it can squeeze out another hit and continue to hang with the top five Facebook game developers. You know, another hit like ... a Facebook game actually revolving around Disney characters? (Um ... duh?)
[Image Credit: Disney]
Do you think Disney Playdom can still compete with Zynga, EA and Wooga despite its losses and worried analysts? Why do you think the developer has yet to make a Facebook game using Disney characters?
The former SVP was responsible for global publishing at Disney's games department, but paidContent believes Sussman will focus solely on mobile games while with Zynga Mobile, working under David Ko. In his move to Zynga Mobile, Sussman joins former Playdom VP of global distribution Paul LaFontaine as the second Disney Games executive to leave this week alone.
Companies like Disney, EA and similar major gaming companies have suffered several losses of high-level executives--including EA COO John Schappert (which has since been confirmed)--to Zynga and other competitors this year. Even a delayed IPO (initial public offering) can't scare high-level games industry execs away from the big red dog.
The continuous string of bad news already had analysts questioning whether Disney and Playdom could hang with its competitors months ago, and the fact that the company is having trouble holding onto its key players doesn't help today. Despite its losses, games like Gardens of Times do consistently well for Disney Playdom.
So, perhaps there is still hope for the company that it can squeeze out another hit and continue to hang with the top five Facebook game developers. You know, another hit like ... a Facebook game actually revolving around Disney characters? (Um ... duh?)
[Image Credit: Disney]
Do you think Disney Playdom can still compete with Zynga, EA and Wooga despite its losses and worried analysts? Why do you think the developer has yet to make a Facebook game using Disney characters?
Contra creator Konami welcomes over 10 million social gamers
Does this mean we'll get to blast alien scum with giant guns on Facebook anytime soon? Probably not, but Konami sounds quite proud of itself, regardless. Siliconera reports that the creator of hit franchises like Contra and Castlevania welcomed its 10 millionth social gamer just this past August, thanks to its games on smartphones and Japanese social networks like Gree.
Specifically, Konami cited games like Dragon Collection, a game available over Gree and on smartphones that has over 4 million players collecting Dragon Cards and battling their friends with them. The game has been so successful that it has been inducted into the Gree Hall of Fame for apps, and has its very own weekly manga (Japanese take on comic books) serialization.
Other social hits published by Konami include Sengoku Collection, which sounds similar to Dragon Collection only set during Japan's Warring States period, with over 2 million registered players. Another, according to Siliconera, is Professional Dream Baseball Nine, a game that has held the number 2 spot on Gree's app rankings for 17 weeks running with over 1 million players. According to Siliconera, the game is even licensed by Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball League.
This is pretty stellar news for Konami, who, like many Western game companies including EA, THQ and Ubisoft, has social gaming in its cross hairs more so than ever. In fact, Konami even recently reworked Hudson Soft, its subsidiary responsible for popular franchises like Bomberman, into a social games division for the publisher. (This 10 million players mark could include games the company has already released on Facebook like Viva Mall!.) Imagining the amount of yen being thrown at the company in games like Dragon Collection, we doubt this will be the last we hear of Konami's social soirée.
[Image Credit: Konami Digital Entertainment]
Do you think Konami was smart in focusing this much attention on social games? Which of the publishers famous franchises do you wish were interpreted for Facebook or other social platforms?
Specifically, Konami cited games like Dragon Collection, a game available over Gree and on smartphones that has over 4 million players collecting Dragon Cards and battling their friends with them. The game has been so successful that it has been inducted into the Gree Hall of Fame for apps, and has its very own weekly manga (Japanese take on comic books) serialization.
Other social hits published by Konami include Sengoku Collection, which sounds similar to Dragon Collection only set during Japan's Warring States period, with over 2 million registered players. Another, according to Siliconera, is Professional Dream Baseball Nine, a game that has held the number 2 spot on Gree's app rankings for 17 weeks running with over 1 million players. According to Siliconera, the game is even licensed by Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball League.
This is pretty stellar news for Konami, who, like many Western game companies including EA, THQ and Ubisoft, has social gaming in its cross hairs more so than ever. In fact, Konami even recently reworked Hudson Soft, its subsidiary responsible for popular franchises like Bomberman, into a social games division for the publisher. (This 10 million players mark could include games the company has already released on Facebook like Viva Mall!.) Imagining the amount of yen being thrown at the company in games like Dragon Collection, we doubt this will be the last we hear of Konami's social soirée.
[Image Credit: Konami Digital Entertainment]
Do you think Konami was smart in focusing this much attention on social games? Which of the publishers famous franchises do you wish were interpreted for Facebook or other social platforms?
FIFA Superstars on iPhone yanked from App Store due to 'server issues'
EA is sitting pretty on Facebook at the moment, but on smartphones ... not so much. Mobile Entertainment reports that that the publisher has been forced to remove its recently-released iPhone version of Facebook soccer (football) hit FIFA Superstars from the App Store due to "server issues."
The game, released in late August, provides the 2.8 million monthly players of the Facebook version of FIFA Superstars a near-identical representation of what they're used to seeing in their browsers. However, the game suffered login issues from the get-go, it seems. Players have been unable to access the game after logging into the company's new Origin service.
"We are currently experiencing server issues with FIFA Superstars mobile that have required us to temporarily take the game down," EA told Mobile Entertainment. "This is not a data security-related issue. We are implementing a solution that will ensure users have the best gameplay experience, and will provide an update soon as to when the game will be live again."
According to Mobile Entertainment, EA stresses that this issue does not affect the Facebook version of the game, and that players can still enjoy the game there for now. (When we tried to log into the game, we didn't encounter any issues either.) It's comforting to see that EA is more vocal with the issues it has encountered in this game than it has been with social games in the past.
When its hyper popular Facebook version of The Sims, The Sims Social, suffered launch issues, the company was mum on the details for days before it released a message to its players with an explanation (and later threw them a bone). Since then, the game has enjoyed incredible growth, so hopefully FIFA Superstars for iPhone can bounce back from these hiccups just as well.
[Via Pocket Gamer]
Did you have trouble logging into FIFA Superstars for iPhone, too? What are you doing to scratch the social soccer itch while you wait for the game to return to the App Store?
The game, released in late August, provides the 2.8 million monthly players of the Facebook version of FIFA Superstars a near-identical representation of what they're used to seeing in their browsers. However, the game suffered login issues from the get-go, it seems. Players have been unable to access the game after logging into the company's new Origin service.
"We are currently experiencing server issues with FIFA Superstars mobile that have required us to temporarily take the game down," EA told Mobile Entertainment. "This is not a data security-related issue. We are implementing a solution that will ensure users have the best gameplay experience, and will provide an update soon as to when the game will be live again."
According to Mobile Entertainment, EA stresses that this issue does not affect the Facebook version of the game, and that players can still enjoy the game there for now. (When we tried to log into the game, we didn't encounter any issues either.) It's comforting to see that EA is more vocal with the issues it has encountered in this game than it has been with social games in the past.
When its hyper popular Facebook version of The Sims, The Sims Social, suffered launch issues, the company was mum on the details for days before it released a message to its players with an explanation (and later threw them a bone). Since then, the game has enjoyed incredible growth, so hopefully FIFA Superstars for iPhone can bounce back from these hiccups just as well.
[Via Pocket Gamer]
Did you have trouble logging into FIFA Superstars for iPhone, too? What are you doing to scratch the social soccer itch while you wait for the game to return to the App Store?
Social game makers Gree, DeNA to take spotlight at Tokyo Game Show
Social games will go toe to toe with the hardcore scene at this year's Tokyo Game Show, Reuters reports. Gree, the 26 million player-strong mobile and social games creator hailing from Japan, will have one of the largest booths at Japan's equivalent of E3 this year, according to Reuters. In fact, both Gree and its competitor DeNA will conduct keynote addresses at the event, which runs Sept. 15 through 18.
Reuters reports that several game companies aside from DeNA and Gree, including famed creator of games like Contra and Castlevania (some of the most hardcore franchises around) Konami, are shifting resources toward social games. While the biggest Japanese games company, Nintendo, lags behind as it continues to focus on games created deliberately to take advantage of its hardware. Unfortunately, that hasn't been working out so well for the company as of late.
"Nintendo has done some pretty awful things - no software, poor pricing, poor PR, no sign of a sustainable turnaround, software support dropping like flies," JP Morgan analyst Hiroshi Kamide told Reuters, referring to the failed 3DS launch (and resultant massive price drop).
On the other hand, competitor Konami recently welcomed over 10 million players to its social games. "You can make serious returns with social games in Japan if done well - and that is exactly what they have done," Kamide said to Reuters about Konami.
Both DeNA (which enjoys 3 million more monthly players than its rival) and Gree have major ambitions of becoming global competitors in the social games space to companies like Zynga and EA, which have blazed the trail for Facebook and mobile social game in the western world. Just this past year, both Gree and DeNA made huge purchases to make global headway in the space with mobile social game network OpenFeint and mobile games developer Ngmoco, respectively.
Just as some social game makers invaded this year's E3 event in the states, it looks like the ballooning sub genre will fill up the streets of Tokyo this week, too. Whether the two companies will fill the conference halls with hot air has yet to be seen. But considering Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley analyst Masato Araki expects Japan's social games industry to grow to about 400 billion yen ($5.1 billion) by 2013 from 106 billion yen in 2011, according to Reuters, you can bet everyone will be all ears.
Do you think Gree and DeNA will have some new, interesting things to say about social games at this year's TGS? How do you think traditional Japanese gaming companies will respond?
Reuters reports that several game companies aside from DeNA and Gree, including famed creator of games like Contra and Castlevania (some of the most hardcore franchises around) Konami, are shifting resources toward social games. While the biggest Japanese games company, Nintendo, lags behind as it continues to focus on games created deliberately to take advantage of its hardware. Unfortunately, that hasn't been working out so well for the company as of late.
"Nintendo has done some pretty awful things - no software, poor pricing, poor PR, no sign of a sustainable turnaround, software support dropping like flies," JP Morgan analyst Hiroshi Kamide told Reuters, referring to the failed 3DS launch (and resultant massive price drop).
On the other hand, competitor Konami recently welcomed over 10 million players to its social games. "You can make serious returns with social games in Japan if done well - and that is exactly what they have done," Kamide said to Reuters about Konami.
Both DeNA (which enjoys 3 million more monthly players than its rival) and Gree have major ambitions of becoming global competitors in the social games space to companies like Zynga and EA, which have blazed the trail for Facebook and mobile social game in the western world. Just this past year, both Gree and DeNA made huge purchases to make global headway in the space with mobile social game network OpenFeint and mobile games developer Ngmoco, respectively.
Just as some social game makers invaded this year's E3 event in the states, it looks like the ballooning sub genre will fill up the streets of Tokyo this week, too. Whether the two companies will fill the conference halls with hot air has yet to be seen. But considering Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley analyst Masato Araki expects Japan's social games industry to grow to about 400 billion yen ($5.1 billion) by 2013 from 106 billion yen in 2011, according to Reuters, you can bet everyone will be all ears.
Do you think Gree and DeNA will have some new, interesting things to say about social games at this year's TGS? How do you think traditional Japanese gaming companies will respond?
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