The Game of the Day has got your word games, right here! In Arctic Quest 2, the the son of the Snow King sets out to turn Earth into an icy prison for all living creatures. To foil his evil plans, you must solve 100 inlay puzzles. New powers are available to help you win, including water elements that can fill in the empty pieces of a puzzle and fire elements that can wipe out all of your hard work!
Click --> Play Arctic Quest 2
Important side note: Just by playing The Game of the Day you will be entered into a monthly drawing to win a FlipCam HD. You don't need to do anything else, just play! The more you play, the more chances you have to win. For more information on the Game of Day check out the official Game of the Day hub.
Friday, December 30, 2011
FarmVille English Countryside Dairy Farm Goals: Everything you need to know
FarmVille Lily
Just as the Village Map was revealed yesterday (spoilers!), Zynga released the Dairy Farm for all to see on the English Countryside. Well, at least it released the Goals to unlock and build your own Milk Machines in FarmVille. There is a series of four Goals that will grant you with a Dairy Farm, if you help Lily with her list of problems. There's always got to be problems.
1. How Dairy You
Get a new Cow
Harvest 100 Bluebells
How Dairy You
To get a new Cow, either just click on the button within the Goal window or head to the Market--they go for an easy 300 coins. Then, harvesting 100 Bluebells will cost 12 thousand coins and take at least 12 hours if you can plant them all at once. Complete this Goal to receive your very own Dairy Farm, 100 XP and 2,500 coins.
2. Say Cheese
Get 6 Cheese Cultures
Collect from your Dairy Farm twice
Say Cheese
Another simple Goal, these Cheese Cultures can be requested right from the Goal's menu window for your friends to answer. The second requirement will take some time as the cool down on collecting from buildings is considerable. Regardless, finishing this Goal will reward you with 200 XP, 5,000 coins and a Shorthorn Cow.
3. Showing Off
Achieve one Mastery Tier of Bluebells
Use a Combine 50 times
Expand the farm to 16x16
Showing Off
Now, things begin to get interesting, if a challenge is interesting to you. To achieve Bluebell Mastery, just keep plantin', but remember to use the Combine when you do to kill two birds with one stone. However, Fuel is tough to come by these days, so let's hope Zynga tweaks this second requirement. The 16x16 expansion to a Family Farm costs an insane 50 thousand coins, but the return on mastering Bluebells even just once should help a great deal in raising the money for this. You'll be rewarded with 7,500 coins, 300 XP and five Vehicle Parts.
4. Saving Dr. Fluffy
Visit 6 Neighbors
Get 6 Electric Torches
Harvest 100 Radishes
Saving Dr. Fluffy
In this fourth and final Goal, the requirements are surprisingly simple. First, just plant those 100 Radishes, which will cost you 9,000 coins and take 18 hours at the very least. Then, go off and visit your friends and request for Electronic Torches through the Goal's menu. Finally, this Goal will reward your success with the coveted Sheep Pen for your home farm, 500 XP and a Bunny to bounce around your farm.
[Source and Image Credit: FarmVille Freak]
Check out the rest of our English Countryside coverage right here.
Have you tried these Goals yet? What tips do you have for completing them even faster?
Just as the Village Map was revealed yesterday (spoilers!), Zynga released the Dairy Farm for all to see on the English Countryside. Well, at least it released the Goals to unlock and build your own Milk Machines in FarmVille. There is a series of four Goals that will grant you with a Dairy Farm, if you help Lily with her list of problems. There's always got to be problems.
1. How Dairy You
Get a new Cow
Harvest 100 Bluebells
How Dairy You
To get a new Cow, either just click on the button within the Goal window or head to the Market--they go for an easy 300 coins. Then, harvesting 100 Bluebells will cost 12 thousand coins and take at least 12 hours if you can plant them all at once. Complete this Goal to receive your very own Dairy Farm, 100 XP and 2,500 coins.
2. Say Cheese
Get 6 Cheese Cultures
Collect from your Dairy Farm twice
Say Cheese
Another simple Goal, these Cheese Cultures can be requested right from the Goal's menu window for your friends to answer. The second requirement will take some time as the cool down on collecting from buildings is considerable. Regardless, finishing this Goal will reward you with 200 XP, 5,000 coins and a Shorthorn Cow.
3. Showing Off
Achieve one Mastery Tier of Bluebells
Use a Combine 50 times
Expand the farm to 16x16
Showing Off
Now, things begin to get interesting, if a challenge is interesting to you. To achieve Bluebell Mastery, just keep plantin', but remember to use the Combine when you do to kill two birds with one stone. However, Fuel is tough to come by these days, so let's hope Zynga tweaks this second requirement. The 16x16 expansion to a Family Farm costs an insane 50 thousand coins, but the return on mastering Bluebells even just once should help a great deal in raising the money for this. You'll be rewarded with 7,500 coins, 300 XP and five Vehicle Parts.
4. Saving Dr. Fluffy
Visit 6 Neighbors
Get 6 Electric Torches
Harvest 100 Radishes
Saving Dr. Fluffy
In this fourth and final Goal, the requirements are surprisingly simple. First, just plant those 100 Radishes, which will cost you 9,000 coins and take 18 hours at the very least. Then, go off and visit your friends and request for Electronic Torches through the Goal's menu. Finally, this Goal will reward your success with the coveted Sheep Pen for your home farm, 500 XP and a Bunny to bounce around your farm.
[Source and Image Credit: FarmVille Freak]
Check out the rest of our English Countryside coverage right here.
Have you tried these Goals yet? What tips do you have for completing them even faster?
CityVille Cruise Ship Goals: Everything you need to know
The next major CityVille update has arrived in the form of luxury and adventure: Cruise Ships. This brand new feature will appear in a series of Goals, but will ultimately bring more tourists to your cities and speed up your Businesses. (With fireworks and everything!) Tourism Director Dan will guide you in creating your CityVille City Port and later sending off Cruise Ships. Join us behind the break to find out how. (Warning: You must be Level 20 or above to start these Goals.)
This new feature spans across four Goals, and as the City Port is brand new, this information is extremely early and subject to change. Let's start with the Goals:
City Port1. Unlock Cruise Ships
Place a City Port
Place four Decorations near the City Port
Place three Businesses near the City Port
Upon accepting the first Goal, the City Port will appear in your inventory. Take it from there and place it near water, otherwise you will not be able to build it. After putting that down, either purchase or move four Decorations and three Businesses to surround the City Port. For completing this simple Goal, you'll receive Sunglasses, one of the items required to finish the City Port.
2. Tourists in Sight
Get 5 Tourism Pamphlets
Send 5 Tour Buses
The Tourism Pamphlets will come from your friends after requesting them through the Goal's menu. All the while, just visit one friend and use all five Helps to send Tour Buses to their Businesses. This Goal will be done in no time, and you'll win a nifty Robot Street Performer for doing it.
Waterfront Condo3. Port Time
Grow your Population by 250
Finish the City Port
Growing your population is as easy as throwing together another Community Building like a Bank or one of the newer additions. (Unless you want to drop 2 million in coins on a fancy Landmark.) To finish the City Port, check out the details later on in this guide. Finishing this Goal will reward you with a measly 50 Goods.
4. Ready to Dock
Have 1,000 Goods
Unload three Cruise Ships
Now that you've already built the City Port, which we'll cover in detail below, it's time to finish this series. Conserve your Goods and make sure you have 1,000 before completing this second requirement, which requires you to unload your ship three times. Do this and a Beachfront Condo, a home with 150 population and 230 coins as rent per day, is yours.
Finish Your City Port
Building and Using the City Port
As you likely already figured out (we hope), these Goals revolve around the City Port. This new item will appear in your inventory after starting the first Goal. Take it out from there and place it near water. Then, click it seven times to finish the foundation of the building. Then, a menu window will open just like any other Community Building, requiring five items to finish the City Port:
2 2x4
8 Sunglasses
8 Dec Chairs
2 Whistles
8 Visors
Cruise Ship Passenger ArrivalOnce you acquire all 28 items in total, the City Port will finally be operational. Collect from the City Port like any other Community Building every 12 hours. Not only coins and XP will appear, but legions of tourists ready to spend money. When more tourists arrive, a fireworks show will play upon arrival. Every time you want to send for tourists, it will cost 300 Goods, but the City Port will pay out 1,350 coins every time new tourists arrive.
Unfortunately, you must stick around the city while tourists shop, as they might disappear if you close the game or visit a friend immediately after accepting the folks into your city. The idea is to use the tourists to speed up the production of your Businesses, resulting in more coins and XP in the end. Tip: Make sure your Businesses are all fully stocked before unloading tourists to maximize the benefits.
[Source and Image Credits: CityVille Goals and Zynga]
Check out the rest of our CityVille Cheats & Tips right here.
Have you seen these Goals in your game yet? What tips do you have for completing them even faster?
This new feature spans across four Goals, and as the City Port is brand new, this information is extremely early and subject to change. Let's start with the Goals:
City Port1. Unlock Cruise Ships
Place a City Port
Place four Decorations near the City Port
Place three Businesses near the City Port
Upon accepting the first Goal, the City Port will appear in your inventory. Take it from there and place it near water, otherwise you will not be able to build it. After putting that down, either purchase or move four Decorations and three Businesses to surround the City Port. For completing this simple Goal, you'll receive Sunglasses, one of the items required to finish the City Port.
2. Tourists in Sight
Get 5 Tourism Pamphlets
Send 5 Tour Buses
The Tourism Pamphlets will come from your friends after requesting them through the Goal's menu. All the while, just visit one friend and use all five Helps to send Tour Buses to their Businesses. This Goal will be done in no time, and you'll win a nifty Robot Street Performer for doing it.
Waterfront Condo3. Port Time
Grow your Population by 250
Finish the City Port
Growing your population is as easy as throwing together another Community Building like a Bank or one of the newer additions. (Unless you want to drop 2 million in coins on a fancy Landmark.) To finish the City Port, check out the details later on in this guide. Finishing this Goal will reward you with a measly 50 Goods.
4. Ready to Dock
Have 1,000 Goods
Unload three Cruise Ships
Now that you've already built the City Port, which we'll cover in detail below, it's time to finish this series. Conserve your Goods and make sure you have 1,000 before completing this second requirement, which requires you to unload your ship three times. Do this and a Beachfront Condo, a home with 150 population and 230 coins as rent per day, is yours.
Finish Your City Port
Building and Using the City Port
As you likely already figured out (we hope), these Goals revolve around the City Port. This new item will appear in your inventory after starting the first Goal. Take it out from there and place it near water. Then, click it seven times to finish the foundation of the building. Then, a menu window will open just like any other Community Building, requiring five items to finish the City Port:
2 2x4
8 Sunglasses
8 Dec Chairs
2 Whistles
8 Visors
Cruise Ship Passenger ArrivalOnce you acquire all 28 items in total, the City Port will finally be operational. Collect from the City Port like any other Community Building every 12 hours. Not only coins and XP will appear, but legions of tourists ready to spend money. When more tourists arrive, a fireworks show will play upon arrival. Every time you want to send for tourists, it will cost 300 Goods, but the City Port will pay out 1,350 coins every time new tourists arrive.
Unfortunately, you must stick around the city while tourists shop, as they might disappear if you close the game or visit a friend immediately after accepting the folks into your city. The idea is to use the tourists to speed up the production of your Businesses, resulting in more coins and XP in the end. Tip: Make sure your Businesses are all fully stocked before unloading tourists to maximize the benefits.
[Source and Image Credits: CityVille Goals and Zynga]
Check out the rest of our CityVille Cheats & Tips right here.
Have you seen these Goals in your game yet? What tips do you have for completing them even faster?
FarmVille English Countryside Dig Site Goals: Everything you need to know
As if milking cows isn't a dirty-enough gig, it's time to get them dirty literally with the next set of Goals to the new FarmVille, the English Countryside. In these Goals, players will meet the illustrious Professor Milton of Drummund Institute Royal Tutor Society as he searches for rare artifacts. It's time get all Indiana Jones up in FarmVille--with less whip and more digging, unfortunately.
1. Dig It
Plow 100 Plots of farmland
Fertilize 25 Neighbor Crops (Total)
Dig It
Plowing 100 new Plots should be easy enough given the nice amount of room you have thanks to helping Lily out in the Dairy Farm. Fertilizing neighbor crops shouldn't be terribly difficult, but it will take at least five total visits to complete. Finish this Goal and enjoy 2,500 coins, 100 XP and an Ancient Cow Statue, as if you could do anything with that.
2. Book 'Em
Get 6 Old Books
Buy and Place one Storage Cellar
Book 'Em
Getting the Old Books is simple: Just use the "Ask Friends" button within the Goal window. Then, the Storage Cellar can be purchased directly from the Goal window or through the Market for a measly single coin. We imagine this is because it's attached to a Goal, but it could just as easily be a bug. The new Storage Cellar acts as a permanent gifting event like the Duck Pond or new English Wishing Well. Completing this Goal will reward you with 3,000 coins, 200 XP and an Ancient Duck Statue.
3. Past Pursuits
Harvest 100 Hops
Fertilize 25 Neighbor Crops (Total)
Past Pursuits
Again, you'll have to visit at least five friends to fertilize 25 crops total. This will be convenient especially when waiting for the 100 Hops you planted, which will cost 15 thousand coins and take at least 10 hours. Complete this simple Goal and 5,000 coins, 300 XP and Knight Armor, an Avatar costume, are yours.
4. Ancient Methods
Achieve Level 1 Hops Mastery
Harvest 50 Barley
Ancient Methods
This Goal will prove more time consuming, as you must master Hops to at least Tier 1, which will take 780 total harvests. The 50 Barley will cost you 8,000 coins and take at least 12 hours to harvest. Other than achieving Mastery, there isn't much else to this simple-yet-difficult Goal. Finish it to receive 7,500 coins, 400 XP and 5 Farm Cash.
5. Drinking in History
Harvest 50 Royal Hops
Make three Lionhead Ales
Drinking in History
After discovering the Royal Hops (since when do we need archeology to find new crops?), it's time to harvest them and put them to good use. The 50 Royal Hops will cost 12 thousand coins and take at least 10 hours to harvest. To learn how to make the Lionhead Ale recipe, check out our guide right here. Finally, this series is over, and for your hard work enjoy 500 XP, one Museum and a Double Mastery, which, well grants double Mastery for all crops. Yeah, I'd say these long Goals are worth it.
[Source and Image Credit: FarmVille Freak]
Check out the rest of our English Countryside coverage right here.
How far along are you in these Goals? Do you have any tips for completing them any faster?
1. Dig It
Plow 100 Plots of farmland
Fertilize 25 Neighbor Crops (Total)
Dig It
Plowing 100 new Plots should be easy enough given the nice amount of room you have thanks to helping Lily out in the Dairy Farm. Fertilizing neighbor crops shouldn't be terribly difficult, but it will take at least five total visits to complete. Finish this Goal and enjoy 2,500 coins, 100 XP and an Ancient Cow Statue, as if you could do anything with that.
2. Book 'Em
Get 6 Old Books
Buy and Place one Storage Cellar
Book 'Em
Getting the Old Books is simple: Just use the "Ask Friends" button within the Goal window. Then, the Storage Cellar can be purchased directly from the Goal window or through the Market for a measly single coin. We imagine this is because it's attached to a Goal, but it could just as easily be a bug. The new Storage Cellar acts as a permanent gifting event like the Duck Pond or new English Wishing Well. Completing this Goal will reward you with 3,000 coins, 200 XP and an Ancient Duck Statue.
3. Past Pursuits
Harvest 100 Hops
Fertilize 25 Neighbor Crops (Total)
Past Pursuits
Again, you'll have to visit at least five friends to fertilize 25 crops total. This will be convenient especially when waiting for the 100 Hops you planted, which will cost 15 thousand coins and take at least 10 hours. Complete this simple Goal and 5,000 coins, 300 XP and Knight Armor, an Avatar costume, are yours.
4. Ancient Methods
Achieve Level 1 Hops Mastery
Harvest 50 Barley
Ancient Methods
This Goal will prove more time consuming, as you must master Hops to at least Tier 1, which will take 780 total harvests. The 50 Barley will cost you 8,000 coins and take at least 12 hours to harvest. Other than achieving Mastery, there isn't much else to this simple-yet-difficult Goal. Finish it to receive 7,500 coins, 400 XP and 5 Farm Cash.
5. Drinking in History
Harvest 50 Royal Hops
Make three Lionhead Ales
Drinking in History
After discovering the Royal Hops (since when do we need archeology to find new crops?), it's time to harvest them and put them to good use. The 50 Royal Hops will cost 12 thousand coins and take at least 10 hours to harvest. To learn how to make the Lionhead Ale recipe, check out our guide right here. Finally, this series is over, and for your hard work enjoy 500 XP, one Museum and a Double Mastery, which, well grants double Mastery for all crops. Yeah, I'd say these long Goals are worth it.
[Source and Image Credit: FarmVille Freak]
Check out the rest of our English Countryside coverage right here.
How far along are you in these Goals? Do you have any tips for completing them any faster?
Playfish closing Pirates Ahoy!, Gangster City and Poker Rivals in June
Update: To lighten the blow, Playfish is giving 5 Monopoly Gold to all new Monopoly Millionaires players. Check behind the break for more information.
And down the blade comes. Playfish announced recently on its forums that three of its games, Pirates Ahoy!, Gangster City and Poker Rivals will all shut down this June 7th. Admittedly, it explains why some of these games have had next to zero activity (ahem, Pirates), but is a loss nonetheless. Playfish forum representative Bevypoo said, "Regretfully, those games are no longer performing at a level in which they can continue to be supported and therefore we had to make this difficult decision," to explain the reason behind the closures.
The representative was quick to publish a FAQ page for the unfortunate news, which explains that players' existing Playfish Cash balances will not be affected. You can also still spend your virtual dollars in the three doomed games, but, sadly, why bother. She went on to mention that while the forums for said game will still be live after the games go kaput, they won't be for longer than 30 days afterward.
Our best wishes go out to the teams involved in creating and maintaining these three games--it must be a bummer to see your work end like this. Well gamers, there are always Monopoly Millionaires and World Series Superstars to try out. If you're looking for a pirate fix, try Mighty Pirates by CrowdStar or Pirates Saga on for size.
[Image Credit: Florida Center for Instructional Technology]
Are you an unfortunate player of any of these games? Where will you go after the hammer officially comes down? Share with us in the comments. 2 Comments
Playfish Closure Announcement
And down the blade comes. Playfish announced recently on its forums that three of its games, Pirates Ahoy!, Gangster City and Poker Rivals will all shut down this June 7th. Admittedly, it explains why some of these games have had next to zero activity (ahem, Pirates), but is a loss nonetheless. Playfish forum representative Bevypoo said, "Regretfully, those games are no longer performing at a level in which they can continue to be supported and therefore we had to make this difficult decision," to explain the reason behind the closures.
The representative was quick to publish a FAQ page for the unfortunate news, which explains that players' existing Playfish Cash balances will not be affected. You can also still spend your virtual dollars in the three doomed games, but, sadly, why bother. She went on to mention that while the forums for said game will still be live after the games go kaput, they won't be for longer than 30 days afterward.
Our best wishes go out to the teams involved in creating and maintaining these three games--it must be a bummer to see your work end like this. Well gamers, there are always Monopoly Millionaires and World Series Superstars to try out. If you're looking for a pirate fix, try Mighty Pirates by CrowdStar or Pirates Saga on for size.
[Image Credit: Florida Center for Instructional Technology]
Are you an unfortunate player of any of these games? Where will you go after the hammer officially comes down? Share with us in the comments. 2 Comments
Playfish Closure Announcement
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
FarmVille Scam Alert: 25 free Farm Cash offer is deceiving, a fraud
As much as we'd all love 25 free Farm Cash for no reason at all, it's not going to happen anytime soon. The most recent FarmVille scam offers just that, but do not fall for it, whatever you do. While it may seem convincing--even the page that the News Feed posts links to looks legit--this is just another attempt at your personal information.
FarmVille Farm Cash Letter scam
While Zynga has rarely been known to compensate its players for extensive game outages or other reasons, this is not how the company would notify its players of that. If anything, Zynga would automatically credit your account for the Farm Cash or make it available from within the game through a pop-up window.
Again, do your FarmVille friends a favor and spread the news of this scam just like those before it. If you mistakenly clicked on the News Feed post, be sure to change your Facebook password, change similar passwords for other websites and services, and run a full virus scan. And just remember, in the words of G.I. Joe: Knowing is half the battle.
[Source and Image Credit: FarmVille Freak]
Have you or someone you know fallen victim to a FarmVille scam? How did you or they handle the situation?
FarmVille Farm Cash Letter scam
While Zynga has rarely been known to compensate its players for extensive game outages or other reasons, this is not how the company would notify its players of that. If anything, Zynga would automatically credit your account for the Farm Cash or make it available from within the game through a pop-up window.
Again, do your FarmVille friends a favor and spread the news of this scam just like those before it. If you mistakenly clicked on the News Feed post, be sure to change your Facebook password, change similar passwords for other websites and services, and run a full virus scan. And just remember, in the words of G.I. Joe: Knowing is half the battle.
[Source and Image Credit: FarmVille Freak]
Have you or someone you know fallen victim to a FarmVille scam? How did you or they handle the situation?
Perfect World Entertainment's first Facebook game finds a Perfect Getaway
Perfect Getaway
You probably would have never imagined that the perfect getaway would be right inside your browser. But here it is ... literally. Foster City, Calif.-based Perfect World Entertainment (PWE) has released its first ever Facebook game, Perfect Getaway, Social Times reports. Known for publishing massively multiplayer games (MMOs) like Perfect World International and roleplaying games like Torchlight, PWE is treading deep, uncharted waters with Perfect Getaway. In the game, players take control of a major cruise ship, customizing it and their staff while taking patrons on relaxing cruises. As the head of your own cruise ship, you'll visit exotic, tropical locations such as the Caribbean, Cuba and Jamaica while collecting souvenirs and other sea-bound activities.
"We're excited to get into Facebook games and we feel that the market is still growing and we feel like we want to hit the mainstream Facebook gaming market with high quality products," Jason Park, GM of Perfect World, told Social Times. PWE also hinted that, since PWE is traditionally a hardcore MMO developer, that more hardcore features are going to find their way into Perfect Getaway. According to Social Times, there a bunch more features to look forward to in Perfect Getaway:
In summary Perfect Getaway includes:
Personalize your Captain! - Become the Captain of your very own cruise ship. Choose from a wide variety of outfits and hairstyles to make your Captain truly yours.
Hire your Friends to be part of your Crew - Invite your friends to join and work on your cruise ship! Earn money by managing your service stations.
Keep your Passengers Happy to Succeed - New passengers will board your cruise ship at every port. Keep them happy to get a perfect cruise rating.
Decorate your Cruise Ship - Customize your cruise ship by changing hull styles and adding decorations to your boat.
Set Sail to Real Landmarks and Destinations - Travel to real locations to collect special souvenirs at each dock. Collect all of the souvenirs to unlock a special item.
Click here to play Perfect Getaway on Facebook Now >
Have you tried this new Facebook game? What do you think of yet another traditional game developer getting into Facebook? What else would you like to see from this studio on Facebook?
You probably would have never imagined that the perfect getaway would be right inside your browser. But here it is ... literally. Foster City, Calif.-based Perfect World Entertainment (PWE) has released its first ever Facebook game, Perfect Getaway, Social Times reports. Known for publishing massively multiplayer games (MMOs) like Perfect World International and roleplaying games like Torchlight, PWE is treading deep, uncharted waters with Perfect Getaway. In the game, players take control of a major cruise ship, customizing it and their staff while taking patrons on relaxing cruises. As the head of your own cruise ship, you'll visit exotic, tropical locations such as the Caribbean, Cuba and Jamaica while collecting souvenirs and other sea-bound activities.
"We're excited to get into Facebook games and we feel that the market is still growing and we feel like we want to hit the mainstream Facebook gaming market with high quality products," Jason Park, GM of Perfect World, told Social Times. PWE also hinted that, since PWE is traditionally a hardcore MMO developer, that more hardcore features are going to find their way into Perfect Getaway. According to Social Times, there a bunch more features to look forward to in Perfect Getaway:
In summary Perfect Getaway includes:
Personalize your Captain! - Become the Captain of your very own cruise ship. Choose from a wide variety of outfits and hairstyles to make your Captain truly yours.
Hire your Friends to be part of your Crew - Invite your friends to join and work on your cruise ship! Earn money by managing your service stations.
Keep your Passengers Happy to Succeed - New passengers will board your cruise ship at every port. Keep them happy to get a perfect cruise rating.
Decorate your Cruise Ship - Customize your cruise ship by changing hull styles and adding decorations to your boat.
Set Sail to Real Landmarks and Destinations - Travel to real locations to collect special souvenirs at each dock. Collect all of the souvenirs to unlock a special item.
Click here to play Perfect Getaway on Facebook Now >
Have you tried this new Facebook game? What do you think of yet another traditional game developer getting into Facebook? What else would you like to see from this studio on Facebook?
Casual Collective is now Kixeye, CEO says most Facebook games 'suck'
We're not sure what the word means exactly, but Backyard Monsters and Desktop Tower Defense creator Casual Collective has re-branded itself as Kixeye (pronounced "kicks eye").
"[Kixeye] sounds cool, but we also wanted to change our name because we don't make casual games anymore," says CEO Will Harbin. "We're focused on making games with traditional game mechanics and gameplay."
To that point: The company recently released a new Facebook game -- Battle Pirates -- which borrows heavily from more traditional real-time strategy games and is clearly designed to appeal to fans of this more "hardcore" video game genre.
kixeye interview
With Battle Pirates, Harbin says he hopes to unlock that niche market of StarCraft-loving suits. Set far in the future in 2067, the game allows players to control fleets of naval nightmares as they violently batter each other with a list of futuristic weaponry. In addition to a story for players to follow, all the action happens in real time against other players.
"We're trying to expand the social gaming audience,' he says, "so our theory is that of the 700 million plus Facebook accounts, there are tons of people with Xboxes and PlayStations at home, and they don't see Facebook as a viable gaming platform because, frankly, to them, the games suck."
And, Harbin agrees, that a vast majority of Facebook games, do indeed, "suck."
"A year ago, 100% of the Facebook games suck, and now about 99% of them suck," he says.
So that begs the question -- how do we know that Kixeye's game fall into that same sucky category? Players, so far, seem to be voting with their wallets. Harbin tells Venture Beat that, in Backyard Monsters, 6 percent of players paid up, while 9 percent of players are paying in Battle Pirates already.
We'll have a full review of the game soon, but stats like that show that social gaming is just starting to reach its full potential with the 'hardcore' gaming set.
"[Kixeye] sounds cool, but we also wanted to change our name because we don't make casual games anymore," says CEO Will Harbin. "We're focused on making games with traditional game mechanics and gameplay."
To that point: The company recently released a new Facebook game -- Battle Pirates -- which borrows heavily from more traditional real-time strategy games and is clearly designed to appeal to fans of this more "hardcore" video game genre.
kixeye interview
With Battle Pirates, Harbin says he hopes to unlock that niche market of StarCraft-loving suits. Set far in the future in 2067, the game allows players to control fleets of naval nightmares as they violently batter each other with a list of futuristic weaponry. In addition to a story for players to follow, all the action happens in real time against other players.
"We're trying to expand the social gaming audience,' he says, "so our theory is that of the 700 million plus Facebook accounts, there are tons of people with Xboxes and PlayStations at home, and they don't see Facebook as a viable gaming platform because, frankly, to them, the games suck."
And, Harbin agrees, that a vast majority of Facebook games, do indeed, "suck."
"A year ago, 100% of the Facebook games suck, and now about 99% of them suck," he says.
So that begs the question -- how do we know that Kixeye's game fall into that same sucky category? Players, so far, seem to be voting with their wallets. Harbin tells Venture Beat that, in Backyard Monsters, 6 percent of players paid up, while 9 percent of players are paying in Battle Pirates already.
We'll have a full review of the game soon, but stats like that show that social gaming is just starting to reach its full potential with the 'hardcore' gaming set.
CityVille City Hall Upgrades: Everything you need to know
CityVille City Hall
It's time to transform your dinky City Hall into an icon for all your Neighbors to marvel at. Alright, so maybe they're all doing the same thing, but it's still pretty cool. Zynga released two new upgrades for the CityVille City Hall, but you'll need the help of your friends. Frankly, the whole upgrade process works a lot like the upgrades to the Police Station did sans the Donuts. If you've already upgraded that community building, you'll feel right at home with this update. Regardless, check behind the break to find out what needs to be done to complete these upgrades and what they mean for you.
City Upgrade 1
Each City Hall upgrade requires that you add a certain amount of friends as staff for the building. Once you successfully upgrade your City Hall, your chances of finding more Energy and Zoning Permits when collecting from it will increase. Here's what you need for each level and how each level will improve your chances at more resources:
City Hall Level 2 (requires three friends on staff)
30% chance to drop 1 Energy
10% chance to drop 2 Energy
2% chance to drop 4 Energy
10% chance to drop 1 Zoning Permit
City Hall Upgrade 3
City Hall Level 3 (requires four friends on staff, )
30% chance to drop 1 Energy
15% chance to drop 2 Energy
5% chance to drop 4 Energy
20% chance to drop 1 Zoning Permit
10% chance to drop 2 Zoning Permit
Adding friends to you staff is simple. Just click on your Level 1 City Hall to open an upgrade window. You'll notice that Samantha has already filled up half of your staff for the building (this is the case for both levels). So, all you need to do in fill in the empty spots with your friends by clicking "Hire Friends." Once your friends accept the invitation, you will have to refresh your game to see the results. However, you will have to wait five days, or collect from the building five times, before you can upgrade to Level 3.
As a side note: Upgrading City Hall also increases your population cap. City Hall Level 2 ups the building's population by 100 to 150, while City Hall Level 3 boosts that number to 500. That makes for a 500 total population increase! You'll also notice that your City Hall's appearance will change and look much more regal as you upgrade it. Not too shabby for a few simple friend requests.
It's time to transform your dinky City Hall into an icon for all your Neighbors to marvel at. Alright, so maybe they're all doing the same thing, but it's still pretty cool. Zynga released two new upgrades for the CityVille City Hall, but you'll need the help of your friends. Frankly, the whole upgrade process works a lot like the upgrades to the Police Station did sans the Donuts. If you've already upgraded that community building, you'll feel right at home with this update. Regardless, check behind the break to find out what needs to be done to complete these upgrades and what they mean for you.
City Upgrade 1
Each City Hall upgrade requires that you add a certain amount of friends as staff for the building. Once you successfully upgrade your City Hall, your chances of finding more Energy and Zoning Permits when collecting from it will increase. Here's what you need for each level and how each level will improve your chances at more resources:
City Hall Level 2 (requires three friends on staff)
30% chance to drop 1 Energy
10% chance to drop 2 Energy
2% chance to drop 4 Energy
10% chance to drop 1 Zoning Permit
City Hall Upgrade 3
City Hall Level 3 (requires four friends on staff, )
30% chance to drop 1 Energy
15% chance to drop 2 Energy
5% chance to drop 4 Energy
20% chance to drop 1 Zoning Permit
10% chance to drop 2 Zoning Permit
Adding friends to you staff is simple. Just click on your Level 1 City Hall to open an upgrade window. You'll notice that Samantha has already filled up half of your staff for the building (this is the case for both levels). So, all you need to do in fill in the empty spots with your friends by clicking "Hire Friends." Once your friends accept the invitation, you will have to refresh your game to see the results. However, you will have to wait five days, or collect from the building five times, before you can upgrade to Level 3.
As a side note: Upgrading City Hall also increases your population cap. City Hall Level 2 ups the building's population by 100 to 150, while City Hall Level 3 boosts that number to 500. That makes for a 500 total population increase! You'll also notice that your City Hall's appearance will change and look much more regal as you upgrade it. Not too shabby for a few simple friend requests.
FarmVille Animal Sneak Peek: Rainbow Cow, Flowery Cow, Zesty Pony and much more
I hope you're in the mood for some new Cows and Horses to launch in FarmVille, as we've come across a slew of unreleased images of five different animal pairs - three Cow and two Horses, each with a matching Calf or Foal - along with a new Pig that we believe will begin launching in the game as early as this weekend.
The Cows are mostly colorful options, like the Rainbow Cow and Flowery Cow (just look at the flower ring around its head - adorable!). The other Cow is the Hereford Cow, which is a brown and tan variety for those that like more realistic options when it comes to your animals. As for the Horses, you'll soon be able to pick up either he Zesty Pony (which is orange and off-white, but not to be confused with the Candy Corn Pony that launched last Halloween), and an Exmoor Pony, in a much more calm pair of brown shades.
The final animal is the Pumpkin Pig. Again, this little piggie screams of Halloween, so who knows? Perhaps this is a very, very early unreleased item for this year's celebration. We personally doubt that, as it's more likely that we'll see this little guy released sooner, rather than later (a new Co-Op Job reward, perhaps?). We'll make sure to let you know when any of these animals start launching, so keep checking back.
Which of these animals are you most excited about adding to your farm? Do you love the striped Rainbow Cow, or are you more of a fan of the Zesty orange Pony?
The Cows are mostly colorful options, like the Rainbow Cow and Flowery Cow (just look at the flower ring around its head - adorable!). The other Cow is the Hereford Cow, which is a brown and tan variety for those that like more realistic options when it comes to your animals. As for the Horses, you'll soon be able to pick up either he Zesty Pony (which is orange and off-white, but not to be confused with the Candy Corn Pony that launched last Halloween), and an Exmoor Pony, in a much more calm pair of brown shades.
The final animal is the Pumpkin Pig. Again, this little piggie screams of Halloween, so who knows? Perhaps this is a very, very early unreleased item for this year's celebration. We personally doubt that, as it's more likely that we'll see this little guy released sooner, rather than later (a new Co-Op Job reward, perhaps?). We'll make sure to let you know when any of these animals start launching, so keep checking back.
Which of these animals are you most excited about adding to your farm? Do you love the striped Rainbow Cow, or are you more of a fan of the Zesty orange Pony?
Sunday, December 25, 2011
FarmVille Craftshop Goals: Everything you need to know (Part 2)
With those nasty glitches taken care of and the Craftshop restored, Zynga has released brand new Craftshop Goals to FarmVille to accompany the revival of the crafting building, FarmVille Freak reports. It's a series of three Goals designed to guide you through the process of building and operating your Craftshop, though they're only available for the next 12 days, oddly enough. But, a few folks must have started their Craftshops (and not completed those old goals), so there must be players who have already completed it. What happens then (either way, really)? I guess we'll find out soon enough, but let's find out what's deal for slow and steady players.
1. The Craftshop and You
Complete 1 Craftshop.
Get 6 pieces of Hardwood
Get 6 Bushels from friends
FarmVille Craftshop Goal 1 rewards
Completing the Craftshop is as easy checking out our guide, or if you're feeling extra brave you can go it lone wolf (you say shameless plug, I say back-linking). The six pieces of Hardwood are requested from friends, while the six Bushels must be purchased from your friends' Market Stalls. Luckily, it appears that any type of Bushel qualifies. Finish these three tasks and 100 XP, two Picket Fence pieces and 2,500 coins.
FarmVille Craftshop Goal 2
2. The Friendly Bushel
Harvest 100 Wheat
Craft 1 Can of Fuel in your Craftshop
Visit 6 neighbors
FarmVille Craftshop Goal 2 rewards
Harvesting 100 Wheat will cost you 1,300 coins and take at least 12 hours to do so. Crafting one can of Fuel in the Craftshop takes two Wheat Bushels and three Soybean Bushels (renewable fuels, nice!). Then visit six Neighbors and give a neighborly hand. Complete this Goal for 250 XP, 2,500 coins and a Swing Set decoration.
FarmVille Craftshop Goal 3
3. Step 3: Profit
Get 6 Work Orders
Harvest 100 Soybeans
Make the Pine Fence Recipe in your Craftshop
FarmVille Craftshop Goal 3 rewards
The six Work Orders are requested from friends from within the Goal menu. Harvesting 100 Soybeans costs 1,500 coins and takes at least one day to finish if you the room. The Pine Fence in the Craftshop requires 10 Cranberry, four Cotton and two Soybean Bushels. (Don't ask about how in the world plant matter makes fences, we don't have time to explain.) Do this and receive 500 XP, 7,500 coins and five Love Potions. Now, to spend the rest of your days Bushel hunting!
1. The Craftshop and You
Complete 1 Craftshop.
Get 6 pieces of Hardwood
Get 6 Bushels from friends
FarmVille Craftshop Goal 1 rewards
Completing the Craftshop is as easy checking out our guide, or if you're feeling extra brave you can go it lone wolf (you say shameless plug, I say back-linking). The six pieces of Hardwood are requested from friends, while the six Bushels must be purchased from your friends' Market Stalls. Luckily, it appears that any type of Bushel qualifies. Finish these three tasks and 100 XP, two Picket Fence pieces and 2,500 coins.
FarmVille Craftshop Goal 2
2. The Friendly Bushel
Harvest 100 Wheat
Craft 1 Can of Fuel in your Craftshop
Visit 6 neighbors
FarmVille Craftshop Goal 2 rewards
Harvesting 100 Wheat will cost you 1,300 coins and take at least 12 hours to do so. Crafting one can of Fuel in the Craftshop takes two Wheat Bushels and three Soybean Bushels (renewable fuels, nice!). Then visit six Neighbors and give a neighborly hand. Complete this Goal for 250 XP, 2,500 coins and a Swing Set decoration.
FarmVille Craftshop Goal 3
3. Step 3: Profit
Get 6 Work Orders
Harvest 100 Soybeans
Make the Pine Fence Recipe in your Craftshop
FarmVille Craftshop Goal 3 rewards
The six Work Orders are requested from friends from within the Goal menu. Harvesting 100 Soybeans costs 1,500 coins and takes at least one day to finish if you the room. The Pine Fence in the Craftshop requires 10 Cranberry, four Cotton and two Soybean Bushels. (Don't ask about how in the world plant matter makes fences, we don't have time to explain.) Do this and receive 500 XP, 7,500 coins and five Love Potions. Now, to spend the rest of your days Bushel hunting!
Activision wants Call of Duty Elite to blow your mind with features
How does free career tracking, access to mobile apps and Facebook Connect (and more) sound for Activision's upcoming social network for all things Call of Duty, known as Elite? Is that not enough for ya? No? Then how about detailed heat maps that track your kills and deaths on any map? OK, enough questions, but now you feel like we did when reading this statement from Activision (our heads were spinning, is yours yet?).
If CoD Elite lives up to all of these features--hell, even a few of them--it certainly has a chance of living up to its claims of "The Best Free Service on the Market." (Bold words, guys.) Not to mention there will be a paid service as well that will add even more to the 13--seriously--bullet points this FAQ details, including instant access to DLC at no additional charge. Keep in mind that pricing has yet to be revealed, which leaves one giant "what if." Come on, we're all thinking it. If you need some help being pushed over the fence, why not read the full release in full behind the break?
Look below this line and you'll see why we've included this release in full. Do you have about 20 minutes? Good:
Call of Duty® Elite
Frequently Asked Questions
Before we get to some FAQs regarding Call of Duty Elite, we want to share three guiding principles of the service.
GIVING YOU MORE THAN EVER BEFORE (AND TAKING NOTHING AWAY) - With over 30 million online players around the world, the Call of Duty community is too large and diverse to create a one size fits all approach, and Call of Duty Elite must be purely additive to the experience. The Call of Duty "out of the box" experience that our players expect: a great single player campaign, co-op missions, and the deepest and most accessible multiplayer anywhere -- at no additional cost -- remains the same as ever. Our promise to you is this: Elite only adds to the Call of Duty experience. Nothing will be taken away from the experience you know and love. If you want to continue to play Call of Duty as you always have, you will still be able to do just that, including the ability to buy Map Packs ala carte. With Call of Duty Elite, we're adding a new choice for those who want to get even more out of the game. Even haters can play for free.
THE BEST FREE SERVICE ON THE MARKET – How can we say that this is the best? We believe that the free elements of Call of Duty Elite will be superior to any free service currently on the market because we are offering more features than any other service out there. Additionally, many of Elite's free features which will debut with Modern Warfare 3 are industry firsts and offer a new level of innovation.
Elite's free features let you:
Access Elite through the web as well as Elite's free custom iOS and Android applications for smartphones and tablets
Communicate any way you want across mobile, console and the web with your friends
Track and share thousands of stats with friends – k/d ratios, score-per-minute, win % and loads more, all represented in easy to understand charts and infographics
Create your own custom leaderboards to track friendly rivalries – who is moving up and down in your group of friends?
Analyze advanced heat maps detailing your match-by-match performance – where you killed or got killed, when it happened, and more
Analyze your weapons performance – which weapons you are best with in which situations
Upload and share videos of your greatest moments through our exclusive theater mode with the touch of a button
After you analyze your performance to your heart's content - Customize your loadout – search through all the weapons, attachments and perks, and push them directly into the game menu from the web or your mobile device with the touch of a button
Join dozens of groups and find other players with common interests to play with and compete against – find people who make the game the most fun for you – TDM, Lakers' fans, Weekend Warriors?
Create a private Clan with players who share your interests and skill level
Bring your Facebook friends right into the game, easily taking your existing network into the Call of Duty experience.
Seamlessly be placed into matches into Groups who share your affinities and interests based on your Facebook profile to elevate your in-game experience.
Career? Start tracking your Call of Duty career – everything you wanted to know about your performance across the franchise starting with Black Ops
And that's just the beginning. The service will continue to evolve and we will continue to add new features.
A PREMIUM MEMBERSHIP THAT RESETS THE BAR - The premium membership of Call of Duty Elite (which is completely optional) will set a new gold standard for what the multiplayer and community experience for a console game can be. Why are we not revealing all of the features that are part of the premium service today? Simple. Because the service was designed to be deeply integrated with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, and will not be demonstrable until we are closer to the launch of the game. We know seeing is believing, and over the next few months we will be revealing and demonstrating more of the premium features and by the end of the summer, we will reveal the entire service in full.
The reason we announced the service today was so we could begin recruiting for a free beta using the multiplayer community of Call of Duty: Black Ops, which will allow us to test the service at scale. This is a critical step to us launching the service successfully this fall. So we appreciate your patience.
Is Elite a new website?
We're on the web of course, but we're designing Call of Duty Elite to be widely accessible and customized for a number of platforms -- via web browsers, through the game, and through mobile applications as well – including iPhone and iPad, as well as Android tablets and smartphones.
Will you be charging for multiplayer?
No, we are offering players more choice and are not taking anything away from our fans. If you like playing the way you always have, with a great campaign, co-op and multiplayer experience out of the box, then you can. Additionally, many of Elite's key features that we've listed will be free to all Call of Duty players.
What about stats? Do I get free access to my stats with Elite?
Absolutely. Elite's Career section gives players an in-depth look at statistical details of their own performance and gameplay as well as that of the entire Call of Duty community, including heat maps, load-outs, stat trends, custom leaderboards, and integration of your Facebook friends. The Career section is free to all registered users.
How will Elite compare to free offerings that currently exist?
We believe that the free elements of Elite alone will be better than any free service currently on the market today. Elite ups the ante of any free service by offering a range of innovations on well-established multiplayer features, such as leaderboards, heat maps, and rich player data. Additionally, other Elite features are completely new to the industry. For example, with Elite's new Groups featured integrated with Modern Warfare 3, you will be able to join custom groups based on your likes, interests, or affiliations, and then have those groups follow you directly into the game. Soon you'll be playing in a social group, making new friends (and rivals!) who play Call of Duty and share your interests, home town, or play style.
Is there a beta? When can I try Elite for myself?
Elite will officially launch this fall with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, but you can try key features earlier with our free public beta test. In order to deliver the best possible launch this fall, we need to test the service at scale and get your feedback on key features. The Beachhead team is working with Treyarch to hold a public beta this summer for Elite with the multiplayer community of Call of Duty: Black Ops. The earlier you sign up, the earlier you can play. All you need to do to sign up is register your email address and gamer tag. Sign up now at www.callofduty.com/elite.
Will the beta include everything that comes at launch in November?
Because Elite was designed to be deeply integrated into Modern Warfare 3, not all of the features will be able to be part of the free beta with Call of Duty: Black Ops. You will get to try a number of key features, but the beta will still be just a slice of the full service that launches with Modern Warfare 3 in November. We plan to test some specific features, such as the Program Guide and Groups. However, a number of new features and services will be coming online specifically with Modern Warfare 3. Additionally, a number of our dedicated applications will be launching this November as well.
Can you tell me more about what "Connect, Compete, Improve" means?
Connect: Elite will give our players unprecedented control over their Call of Duty multiplayer experience, transforming it into a true social experience. Players can compete against friends, players of similar skill levels, players with similar interests.
Connect will include:
Find and join Groups of people with similar interests
Create Clans, which are private player groups that can compete with other Clans in organized competition
Track your performance, progress and activity within your Groups and Clans through mobile and web interfaces
Upload and share your videos with your Groups and Clans
Access high-quality original video programming, tailored to people who love Call of Duty
Elite will help players to connect with the Call of Duty community 24/7.
Compete: Call of Duty players want to compete, but are looking for a way to do it that fits their skill and style.
The Program Guide, gives players a choice of dozens of daily and weekly competitive Events, individual and clan Operations, official Leagues, and Tournaments all tailored to different skill levels
These competitions will offer both digital and real prizes - everything from digital trophies and badges to a new Jeep
Improve: Everyone wants to improve their game, and Elite will be like having a personal online coach.
It provides players with a dynamic strategy guide that tracks their statistics and performances -- down to minute details -- showing gamers how they stack up against their friends or others in the community
Improve will offer continually evolving professional tips and advice. Tools and information are provided so players can learn and up their game, regardless if you're a newer player or level 15 Prestige
The Program Guide sounds cool, but I'm an average player. How can I have a chance to participate in competition?
Just like a sport, we believe competing in Call of Duty should be fun and accessible regardless of skill. Highly skilled players may want to join the most competitive Leagues and Tournaments, while a more moderate player can find Operations, Events and Clan competitions that are tailored based on their skill level or particular play style. We want all Elite players to find a range of competition that fits them, and gives them a chance to succeed.
Is Elite only for hardcore players?
Connect, Compete and Improve are universal needs regardless of skill, and Elite has been tailored for Call of Duty's diverse base of players. If you are a hardcore "Prestige" player or a casual weekend warrior, you can enjoy personalized communities, daily competition and events, community-generated video content, and a dynamic strategy guide that tracks your statistics and performance trends. Elite also will offer high-production value, original entertainment programming designed exclusively for the Call of Duty community. Different players will use Elite in different ways, but we want there to be something for everyone.
Will Elite support Call of Duty: Black Ops?
Yes. Because Elite was designed to be deeply integrated into Modern Warfare 3, not all of the features will be able to be part of the beta with Black Ops this summer. When Modern Warfare 3 launches this fall, players will be able to have a unified relationship through Elite – they can create a single profile in Elite and build their career in Call of Duty that will carry forward as they play every supported Call of Duty game.
How is Elite different with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3?
The Beachhead team has been working closely with Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer Games to build Elite from the ground up to support Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. When Elite launches this November, the service will include a number of all-new features and innovations being built directly by the developers into the new game. For example, your Elite community Group and Clan affiliations and identity will be incorporated directly into Modern Warfare 3.
When will Elite launch?
The service will launch with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 this November 8th, 2011.
Where will Elite be available?
Elite will be available on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC. In addition, there will be custom Elite applications available on iOS and Android tablets and smartphones
.
How can I become a member?
With the roll out of the Call of Duty Elite beta this summer on Call of Duty: Black Ops, players can sign up on www.callofduty.com/elite to queue up for participation. Once the platform officially launches with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 on November 8th, players will be able to enter the service in through a variety of ways, which we will be announcing later this year.
So, if I just want to buy Map Packs standalone, I can still do that?
Yes. Call of Duty Elite has been built around the tenets of value and choice. To us that choice means that players who purchase Modern Warfare 3, who want to extend the game may prefer the option of a map pack. We will continue to offer that option. So if you want to just buy a map pack only, no problem.
If I get the premium membership to Elite, do I really get all of the DLC?
Yes. Elite is an all-inclusive membership, and that means you get all of the playable game DLC for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 as part of your premium membership. No need to buy additional DLC.
Will there be Customer Service?
Absolutely. It's a priority for us that Elite membership comes with 24/7 worldwide customer service. We will have a team dedicated to programming, administration, and service, starting with our public beta this summer.
Why announce now if you can't show us all the Modern Warfare 3 launch features and pricing?
Elite was designed from the ground up to integrate with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. Therefore, many of the services which will be a part of the premium membership will not be able to be demonstrated fully until the launch of Modern Warfare 3. The reason we launched the service ahead of that time was to invite people to participate in a public beta of the service using Black Ops, which will help to test the service at scale and fine tune it before its official release this November. The premium membership to Elite also will include many industry firsts, and will represent the ultimate Call of Duty experience.
Are you letting people buy prestige weapons or levels through Elite?
No, players are not able to buy prestige weapons or levels through Elite. While Call of Duty Elite wants to help people become better players, there's still only one way to level up to new weapons, XP and prestige, and that's to earn it in game.
When will launch details be released?
Throughout the summer we will be talking about Elite in detail, so stay tuned for more information.
Who is Beachhead Studios?
Beachhead is a new development studio, who is creating the Elite service for the Call of Duty franchise. We are entirely focused on making Elite the best gaming service in the world, and improving it every day. Our Beachhead Studio will be supporting our Call of Duty games throughout the year.
If CoD Elite lives up to all of these features--hell, even a few of them--it certainly has a chance of living up to its claims of "The Best Free Service on the Market." (Bold words, guys.) Not to mention there will be a paid service as well that will add even more to the 13--seriously--bullet points this FAQ details, including instant access to DLC at no additional charge. Keep in mind that pricing has yet to be revealed, which leaves one giant "what if." Come on, we're all thinking it. If you need some help being pushed over the fence, why not read the full release in full behind the break?
Look below this line and you'll see why we've included this release in full. Do you have about 20 minutes? Good:
Call of Duty® Elite
Frequently Asked Questions
Before we get to some FAQs regarding Call of Duty Elite, we want to share three guiding principles of the service.
GIVING YOU MORE THAN EVER BEFORE (AND TAKING NOTHING AWAY) - With over 30 million online players around the world, the Call of Duty community is too large and diverse to create a one size fits all approach, and Call of Duty Elite must be purely additive to the experience. The Call of Duty "out of the box" experience that our players expect: a great single player campaign, co-op missions, and the deepest and most accessible multiplayer anywhere -- at no additional cost -- remains the same as ever. Our promise to you is this: Elite only adds to the Call of Duty experience. Nothing will be taken away from the experience you know and love. If you want to continue to play Call of Duty as you always have, you will still be able to do just that, including the ability to buy Map Packs ala carte. With Call of Duty Elite, we're adding a new choice for those who want to get even more out of the game. Even haters can play for free.
THE BEST FREE SERVICE ON THE MARKET – How can we say that this is the best? We believe that the free elements of Call of Duty Elite will be superior to any free service currently on the market because we are offering more features than any other service out there. Additionally, many of Elite's free features which will debut with Modern Warfare 3 are industry firsts and offer a new level of innovation.
Elite's free features let you:
Access Elite through the web as well as Elite's free custom iOS and Android applications for smartphones and tablets
Communicate any way you want across mobile, console and the web with your friends
Track and share thousands of stats with friends – k/d ratios, score-per-minute, win % and loads more, all represented in easy to understand charts and infographics
Create your own custom leaderboards to track friendly rivalries – who is moving up and down in your group of friends?
Analyze advanced heat maps detailing your match-by-match performance – where you killed or got killed, when it happened, and more
Analyze your weapons performance – which weapons you are best with in which situations
Upload and share videos of your greatest moments through our exclusive theater mode with the touch of a button
After you analyze your performance to your heart's content - Customize your loadout – search through all the weapons, attachments and perks, and push them directly into the game menu from the web or your mobile device with the touch of a button
Join dozens of groups and find other players with common interests to play with and compete against – find people who make the game the most fun for you – TDM, Lakers' fans, Weekend Warriors?
Create a private Clan with players who share your interests and skill level
Bring your Facebook friends right into the game, easily taking your existing network into the Call of Duty experience.
Seamlessly be placed into matches into Groups who share your affinities and interests based on your Facebook profile to elevate your in-game experience.
Career? Start tracking your Call of Duty career – everything you wanted to know about your performance across the franchise starting with Black Ops
And that's just the beginning. The service will continue to evolve and we will continue to add new features.
A PREMIUM MEMBERSHIP THAT RESETS THE BAR - The premium membership of Call of Duty Elite (which is completely optional) will set a new gold standard for what the multiplayer and community experience for a console game can be. Why are we not revealing all of the features that are part of the premium service today? Simple. Because the service was designed to be deeply integrated with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, and will not be demonstrable until we are closer to the launch of the game. We know seeing is believing, and over the next few months we will be revealing and demonstrating more of the premium features and by the end of the summer, we will reveal the entire service in full.
The reason we announced the service today was so we could begin recruiting for a free beta using the multiplayer community of Call of Duty: Black Ops, which will allow us to test the service at scale. This is a critical step to us launching the service successfully this fall. So we appreciate your patience.
Is Elite a new website?
We're on the web of course, but we're designing Call of Duty Elite to be widely accessible and customized for a number of platforms -- via web browsers, through the game, and through mobile applications as well – including iPhone and iPad, as well as Android tablets and smartphones.
Will you be charging for multiplayer?
No, we are offering players more choice and are not taking anything away from our fans. If you like playing the way you always have, with a great campaign, co-op and multiplayer experience out of the box, then you can. Additionally, many of Elite's key features that we've listed will be free to all Call of Duty players.
What about stats? Do I get free access to my stats with Elite?
Absolutely. Elite's Career section gives players an in-depth look at statistical details of their own performance and gameplay as well as that of the entire Call of Duty community, including heat maps, load-outs, stat trends, custom leaderboards, and integration of your Facebook friends. The Career section is free to all registered users.
How will Elite compare to free offerings that currently exist?
We believe that the free elements of Elite alone will be better than any free service currently on the market today. Elite ups the ante of any free service by offering a range of innovations on well-established multiplayer features, such as leaderboards, heat maps, and rich player data. Additionally, other Elite features are completely new to the industry. For example, with Elite's new Groups featured integrated with Modern Warfare 3, you will be able to join custom groups based on your likes, interests, or affiliations, and then have those groups follow you directly into the game. Soon you'll be playing in a social group, making new friends (and rivals!) who play Call of Duty and share your interests, home town, or play style.
Is there a beta? When can I try Elite for myself?
Elite will officially launch this fall with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, but you can try key features earlier with our free public beta test. In order to deliver the best possible launch this fall, we need to test the service at scale and get your feedback on key features. The Beachhead team is working with Treyarch to hold a public beta this summer for Elite with the multiplayer community of Call of Duty: Black Ops. The earlier you sign up, the earlier you can play. All you need to do to sign up is register your email address and gamer tag. Sign up now at www.callofduty.com/elite.
Will the beta include everything that comes at launch in November?
Because Elite was designed to be deeply integrated into Modern Warfare 3, not all of the features will be able to be part of the free beta with Call of Duty: Black Ops. You will get to try a number of key features, but the beta will still be just a slice of the full service that launches with Modern Warfare 3 in November. We plan to test some specific features, such as the Program Guide and Groups. However, a number of new features and services will be coming online specifically with Modern Warfare 3. Additionally, a number of our dedicated applications will be launching this November as well.
Can you tell me more about what "Connect, Compete, Improve" means?
Connect: Elite will give our players unprecedented control over their Call of Duty multiplayer experience, transforming it into a true social experience. Players can compete against friends, players of similar skill levels, players with similar interests.
Connect will include:
Find and join Groups of people with similar interests
Create Clans, which are private player groups that can compete with other Clans in organized competition
Track your performance, progress and activity within your Groups and Clans through mobile and web interfaces
Upload and share your videos with your Groups and Clans
Access high-quality original video programming, tailored to people who love Call of Duty
Elite will help players to connect with the Call of Duty community 24/7.
Compete: Call of Duty players want to compete, but are looking for a way to do it that fits their skill and style.
The Program Guide, gives players a choice of dozens of daily and weekly competitive Events, individual and clan Operations, official Leagues, and Tournaments all tailored to different skill levels
These competitions will offer both digital and real prizes - everything from digital trophies and badges to a new Jeep
Improve: Everyone wants to improve their game, and Elite will be like having a personal online coach.
It provides players with a dynamic strategy guide that tracks their statistics and performances -- down to minute details -- showing gamers how they stack up against their friends or others in the community
Improve will offer continually evolving professional tips and advice. Tools and information are provided so players can learn and up their game, regardless if you're a newer player or level 15 Prestige
The Program Guide sounds cool, but I'm an average player. How can I have a chance to participate in competition?
Just like a sport, we believe competing in Call of Duty should be fun and accessible regardless of skill. Highly skilled players may want to join the most competitive Leagues and Tournaments, while a more moderate player can find Operations, Events and Clan competitions that are tailored based on their skill level or particular play style. We want all Elite players to find a range of competition that fits them, and gives them a chance to succeed.
Is Elite only for hardcore players?
Connect, Compete and Improve are universal needs regardless of skill, and Elite has been tailored for Call of Duty's diverse base of players. If you are a hardcore "Prestige" player or a casual weekend warrior, you can enjoy personalized communities, daily competition and events, community-generated video content, and a dynamic strategy guide that tracks your statistics and performance trends. Elite also will offer high-production value, original entertainment programming designed exclusively for the Call of Duty community. Different players will use Elite in different ways, but we want there to be something for everyone.
Will Elite support Call of Duty: Black Ops?
Yes. Because Elite was designed to be deeply integrated into Modern Warfare 3, not all of the features will be able to be part of the beta with Black Ops this summer. When Modern Warfare 3 launches this fall, players will be able to have a unified relationship through Elite – they can create a single profile in Elite and build their career in Call of Duty that will carry forward as they play every supported Call of Duty game.
How is Elite different with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3?
The Beachhead team has been working closely with Infinity Ward and Sledgehammer Games to build Elite from the ground up to support Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. When Elite launches this November, the service will include a number of all-new features and innovations being built directly by the developers into the new game. For example, your Elite community Group and Clan affiliations and identity will be incorporated directly into Modern Warfare 3.
When will Elite launch?
The service will launch with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 this November 8th, 2011.
Where will Elite be available?
Elite will be available on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC. In addition, there will be custom Elite applications available on iOS and Android tablets and smartphones
.
How can I become a member?
With the roll out of the Call of Duty Elite beta this summer on Call of Duty: Black Ops, players can sign up on www.callofduty.com/elite to queue up for participation. Once the platform officially launches with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 on November 8th, players will be able to enter the service in through a variety of ways, which we will be announcing later this year.
So, if I just want to buy Map Packs standalone, I can still do that?
Yes. Call of Duty Elite has been built around the tenets of value and choice. To us that choice means that players who purchase Modern Warfare 3, who want to extend the game may prefer the option of a map pack. We will continue to offer that option. So if you want to just buy a map pack only, no problem.
If I get the premium membership to Elite, do I really get all of the DLC?
Yes. Elite is an all-inclusive membership, and that means you get all of the playable game DLC for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 as part of your premium membership. No need to buy additional DLC.
Will there be Customer Service?
Absolutely. It's a priority for us that Elite membership comes with 24/7 worldwide customer service. We will have a team dedicated to programming, administration, and service, starting with our public beta this summer.
Why announce now if you can't show us all the Modern Warfare 3 launch features and pricing?
Elite was designed from the ground up to integrate with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. Therefore, many of the services which will be a part of the premium membership will not be able to be demonstrated fully until the launch of Modern Warfare 3. The reason we launched the service ahead of that time was to invite people to participate in a public beta of the service using Black Ops, which will help to test the service at scale and fine tune it before its official release this November. The premium membership to Elite also will include many industry firsts, and will represent the ultimate Call of Duty experience.
Are you letting people buy prestige weapons or levels through Elite?
No, players are not able to buy prestige weapons or levels through Elite. While Call of Duty Elite wants to help people become better players, there's still only one way to level up to new weapons, XP and prestige, and that's to earn it in game.
When will launch details be released?
Throughout the summer we will be talking about Elite in detail, so stay tuned for more information.
Who is Beachhead Studios?
Beachhead is a new development studio, who is creating the Elite service for the Call of Duty franchise. We are entirely focused on making Elite the best gaming service in the world, and improving it every day. Our Beachhead Studio will be supporting our Call of Duty games throughout the year.
Don't be fooled: CityVille, Pet Society and Cafe World are not available for iPad
Here's a bit of a PSA, Facebook players. If you search the iTunes store for your favorite Facebook games, you'll likely be surprised to find that there are supposedly three available to play: Cafe World, Pet Society and CityVille. How is this the case, when neither developer (Zynga and Playfish) has released these games officially? It's simple - Splashtop Inc. has created misleading apps on the iTunes App Store to try and lure you into purchasing their remote desktop application for iPad.
The Splashtop Remote Desktop application allows you to connect to your home computer remotely, by sharing the same Wi-Fi network. The app's price frequently (almost daily) fluctuates between $0.99 and $9.99 (part one of their questionable activities), and while the application does technically work to allow you to play Facebook games on your iPad, it is a slow, and definitely not ideal setup. That's how these Facebook apps would work on your own iPad.
Splashtop's Pet Society, Cafe World and CityVille apps are just extensions of this paid service (they even offer a FarmVille version, but that real, official app is free anyway!). The apps range in price from free to $1.99, depending on the day (rotating constantly to catch unsuspecting shoppers), and to make matters worse, you'll be limited to five minutes in each session. By the time you wait for your games to load over the agonizingly slow connection, you'll be left with no time to play the games at all. That leaves you to... guess what? Buy Splashtop's full Remote Desktop app. Please gamers, don't fall for this scheme!
Playfish and Zynga would be the first to announce when and if they were developing versions of these games for use on portable systems (in fact, EA has announced Pet Society Vacation for iPhone), and in the meantime you're better off sitting down at a real computer to play your games as normal. Sure, Splashtop isn't technically scamming anyone out of money, but their methods are questionable at best (each of these apps' reviews are clearly fake) and they shouldn't be rewarded for their efforts.
The Splashtop Remote Desktop application allows you to connect to your home computer remotely, by sharing the same Wi-Fi network. The app's price frequently (almost daily) fluctuates between $0.99 and $9.99 (part one of their questionable activities), and while the application does technically work to allow you to play Facebook games on your iPad, it is a slow, and definitely not ideal setup. That's how these Facebook apps would work on your own iPad.
Splashtop's Pet Society, Cafe World and CityVille apps are just extensions of this paid service (they even offer a FarmVille version, but that real, official app is free anyway!). The apps range in price from free to $1.99, depending on the day (rotating constantly to catch unsuspecting shoppers), and to make matters worse, you'll be limited to five minutes in each session. By the time you wait for your games to load over the agonizingly slow connection, you'll be left with no time to play the games at all. That leaves you to... guess what? Buy Splashtop's full Remote Desktop app. Please gamers, don't fall for this scheme!
Playfish and Zynga would be the first to announce when and if they were developing versions of these games for use on portable systems (in fact, EA has announced Pet Society Vacation for iPhone), and in the meantime you're better off sitting down at a real computer to play your games as normal. Sure, Splashtop isn't technically scamming anyone out of money, but their methods are questionable at best (each of these apps' reviews are clearly fake) and they shouldn't be rewarded for their efforts.
Cafe World Pastry Station: Everything you need to know
Perhaps in celebration of National Doughnut Day, Zynga has released a new Pastry Station in Cafe World, allowing you create all sorts of customizable, specialty desserts in your cafe. Like the Sous Chef Station, you'll need to hire a crew to work at your Pastry Station to speed up your activities (yes, you can technically go it alone, but isn't the game better with friends?).
Unlike the Sous Chef Station, however, this Pastry Station will allow for true interaction amongst friends, as you'll be able to customize the writing on top of new cakes. Your crew can suggest what should be written on top of the cake, and then you get to choose a winner from the responses provided. But wait! Before you can get to all of this sweet pastry goodness, you'll first need to build the Pastry Station to completion, using four building materials that you can learn more about behind the break.
To complete your Pastry Station, you'll need to collect four items: eight each of Pastry Panels and Racks, four Baking Trays and six Handles. Interestingly, the Pastry Panels and Handles are earned by posting a general news item on your wall, while the Racks and Baking Trays are earned through individual gift requests sent to your friends.
Once you finish building the Pastry Station, you'll be able to cook the Sixties Cake, a new recipe that takes one day to complete. It's only after you choose which dish you'd like to prepare that you'll hire your crew: up to six people, for this particular example. These cake dishes can be mastered, just as other recipes can, and the more crew members you add to each dish as it cooks, the more mastery points you'll earn when you serve it.
As you master level one of the Sixties Cake, you'll move onto the Birthday Cake, Seventies Cake and so on, with you being required to master other recipes in order to unlock the others. Luckily, that's all that's required, as there are no recipe-centric goals to complete, allowing you to finish this entire process by your lonesome if you choose. Again, asking friends to participate will speed up the process, but it is voluntary.
Again, currently there are no goals to complete associated with the Pastry Station, but we'll make sure to let you know if more are added in the future.
What do you think of this Pastry Station? Do you think our cafes are becoming to overwhelmed with items, or do you appreciate all of the added variety?
Unlike the Sous Chef Station, however, this Pastry Station will allow for true interaction amongst friends, as you'll be able to customize the writing on top of new cakes. Your crew can suggest what should be written on top of the cake, and then you get to choose a winner from the responses provided. But wait! Before you can get to all of this sweet pastry goodness, you'll first need to build the Pastry Station to completion, using four building materials that you can learn more about behind the break.
To complete your Pastry Station, you'll need to collect four items: eight each of Pastry Panels and Racks, four Baking Trays and six Handles. Interestingly, the Pastry Panels and Handles are earned by posting a general news item on your wall, while the Racks and Baking Trays are earned through individual gift requests sent to your friends.
Once you finish building the Pastry Station, you'll be able to cook the Sixties Cake, a new recipe that takes one day to complete. It's only after you choose which dish you'd like to prepare that you'll hire your crew: up to six people, for this particular example. These cake dishes can be mastered, just as other recipes can, and the more crew members you add to each dish as it cooks, the more mastery points you'll earn when you serve it.
As you master level one of the Sixties Cake, you'll move onto the Birthday Cake, Seventies Cake and so on, with you being required to master other recipes in order to unlock the others. Luckily, that's all that's required, as there are no recipe-centric goals to complete, allowing you to finish this entire process by your lonesome if you choose. Again, asking friends to participate will speed up the process, but it is voluntary.
Again, currently there are no goals to complete associated with the Pastry Station, but we'll make sure to let you know if more are added in the future.
What do you think of this Pastry Station? Do you think our cafes are becoming to overwhelmed with items, or do you appreciate all of the added variety?
FarmVille Sneak Peek: FarmVille's Second Birthday items
FarmVille's second birthday is coming up, and don't think for a second that the team at Zynga will let you forget it. It looks like in the coming days or weeks, we'll be seeing a whole roundup of birthday-themed activities and items being released in the game. First and foremost, we've come across a set of unreleased images that may or may not be entirely related to the birthday celebration, but as they really have no other theme, it screams "Birthday Countdown."
If that's the case, it's likely we'll see some, if not all of these items released as daily prizes for playing the game or completing some task during the birthday celebration period. Either way, the items are the Cowprint Balloon Arch, a Blue Duckling, Red Duckling, Rainbow Duck, FarmVille Haybale, Doghouse and Bluebird. The FarmVille Haybale, Cowprint Balloon Arch and Bluebird in particular scream of a party or of a FarmVille celebration, especially with two of them being in the FarmVille standard blue and orange colors.
Of course, we're still in a speculation phase at this point, as it's still unknown just how Zynga will celebrate FarmVille's second birthday in-game and elsewhere. Make sure to keep checking back with us, as we update you with all of the news as it happens. Get ready to wish FarmVille a Happy Birthday!
Check out the rest of our FarmVille Second Birthday coverage right here.
What do you think of a FarmVille Birthday Countdown? In what other ways would you like to see FarmVille celebrate turning a year older?
If that's the case, it's likely we'll see some, if not all of these items released as daily prizes for playing the game or completing some task during the birthday celebration period. Either way, the items are the Cowprint Balloon Arch, a Blue Duckling, Red Duckling, Rainbow Duck, FarmVille Haybale, Doghouse and Bluebird. The FarmVille Haybale, Cowprint Balloon Arch and Bluebird in particular scream of a party or of a FarmVille celebration, especially with two of them being in the FarmVille standard blue and orange colors.
Of course, we're still in a speculation phase at this point, as it's still unknown just how Zynga will celebrate FarmVille's second birthday in-game and elsewhere. Make sure to keep checking back with us, as we update you with all of the news as it happens. Get ready to wish FarmVille a Happy Birthday!
Check out the rest of our FarmVille Second Birthday coverage right here.
What do you think of a FarmVille Birthday Countdown? In what other ways would you like to see FarmVille celebrate turning a year older?
Friday, December 23, 2011
Empires & Allies finishes its tour already? Game peaks at 53M players
In some cases, short tours aren't exactly a good thing. According to AppData, Zynga's newest FarmVille successor, Empires & Allies, may have already reached its peak. The game soared to 53 million players in just over a month, but now sits at 50,116,918 monthly players after losing another 982 thousand as of today.
With the way things were going, we half-expected E&A to be the next CityVille killer, but perhaps Zynga's core audience isn't as keen on blowing things up as we had hoped. However, E&A does maintain a stable of over 7 million daily players, which is a healthy portion of its monthly players compared to Zynga's other top games like FarmVille and FrontierVille.
This is especially significant considering no other Facebook game in the strategy genre has garnered this many monthly players. And keep in mind that it's entirely possible for the game to bounce back somehow or at least stabilize. But if Zynga fans really are ready for another game this soon, its developers better opt for dinner in-house to sate gamers' appetite for entertainment.
Do you think Empires & Allies has reached its peak? What do you hope Zynga is cooking up next that might finally topple CityVille?
With the way things were going, we half-expected E&A to be the next CityVille killer, but perhaps Zynga's core audience isn't as keen on blowing things up as we had hoped. However, E&A does maintain a stable of over 7 million daily players, which is a healthy portion of its monthly players compared to Zynga's other top games like FarmVille and FrontierVille.
This is especially significant considering no other Facebook game in the strategy genre has garnered this many monthly players. And keep in mind that it's entirely possible for the game to bounce back somehow or at least stabilize. But if Zynga fans really are ready for another game this soon, its developers better opt for dinner in-house to sate gamers' appetite for entertainment.
Do you think Empires & Allies has reached its peak? What do you hope Zynga is cooking up next that might finally topple CityVille?
FrontierVille's Pioneer Trail may have fossils, treasure, and gold mines--oh, my
At this point, everything but flash fires, avalanches and wild beavers is up in the air. Zynga released yet another survey, this time to its loyal pioneers regarding features they'd like to see in FrontierVille moving forward. However, no time frame has been given in the survey, implying that these features could be included in the upcoming Pioneer Trail expansion. Here are all the features listed, though you can only choose three within the actual survey:
Native American Treasures
A Mysterious Journal
An Oil Well
Dino Skeletons
Treasure Maps
A Gold Mine
New, Rare Animals
Rare Plants You Can Harvest
Do we really have to choose? All of those things sound potentially awesome. Alright, we'll play along--if we had to choose three features, we would pick Treasure Maps, Dino Skeletons and the Gold Mine. (Could you really pass up on straight gold?) At any rate, you can take the survey here. Then, it's time to wait and see whether any of these features make into stock FrontierVille or, better yet, the Pioneer Trail. I hate the waiting game.
[Via FrontierVille Info]
Which of these teased features do you hope make it into FrontierVille either way? What are you most excited about so far within the Pioneer Trail?
Native American Treasures
A Mysterious Journal
An Oil Well
Dino Skeletons
Treasure Maps
A Gold Mine
New, Rare Animals
Rare Plants You Can Harvest
Do we really have to choose? All of those things sound potentially awesome. Alright, we'll play along--if we had to choose three features, we would pick Treasure Maps, Dino Skeletons and the Gold Mine. (Could you really pass up on straight gold?) At any rate, you can take the survey here. Then, it's time to wait and see whether any of these features make into stock FrontierVille or, better yet, the Pioneer Trail. I hate the waiting game.
[Via FrontierVille Info]
Which of these teased features do you hope make it into FrontierVille either way? What are you most excited about so far within the Pioneer Trail?
FarmVille player earns 1 billion Coins, sees sun for first time in years
Come on, is there any other explanation? One extremely dedicated FarmVille player, known as MaFarm on the forums, has garnered an insane 1 billion coins. Well, 1,011,357,960 Coins, to be exact. The, um, accomplished player made the announcement on the forums to the bewilderment and awe of many digital farmers.
MaFarm went on to reveal some more effects of her wealth. For instance, when she looked to see how many High Roller Ribbons she had earned, the number appeared blank, implying that the game cannot even read past seven-digit numbers in some cases.
Better yet, the status of her Pretty Penny Ribbon literally ran out of space: "The pretty Penny ribbon actually ran out of space too," MaFarm writes. "It shows 1,440,878,7_ _ and then the last two numbers disappeared...LOL."
We'd say "LOL" is a fair response, wouldn't you? And here's the clincher: When asked what her next major goal is, MaFarm replied that she's aiming to reach Level 500. She's currently Level 246, so we'll check back with her in oh, I don't know, two years?
MaFarm's farm with 1 billion coins
[Source and Image Credit: MaFarm]
Are you impressed by MaFarm's FarmVille success? What's the most Coins you've ever had on hand at once in the game?
MaFarm went on to reveal some more effects of her wealth. For instance, when she looked to see how many High Roller Ribbons she had earned, the number appeared blank, implying that the game cannot even read past seven-digit numbers in some cases.
Better yet, the status of her Pretty Penny Ribbon literally ran out of space: "The pretty Penny ribbon actually ran out of space too," MaFarm writes. "It shows 1,440,878,7_ _ and then the last two numbers disappeared...LOL."
We'd say "LOL" is a fair response, wouldn't you? And here's the clincher: When asked what her next major goal is, MaFarm replied that she's aiming to reach Level 500. She's currently Level 246, so we'll check back with her in oh, I don't know, two years?
MaFarm's farm with 1 billion coins
[Source and Image Credit: MaFarm]
Are you impressed by MaFarm's FarmVille success? What's the most Coins you've ever had on hand at once in the game?
Upgrading the CityVille Shamrock Sing-A-Long: Everything you need to know
Nope, there aren't any Irish holidays this month--this is just another zany CityVille update. Zynga has released upgrades to the Shamrock Sing-A-Long, though we're not quite sure why. At any rate, it's another building to be upgraded, so be happy with whatcha' get, will ya?
This method of upgrading is considerably different from previous outings, forgoing the special items altogether for a much simpler point system. However, each level of the new Shamrock Sing-A-Long doesn't seem to change the appearance of the building at all, at least according to this in-game image. At least it still boosts the building's Coin earnings and Goods consumption.
In order to completely upgrade the building, it appears that you will need to ask 25 friends for their help, each of which contributes two points of progress to a total of 50. As the bar fills, your Shamrock Sing-A-Long will increase in level, likely at 25 points and 50 points. Here's the breakdown of what each boost provides:
Shamrock Sing-A-Long (Level 2)
Earns: 527 Coins
Requires: 110 Goods
Shamrock Sing-A-Long (Level 3)
Earns: 811 Coins
Requires: 150 Goods
Shamrock Sing-A-Long upgrade
Of course, you do have the option to pay 4 City Cash per point of progress, but why do that when simply bugging a friend nets two points? If you ask us, we love the new system--why get players to scrounge around for items that, for all intents and purposes, represented the exact same thing? Exactly.
[Source and Image Credits: Zynga, Miss Boo]
Have you started upgrading the Shamrock Sing-A-Long? What do you think of the new and improved upgrading system?
This method of upgrading is considerably different from previous outings, forgoing the special items altogether for a much simpler point system. However, each level of the new Shamrock Sing-A-Long doesn't seem to change the appearance of the building at all, at least according to this in-game image. At least it still boosts the building's Coin earnings and Goods consumption.
In order to completely upgrade the building, it appears that you will need to ask 25 friends for their help, each of which contributes two points of progress to a total of 50. As the bar fills, your Shamrock Sing-A-Long will increase in level, likely at 25 points and 50 points. Here's the breakdown of what each boost provides:
Shamrock Sing-A-Long (Level 2)
Earns: 527 Coins
Requires: 110 Goods
Shamrock Sing-A-Long (Level 3)
Earns: 811 Coins
Requires: 150 Goods
Shamrock Sing-A-Long upgrade
Of course, you do have the option to pay 4 City Cash per point of progress, but why do that when simply bugging a friend nets two points? If you ask us, we love the new system--why get players to scrounge around for items that, for all intents and purposes, represented the exact same thing? Exactly.
[Source and Image Credits: Zynga, Miss Boo]
Have you started upgrading the Shamrock Sing-A-Long? What do you think of the new and improved upgrading system?
Yup, it's true - Electronic Arts lassos Bejeweled maker PopCap for $650 million
Turns out (one of) the rumors from the past few weeks are true -- Bejeweled-creator PopCap has been purchased by Electronic Arts for upwards of a billion dollars, an unnamed source confirms for Games.com this afternoon. The official news should be breaking shortly... stay tuned...
And the news is out. Electronic Arts has purchased PopCap for $650 million, adding its slate of critically acclaimed, best-selling games like Bejeweled, Plants vs. Zombies, Zuma, Bookworm (and other) to EA's already vast library of games.
"We picked EA because they have recast their culture around making great digital games," said PopCap CEO David Roberts says in a statement. "By working with EA, we'll scale our games and services to deliver more social, mobile, casual fun to an even bigger, global audience."
"EA and PopCap are a compelling combination," EA CEO John Riccitiello says. "PopCap's great studio talent and powerful IP add to EA's momentum and accelerate our drive towards a $1 billion digital business. EA's global studio and publishing network will help PopCap rapidly expand their business to more digital devices, more countries, and more channels."
EA will pay $650 million in cash and $100 million in shares of EA common stock will be issued to select PopCap stockholders. PopCap sellers will also be eligible for additional cash, based on PopCap's performance through December 2013.
This is an unexpected development, especially after PopCap had been very forthcoming about its plans to go public earlier this year. It will also be interesting to see how EA will help PopCap reach a new audience and how PopCap, in turn, will enhance EA's casual games business.
And the news is out. Electronic Arts has purchased PopCap for $650 million, adding its slate of critically acclaimed, best-selling games like Bejeweled, Plants vs. Zombies, Zuma, Bookworm (and other) to EA's already vast library of games.
"We picked EA because they have recast their culture around making great digital games," said PopCap CEO David Roberts says in a statement. "By working with EA, we'll scale our games and services to deliver more social, mobile, casual fun to an even bigger, global audience."
"EA and PopCap are a compelling combination," EA CEO John Riccitiello says. "PopCap's great studio talent and powerful IP add to EA's momentum and accelerate our drive towards a $1 billion digital business. EA's global studio and publishing network will help PopCap rapidly expand their business to more digital devices, more countries, and more channels."
EA will pay $650 million in cash and $100 million in shares of EA common stock will be issued to select PopCap stockholders. PopCap sellers will also be eligible for additional cash, based on PopCap's performance through December 2013.
This is an unexpected development, especially after PopCap had been very forthcoming about its plans to go public earlier this year. It will also be interesting to see how EA will help PopCap reach a new audience and how PopCap, in turn, will enhance EA's casual games business.
Like playing games on Facebook? Try playing on your Samsung TV
The final frontier for social games might be what you sit in front of all night long: your television. (Do people still call it that?) GamePro reports that PlayJam, a social gaming company that specializes in TVs as its platform(s), has signed a deal with Samsung. This partnership will bring PlayJam's stable of casual games to web-enabled Samsung TVs through Smart TV software.
More specifically, London-based PlayJam games will be found through Samsung Apps, reportedly the first app store on an HDTV. While specific games weren't mentioned, a statement said that players will have access to a variety of "in-house and leading brand titles" and "thousands of casual games at the touch of a button on the remote control."
PlayJam's system has full support for social games including leader boards, cross-network tournaments, and--most importantly for some--virtual currencies. It's a brilliant idea, in theory. Where do most casual or non-gamers spend a bigger chunk of their leisure time than anywhere else? You guessed it.
GamePro guesses that social games for TV could grow even larger than Facebook games, but that all depends on the quality of the games, which we've yet to see. Regardless, the potential for growth and notoriety is certainly there, according to PlayJam CEO Jasper Smith:
I have a fundamental belief that games on TV will evolve into a huge commercial opportunity, and our combined aim is simply to provide the best games experience possible to our customers. To help make that a reality, we offer great game developers simple access to our global games network -- so that they can monetize their IP and make their games famous. TV has some extraordinary advantages over the Web and mobile, and the ability to make standout formats has never been greater.
And thanks to Facebook's recent ... rewording of its Facebook Credits terms, Facebook game developers are allowed to place their games elsewhere as long as pricing is identical. Empires & Allies on the old 55-inch, anyone? We've contacted PlayJam for more details.
[Image Credit: Slashgear]
Have you tried playing casual games on your HDTV through PlayJam? Do you this type of distribution could outgrow Facebook and smartphones?
More specifically, London-based PlayJam games will be found through Samsung Apps, reportedly the first app store on an HDTV. While specific games weren't mentioned, a statement said that players will have access to a variety of "in-house and leading brand titles" and "thousands of casual games at the touch of a button on the remote control."
PlayJam's system has full support for social games including leader boards, cross-network tournaments, and--most importantly for some--virtual currencies. It's a brilliant idea, in theory. Where do most casual or non-gamers spend a bigger chunk of their leisure time than anywhere else? You guessed it.
GamePro guesses that social games for TV could grow even larger than Facebook games, but that all depends on the quality of the games, which we've yet to see. Regardless, the potential for growth and notoriety is certainly there, according to PlayJam CEO Jasper Smith:
I have a fundamental belief that games on TV will evolve into a huge commercial opportunity, and our combined aim is simply to provide the best games experience possible to our customers. To help make that a reality, we offer great game developers simple access to our global games network -- so that they can monetize their IP and make their games famous. TV has some extraordinary advantages over the Web and mobile, and the ability to make standout formats has never been greater.
And thanks to Facebook's recent ... rewording of its Facebook Credits terms, Facebook game developers are allowed to place their games elsewhere as long as pricing is identical. Empires & Allies on the old 55-inch, anyone? We've contacted PlayJam for more details.
[Image Credit: Slashgear]
Have you tried playing casual games on your HDTV through PlayJam? Do you this type of distribution could outgrow Facebook and smartphones?
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Cafe World Enter the Intern Goals: Everything you need to know
Here's some interesting news, chefs. Your Cafe World cafe is about to be visited by a traveling student from the Cooking Academy named Cheryl, who wishes to study in your cafe as an intern of sorts. To help her learn from your culinary mastery, you'll need to complete a series of eight new goals, tasking you with the basic steps of cooking dishes and asking your friends for collectibles or ingredients. There's a new decoration and three dishes up for grabs when completing these goals, if that makes the news any happier, so let's get started on our guide.
First things first, yet again this is a case where the dishes you're required to cook will likely differ from those listed here. We have no way of knowing exactly which dishes each and every player will end up with, but we can say that at the end of the entire goal series, the cumulative time you've spent cooking dishes should be almost identical to all other players.
Enter the Intern 1
Serve 20 Rootin' Tootin' Rib Eyes
Serve 15 Lox Bagels
Ask for 5 Pressed Aprons
Again, these dishes will likely not be those that you're asked to cook, but that's perfectly normal. Also, as another reminder, if you end up with dishes that take far longer to cook than your friends, rest assured that you should (if all goes according to plan) end up with dishes that have incredibly short cooking times to make up for that later on, and vice versa. Finishing this first goal gives you the Menu Stand decoration.
Enter the Intern 2
Serve Deep Fried Turkey 4 Times
Serve Onion Rings 4 Times
Ask for 10 Cutting Gloves
Unfortunately, we're not sure whether or not everyone will be given Deep Fryer dishes here, or perhaps dishes that can be cooked on other appliances like the Pizza Oven, so keep that in mind.
Enter the Intern 3
Serve Sweet Dinner Rolls 8 Times
Serve Sticky Buns 3 Times
Ask for 10 Smoke Detectors
Your reward for finishing this third goal in the series is the Tortilla Soup recipe.
Enter the Intern 4
Serve Tangy BBQ Chicken 3 Times
Serve 40 oz Steak 3 Times
Ask for 5 Tuna Steak
No new recipes here, but you'll earn another one after this next goal.
Enter the Intern 5
Serve Summer Fruit Cake 1 Time
Serve Wedding Cake 2 Times
Ask for 12 Sesame Seed Bottles
As promised, this goal sees you earning another new recipe in the form of Sesame-Crusted Tuna.
Enter the Intern 6
Serve Romantic Brownie Sundae 35 Times
Serve Wedding Cake 3 Times
Ask for 7 Pressed Aprons
Unfortunately, there's no word yet on whether you'll be starting from scratch on these Aprons (which were also required for the first goal), or if you'll just need to collect the difference of two Aprons. When we can confirm either way, we'll let you know.
Enter the Intern 7
Serve Pita and Dolmas 45 Times
Serve Escargot 40 Times
Ask for 8 Pressed Aprons
Only one goal left - don't give up now!
Enter the Intern 8
Serve Sixties Cake 1 Time
Serve Seventies Cake 1 Time
Ask for 8 Sesame Seed Bottles
For finishing this final goal, you'll not only see Cheryl returning to the Cooking Academy to try out all of the tricks that you've shown her, but you'll also receive one final free recipe, the Strawberry Napoleon. It's a fairly pretty dish, if nothing else, but it also signals that you've finished yet another goal series in the game! At this rate, with so many goals and catering orders launching in such short periods of time, that's definitely something to be proud of.
What do you think of these "Enter the Intern" goals? Do you like having the story built up in Cafe World, or are you all about the straight cooking and serving?
First things first, yet again this is a case where the dishes you're required to cook will likely differ from those listed here. We have no way of knowing exactly which dishes each and every player will end up with, but we can say that at the end of the entire goal series, the cumulative time you've spent cooking dishes should be almost identical to all other players.
Enter the Intern 1
Serve 20 Rootin' Tootin' Rib Eyes
Serve 15 Lox Bagels
Ask for 5 Pressed Aprons
Again, these dishes will likely not be those that you're asked to cook, but that's perfectly normal. Also, as another reminder, if you end up with dishes that take far longer to cook than your friends, rest assured that you should (if all goes according to plan) end up with dishes that have incredibly short cooking times to make up for that later on, and vice versa. Finishing this first goal gives you the Menu Stand decoration.
Enter the Intern 2
Serve Deep Fried Turkey 4 Times
Serve Onion Rings 4 Times
Ask for 10 Cutting Gloves
Unfortunately, we're not sure whether or not everyone will be given Deep Fryer dishes here, or perhaps dishes that can be cooked on other appliances like the Pizza Oven, so keep that in mind.
Enter the Intern 3
Serve Sweet Dinner Rolls 8 Times
Serve Sticky Buns 3 Times
Ask for 10 Smoke Detectors
Your reward for finishing this third goal in the series is the Tortilla Soup recipe.
Enter the Intern 4
Serve Tangy BBQ Chicken 3 Times
Serve 40 oz Steak 3 Times
Ask for 5 Tuna Steak
No new recipes here, but you'll earn another one after this next goal.
Enter the Intern 5
Serve Summer Fruit Cake 1 Time
Serve Wedding Cake 2 Times
Ask for 12 Sesame Seed Bottles
As promised, this goal sees you earning another new recipe in the form of Sesame-Crusted Tuna.
Enter the Intern 6
Serve Romantic Brownie Sundae 35 Times
Serve Wedding Cake 3 Times
Ask for 7 Pressed Aprons
Unfortunately, there's no word yet on whether you'll be starting from scratch on these Aprons (which were also required for the first goal), or if you'll just need to collect the difference of two Aprons. When we can confirm either way, we'll let you know.
Enter the Intern 7
Serve Pita and Dolmas 45 Times
Serve Escargot 40 Times
Ask for 8 Pressed Aprons
Only one goal left - don't give up now!
Enter the Intern 8
Serve Sixties Cake 1 Time
Serve Seventies Cake 1 Time
Ask for 8 Sesame Seed Bottles
For finishing this final goal, you'll not only see Cheryl returning to the Cooking Academy to try out all of the tricks that you've shown her, but you'll also receive one final free recipe, the Strawberry Napoleon. It's a fairly pretty dish, if nothing else, but it also signals that you've finished yet another goal series in the game! At this rate, with so many goals and catering orders launching in such short periods of time, that's definitely something to be proud of.
What do you think of these "Enter the Intern" goals? Do you like having the story built up in Cafe World, or are you all about the straight cooking and serving?
NASA to create space-themed social game combining in-depth education with fun
A few years ago, NASA held a research challenge looking for a developer and game proposal for an educational, space-themed video game that could not only be extremely educational, but also fun and commercially viable. Now, four years later, we've started to see the fruits of that challenge, as Canadian developer Project Whitecard has created a Kickstarter video preview, asking the public at large for donations to boost the project along (for the record, its goal has already been met).
The game is called Astronaut: Moon, Mars & Beyond, and it will play like an MMO set in the year 2035. Space flight for the average citizen is now not only available, but actually encouraged, as players will make their way through our solar system (and potentially beyond), landing on Mars and exploring other celestial bodies with both friends and strangers alike. In the game's story, a threat to "civilization as we know it" has emerged, and you'll need to build a base somewhere in outer space (yes, Mars is an option) and eventually outfit a team of other players or potentially NPCs (non-player characters) with high-tech gear to fight back.
Astronauts is described by the developers as being Harry Potter in space, as players are centered around the Arthur C. Clarke Astronaut Academy Station, which is the game's version of "Hogwarts." We'll be assigned missions in this fictional version of outer space, and can then go about our business in either player vs. environment or team vs. team modes. True scientific challenges will appear in the game, as we'll need to worry about radiation, extreme heat or cold and other elements that true-to-life astronauts and NASA as a whole must deal with everyday.
If everything goes well for Project Whitecard, we can expect to see the full launch of Astronaut: Moon, Mars & Beyond on PC, Mac and iOS in December of 2012. Sure, that's a long time to wait, but hey - space is a pretty big place to recreate.
[Via Mashable]
Are you interested in trying out Astronaut: Moon, Mars & Beyond when it launches? Will you donate any money to the cause of helping the game reach final production? What do you think of educational video games - do they have a place, or are they out of touch with what gamers want?
The game is called Astronaut: Moon, Mars & Beyond, and it will play like an MMO set in the year 2035. Space flight for the average citizen is now not only available, but actually encouraged, as players will make their way through our solar system (and potentially beyond), landing on Mars and exploring other celestial bodies with both friends and strangers alike. In the game's story, a threat to "civilization as we know it" has emerged, and you'll need to build a base somewhere in outer space (yes, Mars is an option) and eventually outfit a team of other players or potentially NPCs (non-player characters) with high-tech gear to fight back.
Astronauts is described by the developers as being Harry Potter in space, as players are centered around the Arthur C. Clarke Astronaut Academy Station, which is the game's version of "Hogwarts." We'll be assigned missions in this fictional version of outer space, and can then go about our business in either player vs. environment or team vs. team modes. True scientific challenges will appear in the game, as we'll need to worry about radiation, extreme heat or cold and other elements that true-to-life astronauts and NASA as a whole must deal with everyday.
If everything goes well for Project Whitecard, we can expect to see the full launch of Astronaut: Moon, Mars & Beyond on PC, Mac and iOS in December of 2012. Sure, that's a long time to wait, but hey - space is a pretty big place to recreate.
[Via Mashable]
Are you interested in trying out Astronaut: Moon, Mars & Beyond when it launches? Will you donate any money to the cause of helping the game reach final production? What do you think of educational video games - do they have a place, or are they out of touch with what gamers want?
Adopt and care for a virtual child in Baby & Me on Facebook
While there are plenty of pet simulation games on Facebook (PetVille, Pet Society and Happy Pets, to name just a handful), ModernMom, Grab.com and 6waves Lolapps (phew, what a mouthful) have partnered to create a childcare simulator, that also focuses on the needs of moms. The game is called Baby & Me, and as of this writing, it has climbed to over 1 million monthly active players.
Upon first starting the game, you'll be able to name your child, although it doesn't appear as though you can choose the sex of your baby; rather, the color of the stork's bundle will tell you if you've become the proud parent of a girl or boy. You'll be sent straight into the role of mom with little time to prepare, as your nursery is an absolute wreck, the baby is dirty and you're already a little stressed. You see, the game here is about balancing your work as a mother to your baby, and as a caretaker of your own self, so you can go back and forth between actually interacting with your child and exercising, among other tasks.
First things first, you'll want to take care of your baby. This is done by simply clicking on the child, which zooms in your view for a better look. Individual buttons allow you to change its diaper, give it a bath or feed it, and only after its basic needs have been met will you be able to play games or participate in other activities with the child, like coloring, peek-a-boo and so on. Mini-games are introduced here, as you must use your mouse to wash dirt from your baby's face, or click your mouse in a steady rhythm to burp the baby after it has eaten.
Of course, it still can't be as simple as all that, as you'll also need to craft new diapers and bars of soap, as examples, to actually take care of your child. You'll earn collectibles as you play the game which must be turned in to "craft" these items, as seen in so many other social games, and the better items that you craft, the longer your baby will feel the effects, and the less often you'll have to come back and take care of those same needs. Once it's satisfied, you can even put the baby down for a nap, allowing you up to eight hours (at the start of the game) of peace as the baby sleeps.
On the mother's side of the game, you're given your own special room for "mommy time," where you can watch videos from ModernMom, or purchase luxuries to boost your character's mood. You can exercise, which is an automated process, or you can simply go shopping for something fun (including spa treatments) in the store, using coins you've earned by simply playing the game. You can even change your character's appearance by purchasing new clothing items and accessories.
Gallery: Baby & Me on Facebook
A quest system and an overall town map add even more features to the experience, including an energy bar and more timed events. You'll be able to schedule parties and events at your own home, at the local restaurant and so on, or can spend some energy to travel down to the beach to play hidden object scenes for additional coins and other bonuses.
Rounding out the package are some light social features that see you taking your child to your friends' homes for a play date or even to help them clean up their home, or chatting with other users in real time below the gameplay area.
All in all, Baby & Me seems like the perfect game for moms who love being moms, especially if they've perhaps watched their youngins' grow out of this stage and want to relive some of the better memories. If nothing else, the game contains a surprising amount of depth and aside from a few odd graphical glitches, runs really well. It will just be interesting to see if this specific of a gameplay theme can hold onto this many users in the long run.
Upon first starting the game, you'll be able to name your child, although it doesn't appear as though you can choose the sex of your baby; rather, the color of the stork's bundle will tell you if you've become the proud parent of a girl or boy. You'll be sent straight into the role of mom with little time to prepare, as your nursery is an absolute wreck, the baby is dirty and you're already a little stressed. You see, the game here is about balancing your work as a mother to your baby, and as a caretaker of your own self, so you can go back and forth between actually interacting with your child and exercising, among other tasks.
First things first, you'll want to take care of your baby. This is done by simply clicking on the child, which zooms in your view for a better look. Individual buttons allow you to change its diaper, give it a bath or feed it, and only after its basic needs have been met will you be able to play games or participate in other activities with the child, like coloring, peek-a-boo and so on. Mini-games are introduced here, as you must use your mouse to wash dirt from your baby's face, or click your mouse in a steady rhythm to burp the baby after it has eaten.
Of course, it still can't be as simple as all that, as you'll also need to craft new diapers and bars of soap, as examples, to actually take care of your child. You'll earn collectibles as you play the game which must be turned in to "craft" these items, as seen in so many other social games, and the better items that you craft, the longer your baby will feel the effects, and the less often you'll have to come back and take care of those same needs. Once it's satisfied, you can even put the baby down for a nap, allowing you up to eight hours (at the start of the game) of peace as the baby sleeps.
On the mother's side of the game, you're given your own special room for "mommy time," where you can watch videos from ModernMom, or purchase luxuries to boost your character's mood. You can exercise, which is an automated process, or you can simply go shopping for something fun (including spa treatments) in the store, using coins you've earned by simply playing the game. You can even change your character's appearance by purchasing new clothing items and accessories.
Gallery: Baby & Me on Facebook
A quest system and an overall town map add even more features to the experience, including an energy bar and more timed events. You'll be able to schedule parties and events at your own home, at the local restaurant and so on, or can spend some energy to travel down to the beach to play hidden object scenes for additional coins and other bonuses.
Rounding out the package are some light social features that see you taking your child to your friends' homes for a play date or even to help them clean up their home, or chatting with other users in real time below the gameplay area.
All in all, Baby & Me seems like the perfect game for moms who love being moms, especially if they've perhaps watched their youngins' grow out of this stage and want to relive some of the better memories. If nothing else, the game contains a surprising amount of depth and aside from a few odd graphical glitches, runs really well. It will just be interesting to see if this specific of a gameplay theme can hold onto this many users in the long run.
Zynga's Live Chat Customer Support only available for paying players
With the glitches and bugs that run rampant in Zynga's many Facebook games, I often find myself suggesting that users ask Zynga's Customer Support for help in passing goals that won't track progress, returning missing items that have mysteriously vanished, or getting refunds for broken items.
While Live Support has recently been a great way for users to receive instant responses from the company's Customer Support team (rather than needing to file an email ticket and wait days for a response), some rumors have spread recently concerning just how you can access that Live Support help. Namely, that you have to spend $100 per month to access Live Chat.
Zynga Community Manager TerriHelper has posted on the company's official forums, shutting down this $100 rumor, but also confirming that you need to be a paying player to receive the extra convenience. Specifically, Terri states that you "are entitled to live chat support if you have paid for FC [Farm Cash] in your lifetime," and don't need to actively support the company with real money month after month to retain that privilege.
We'd assume that this goes for all of Zynga's games, and their own types of premium currency as well. If you're not a paying player, you'll still be able to access email support, and the additional rumors that email support is vanishing are just that: rumors.
As a recap: You don't need to pay $100 a month to access Live Support, but do need to have made a purchase at some point in your life. Email support will continue to be available for all players, whether they've ever given Zynga real money or not.
Have you ever used Zynga's Live Chat support? Would you pay for Farm Cash or another premium currency just to unlock Live Chat support?
While Live Support has recently been a great way for users to receive instant responses from the company's Customer Support team (rather than needing to file an email ticket and wait days for a response), some rumors have spread recently concerning just how you can access that Live Support help. Namely, that you have to spend $100 per month to access Live Chat.
Zynga Community Manager TerriHelper has posted on the company's official forums, shutting down this $100 rumor, but also confirming that you need to be a paying player to receive the extra convenience. Specifically, Terri states that you "are entitled to live chat support if you have paid for FC [Farm Cash] in your lifetime," and don't need to actively support the company with real money month after month to retain that privilege.
We'd assume that this goes for all of Zynga's games, and their own types of premium currency as well. If you're not a paying player, you'll still be able to access email support, and the additional rumors that email support is vanishing are just that: rumors.
As a recap: You don't need to pay $100 a month to access Live Support, but do need to have made a purchase at some point in your life. Email support will continue to be available for all players, whether they've ever given Zynga real money or not.
Have you ever used Zynga's Live Chat support? Would you pay for Farm Cash or another premium currency just to unlock Live Chat support?
FarmVille player steals from blind man for Farm Cash, stabs another
Nothing on the FarmVille Market is worth killing over, but here we are. Manchester Evening News reports that Adam Hamnett (pictured right), a 23-year-old Manchester, UK resident, stole a credit card from a blind man, Brian McKenzie, and spent £70 on FarmVille.
In a panic after the victim told him he'd call the police if the money wasn't paid back, MEN reports, Hamnett went to the house of Peter Bousted (pictured bottom left), his mother's 58-year-old former lover. Hamnett then stabbed Bousted 26 times before hitting him over the head with a bottle.
He then stole Bousted's benefit money, and bought crack cocaine with it instead of paying back McKenzie. According to MEN, the court heard during Hamnett's trial that he'd been binging on tranquilizers at the time of the murder. Hamnett tearfully confessed to his brother Wayne shortly after, admitting to 'flipping out' at the victim before 'battering' him and taking his money, according to prosecutor Graham Wood.
Hamnett was arrested after calling 999 (the UK's "911") and telling the operator he had done something "very bad," MEN reports. After pleading guilty, Hamnett faces life in prison for the crime, and must serve at least 20 years of the sentence. In his plea, Hamnett said to the court, "I can't explain why I attacked Mr. Bousted."
Peter Bousted and Hamnett
While there is far more at play here in this case than a simple FarmVille addiction, this is far from the first time a Facebook game addiction has inspired murderous crimes. Most usually they're crimes of neglect, but nevertheless devastating. It speaks volumes to the fact that even games like FarmVille, like all potentially addictive activities, can become equally as dangerous for those predisposed to addiction.
[Image Credit: Manchester Evening News]
Are you shocked at all by yet another murder revolving around FarmVille? What do you think can be done to stop this type of behavior as it relates to FarmVille?
In a panic after the victim told him he'd call the police if the money wasn't paid back, MEN reports, Hamnett went to the house of Peter Bousted (pictured bottom left), his mother's 58-year-old former lover. Hamnett then stabbed Bousted 26 times before hitting him over the head with a bottle.
He then stole Bousted's benefit money, and bought crack cocaine with it instead of paying back McKenzie. According to MEN, the court heard during Hamnett's trial that he'd been binging on tranquilizers at the time of the murder. Hamnett tearfully confessed to his brother Wayne shortly after, admitting to 'flipping out' at the victim before 'battering' him and taking his money, according to prosecutor Graham Wood.
Hamnett was arrested after calling 999 (the UK's "911") and telling the operator he had done something "very bad," MEN reports. After pleading guilty, Hamnett faces life in prison for the crime, and must serve at least 20 years of the sentence. In his plea, Hamnett said to the court, "I can't explain why I attacked Mr. Bousted."
Peter Bousted and Hamnett
While there is far more at play here in this case than a simple FarmVille addiction, this is far from the first time a Facebook game addiction has inspired murderous crimes. Most usually they're crimes of neglect, but nevertheless devastating. It speaks volumes to the fact that even games like FarmVille, like all potentially addictive activities, can become equally as dangerous for those predisposed to addiction.
[Image Credit: Manchester Evening News]
Are you shocked at all by yet another murder revolving around FarmVille? What do you think can be done to stop this type of behavior as it relates to FarmVille?
Bungie's first game since Halo is a freemium pirate combat iPad game?
Why yes, and it's hitting the App Store globally (in phases) as of this writing, Pocket Gamer reports. It was recently revealed that "Crimson," the mysterious first project by Halo creator Bungie's new label, Bungie Aerospace, is a free-to-play steampunk pirate ship combat game for the iPad. Developed by Harebrained Schemes and published by Bungie, this is far of a cry as it gets from the legendary developer's previous work.
Officially titled "Crimson: Steam Pirates," the game throws players into an alternate Civil War era in which steam technology has taken off and powers technologically-advanced pirate ships. You're Captain Thomas Blood as he conquers the Caribbean Sea in turn-based battles of strategy and smart move-making. Of course, thanks to Bungie, players will be able to track their Crimson stats and progress on Bungie.net (and hopefully even in the Bungie iOS app).
Bungie is far from the first developer to enter the free-to-play mobile or social games space. Valve is already knee-deep in freemium goodness, thanks to multiple updates to its Steam game store and network like free-to-play game offerings. Atari recently reiterated its focus on social and mobile games, as did a number of big time game designers like John Romero, Will Wright and Richard Garriott, to name a few.
Crimson Steam Pirates iPad
While the game is available for free, additional content is available for an in-game download that costs $1.99. That does sound pricey, but based on the fact it's Chapter 2 in the storyline, "Tales of Captain Blood," this sounds like a collection of new missions. Crimson: Steam Pirates is exclusive to iPad at the moment, and should hit western App Stores later today.
[Image Credit: Pocket Gamer]
Are you surprised that the creator of one the biggest retail games ever has done a near complete 180 to freemium games? What do you think this means for both Bungie and the existing free-to-play games scene?
Officially titled "Crimson: Steam Pirates," the game throws players into an alternate Civil War era in which steam technology has taken off and powers technologically-advanced pirate ships. You're Captain Thomas Blood as he conquers the Caribbean Sea in turn-based battles of strategy and smart move-making. Of course, thanks to Bungie, players will be able to track their Crimson stats and progress on Bungie.net (and hopefully even in the Bungie iOS app).
Bungie is far from the first developer to enter the free-to-play mobile or social games space. Valve is already knee-deep in freemium goodness, thanks to multiple updates to its Steam game store and network like free-to-play game offerings. Atari recently reiterated its focus on social and mobile games, as did a number of big time game designers like John Romero, Will Wright and Richard Garriott, to name a few.
Crimson Steam Pirates iPad
While the game is available for free, additional content is available for an in-game download that costs $1.99. That does sound pricey, but based on the fact it's Chapter 2 in the storyline, "Tales of Captain Blood," this sounds like a collection of new missions. Crimson: Steam Pirates is exclusive to iPad at the moment, and should hit western App Stores later today.
[Image Credit: Pocket Gamer]
Are you surprised that the creator of one the biggest retail games ever has done a near complete 180 to freemium games? What do you think this means for both Bungie and the existing free-to-play games scene?
Best Buy strikes a deal with Zynga, opens its digital doors to CityVille
The citizens of CityVille aren't a tech savvy people, just building their first bridge and all. Luckily for that, Best Buy will soon open its doors of geekdom to Zynga's digital city as an in-game Business along with other limited edition decorations. The two companies announced recently that, starting today through Sept. 6, players can build their very own Best Buy in CityVille.
Like any old Business, players can then collect from it to find five special Collection items, and each time they tap the Best Buy, little Geek Squad cars are said to appear and speed around your city. You will have to collect a smartphone, DSLR camera, refrigerator, TV and a Deal of the Day badge to complete the Best Buy Collection, which will reward players with a decoration.
You will instantly receive a free Best Buy Wi-Fi Robot decoration in your Inventory. Then, if players complete the Best Buy Goal in CityVille--which consists of simply placing the Best Buy Business--they'll unlock another limited edition item called Best Buy More Surprises.
Best Buy CityVille items
"We're always looking for ways to make our games more realistic and personal for our players," said Ryan Linton, senior director of business development at Zynga in a release. "This integration with Best Buy, coupled with roaming Geek Squad vehicles, creates a refreshing surprise for CityVille players."
If you don't complete the Best Buy Collection by Sept. 6, you unfortunately won't score the mystery item. But don't worry, it looks as if Best Buy will come back just in time for the holidays this Nov. 6 with another event. And yes, it should be another week-long extravaganza filled with all sorts of geekery.
Are you psyched about Best Buy's arrival in CityVille? What's your opinion on how Zynga handles branding and marketing in its games?
Like any old Business, players can then collect from it to find five special Collection items, and each time they tap the Best Buy, little Geek Squad cars are said to appear and speed around your city. You will have to collect a smartphone, DSLR camera, refrigerator, TV and a Deal of the Day badge to complete the Best Buy Collection, which will reward players with a decoration.
You will instantly receive a free Best Buy Wi-Fi Robot decoration in your Inventory. Then, if players complete the Best Buy Goal in CityVille--which consists of simply placing the Best Buy Business--they'll unlock another limited edition item called Best Buy More Surprises.
Best Buy CityVille items
"We're always looking for ways to make our games more realistic and personal for our players," said Ryan Linton, senior director of business development at Zynga in a release. "This integration with Best Buy, coupled with roaming Geek Squad vehicles, creates a refreshing surprise for CityVille players."
If you don't complete the Best Buy Collection by Sept. 6, you unfortunately won't score the mystery item. But don't worry, it looks as if Best Buy will come back just in time for the holidays this Nov. 6 with another event. And yes, it should be another week-long extravaganza filled with all sorts of geekery.
Are you psyched about Best Buy's arrival in CityVille? What's your opinion on how Zynga handles branding and marketing in its games?
Empires & Allies finishes Special Forces Spectacular with submarines
Yes, the spectacular event celebrating the best of the best in Empires & Allies continues. Though, this time we look past beefy Guile lookalikes and to the sea, as Zynga will soon introduce two submarine units to the game as part of the event. The Night Ops Boat and the Stealth Boat both feature the same item model, but with different colors and, of course, different stats. Check out both units below:
Stealth Boat
Level 20; 135 Health
Effective against Infantry, Battleships and Bombers
Costs 4,500 Coins, 300 Oil, 15 Ore
Night Ops Boat
Level 25, 175 Health
Effective against Infantry, Battleships and Bombers
Costs 8,000 Coins, 600 Oil, 30 Ore
Stealth Boat and Night Ops Boat
Unfortunately, both the Stealth Boat and Night Ops Boat must be unlocked for unlimited use through paying up varying amounts of Empire Points dependent upon your level (up to 90!). The two new units round out this rather expensive event, and look to be the strongest Naval units in the game thus far. Well, great power comes with great price ... isn't that how it goes?
[Source and Image Credit: Empires and Allies Base]
Are you fan of the new units recently released to E&A? What other way do you think Zynga could release these items so that everyone could access them, but through a challenge?
Stealth Boat
Level 20; 135 Health
Effective against Infantry, Battleships and Bombers
Costs 4,500 Coins, 300 Oil, 15 Ore
Night Ops Boat
Level 25, 175 Health
Effective against Infantry, Battleships and Bombers
Costs 8,000 Coins, 600 Oil, 30 Ore
Stealth Boat and Night Ops Boat
Unfortunately, both the Stealth Boat and Night Ops Boat must be unlocked for unlimited use through paying up varying amounts of Empire Points dependent upon your level (up to 90!). The two new units round out this rather expensive event, and look to be the strongest Naval units in the game thus far. Well, great power comes with great price ... isn't that how it goes?
[Source and Image Credit: Empires and Allies Base]
Are you fan of the new units recently released to E&A? What other way do you think Zynga could release these items so that everyone could access them, but through a challenge?
The Top 10 Free iOS and Android Games -- August 2011
So, summer's over, huh? Yeah, we're bummed too, but at least we have videogames to play when the sun goes down. And golly, did you know they have games on the cell phones now? And they're free?! It's some crazy new phenomenon that we just can't begin to explain, but what we do know is that it sure is fun.
Look, we're going to save you the several long, arduous minutes of scrolling through the iOS App Store or Android Market and just let you know what's on top this month. But not only that, we'll let you know a bit of what you're up against, which will inevitably involve ticked-off avian creatures at some point that we'll just avoid talking about altogether. (Seriously, Angry Birds, we love you and all. But just what else is there to say?)
Top 10 Free iOS Games
1. Six Towers
Vadim Bushurov and AlphaWeb Plus created a color-coordinated puzzle game in which players reorganized six shuffled towers of blocks of different colors. The goal, across 1 million puzzles, is to make it so each tower is in order and of the same color. Of course, your options for moving blocks are limited, so enjoy the brain buster.
2. Rail Maze
Spooky House Studios' Rail Maze is yet another puzzle game to top the free side of the App Store. (I'm sensing a trend here.) Players must build complex railroads to avoid evil pirate trains, though the game comes with other modes like over 100 puzzles in Labyrinth and a game of survival in Snake. Actually, think "Snakes on a Train," and you're there ... sort of.
3. Anodia
This game, by Rafal Kozik, is a mobile rendition of the classic brick breaker, Breakout. With Game Center support and over 30 achievements, players must guide a floating platform back and forth, bouncing a ball into various objects, but mostly bricks. Throw in over 20 power-ups and power-downs along with Retina Display support, and you're golden.
Hit the Apple
4. Hit The Apple
This 1.5 million-player strong game by Falcon Mobile lets you do the ultimate Renaissance Fair trick: Shoot an apple off of someone's head. Only this time, if you miss, it's your friend's head! The game mixes things up by introducing arrows with different powers, enemies and a full-on storyline revolving around one simple yet terribly dangerous trick.
5. The Moron Test: Section 2
This is less of a game and more of an entertaining distraction. Made by DistinctDev, The Moron Test asks brutally simple questions and poses equally-childish challenges, but your level of moronic tendency is measured by how long it takes to answer. The game features goofy characters and music to keep things interesting, but you're still just answering questions.
6. Line Birds
Seriously guys, you missed that boat. Now please stop. Ahem, anyway, Robert Szeleney made Line Birds to look like a cross between Angry Birds and Doodle Jump, players simply tap on the screen to cause their birds' wings to flutter. Timing this correctly helps the birds avoid the deadly black lines, and unlock four other birds with unique powers.
7. Doodle Jump Free
And whaddya know? Lima Sky's ubiquitous iPhone game sends players endlessly leaping higher and higher across platforms for the best score. Of course, there are monsters to avoid with the game's tilt controls across two backdrops. The paid version, however, unlocks a number of features for $.99.
SimplePhysics
8. SimplePhysics
While this puzzler by Andrew Garrison reminds me of why I opted to not take physics in high school, it nonetheless looks like fun. The game challenges players in several unique scenarios to solve structural problems like supporting a snowy roof of a house using limited resources. Plus, the game lets you blow up test dummies. We're sold.
9. Extreme Road Trip
Your gas pedal is stuck while you're driving through what looks to be Yellowstone Park. What do you do? Keep driving, and throw in a few flips to activate that nitro boost. Ah, videogames make everything better no? This endless racer by Roofdog Games features music by acclaimed indie game composers and multiple cars, to boot.
10. Toca Hair Salon
This cutesy game by Toca Boca is generally reserved for the little ones, who are yoinking mom and dads' iPhones more and more often. Kids are essentially given an empty canvas of hair to trim, cut, color and style in almost any way they please. And the adorable customers react to your hair dressing skills. There are no rules in Toca Hair Salon, just play.
Top 10 Free Android Games
Words with Friends1. Angry Birds
Nope, we said we're ignoring you, remember?
2. Angry Birds Rio
Seriously, guys, stop it. We know you just added some new levels and all, which is cool. But we've been there, done that. Sorry!
3. Words With Friends
Zynga's recently-acquired social spin on Scrabble (right) has hit a fever pitch, as it just launched on Facebook with cross-platform gameplay. Seriously, just download it already, and thank us later.
4. Death Worm Free (pictured below)
PlayCreek has put you in control of probably the coolest monster to ever grace the tiny screen: a giant toothed worm. Guide the wormy beast with your finger as it devours people, tanks, helicopters and even alien spacecraft as they attempt to stop your reign of terror. Oh, and it's in HD and has leaderboards--need we say more?
5. Drunk Man
If only this were a breathalyzer app, huh? You must guide a drunkard husband to the gift shop to buy his furious wife a birthday gift (he forgot, of course) in the middle of the night. Either use touch controls or tilt to balance the lush in this game, created by GameLinkMe, and go the distance for love. Right ...
6. Dragon, Fly
So, it's a Tiny Wings knock-off. At least it has dragons, right? Made by Four Pixels, Dragon, Fly truly is a carbon copy of Tiny Wings on Android ... with dragons. Just tap and hold the screen for the dragon to fly, and release at the right time to send it flying off even higher than before. Rinse, repeat.
7. Drag Racing
This game has been on the Top 10 list for some time, and with good reason, apparently. The game, created by Creative Mobile, allows players to fine tune and customize several cars found in the real world to their desired specs. Then, players can race one another online in the Pro League. And a version is coming to Facebook, so more to play with?
Death Worm Free
8. Angry Birds Seasons
Mighty Eagle or not, we still have nothing left to say.
9. Fruit Slice
This Fruit Ninja knock-off returns from last month, and looks just as uninspired as ever. I mean, couldn't have DroidHen used a more unique font, at least? And there's a free version of the real deal on the Android Market anyway. Why it's not on this list is beyond us, but do yourself a favor and go for the original.
10. 3D Bowling
Italy Games returns to the Top 10 this month with 3D Bowling, which really is just like it sounds: bowling with 3D graphics. Players go for strikes across five different backdrops and with multiple varieties of bowling balls. Your stats will also be tracked through the game, though no multiplayer just yet, it seems.
[Image Credit: Apple, Google]
Which of these games are you looking to download most? What's your favorite free game on either app store right now?
Look, we're going to save you the several long, arduous minutes of scrolling through the iOS App Store or Android Market and just let you know what's on top this month. But not only that, we'll let you know a bit of what you're up against, which will inevitably involve ticked-off avian creatures at some point that we'll just avoid talking about altogether. (Seriously, Angry Birds, we love you and all. But just what else is there to say?)
Top 10 Free iOS Games
1. Six Towers
Vadim Bushurov and AlphaWeb Plus created a color-coordinated puzzle game in which players reorganized six shuffled towers of blocks of different colors. The goal, across 1 million puzzles, is to make it so each tower is in order and of the same color. Of course, your options for moving blocks are limited, so enjoy the brain buster.
2. Rail Maze
Spooky House Studios' Rail Maze is yet another puzzle game to top the free side of the App Store. (I'm sensing a trend here.) Players must build complex railroads to avoid evil pirate trains, though the game comes with other modes like over 100 puzzles in Labyrinth and a game of survival in Snake. Actually, think "Snakes on a Train," and you're there ... sort of.
3. Anodia
This game, by Rafal Kozik, is a mobile rendition of the classic brick breaker, Breakout. With Game Center support and over 30 achievements, players must guide a floating platform back and forth, bouncing a ball into various objects, but mostly bricks. Throw in over 20 power-ups and power-downs along with Retina Display support, and you're golden.
Hit the Apple
4. Hit The Apple
This 1.5 million-player strong game by Falcon Mobile lets you do the ultimate Renaissance Fair trick: Shoot an apple off of someone's head. Only this time, if you miss, it's your friend's head! The game mixes things up by introducing arrows with different powers, enemies and a full-on storyline revolving around one simple yet terribly dangerous trick.
5. The Moron Test: Section 2
This is less of a game and more of an entertaining distraction. Made by DistinctDev, The Moron Test asks brutally simple questions and poses equally-childish challenges, but your level of moronic tendency is measured by how long it takes to answer. The game features goofy characters and music to keep things interesting, but you're still just answering questions.
6. Line Birds
Seriously guys, you missed that boat. Now please stop. Ahem, anyway, Robert Szeleney made Line Birds to look like a cross between Angry Birds and Doodle Jump, players simply tap on the screen to cause their birds' wings to flutter. Timing this correctly helps the birds avoid the deadly black lines, and unlock four other birds with unique powers.
7. Doodle Jump Free
And whaddya know? Lima Sky's ubiquitous iPhone game sends players endlessly leaping higher and higher across platforms for the best score. Of course, there are monsters to avoid with the game's tilt controls across two backdrops. The paid version, however, unlocks a number of features for $.99.
SimplePhysics
8. SimplePhysics
While this puzzler by Andrew Garrison reminds me of why I opted to not take physics in high school, it nonetheless looks like fun. The game challenges players in several unique scenarios to solve structural problems like supporting a snowy roof of a house using limited resources. Plus, the game lets you blow up test dummies. We're sold.
9. Extreme Road Trip
Your gas pedal is stuck while you're driving through what looks to be Yellowstone Park. What do you do? Keep driving, and throw in a few flips to activate that nitro boost. Ah, videogames make everything better no? This endless racer by Roofdog Games features music by acclaimed indie game composers and multiple cars, to boot.
10. Toca Hair Salon
This cutesy game by Toca Boca is generally reserved for the little ones, who are yoinking mom and dads' iPhones more and more often. Kids are essentially given an empty canvas of hair to trim, cut, color and style in almost any way they please. And the adorable customers react to your hair dressing skills. There are no rules in Toca Hair Salon, just play.
Top 10 Free Android Games
Words with Friends1. Angry Birds
Nope, we said we're ignoring you, remember?
2. Angry Birds Rio
Seriously, guys, stop it. We know you just added some new levels and all, which is cool. But we've been there, done that. Sorry!
3. Words With Friends
Zynga's recently-acquired social spin on Scrabble (right) has hit a fever pitch, as it just launched on Facebook with cross-platform gameplay. Seriously, just download it already, and thank us later.
4. Death Worm Free (pictured below)
PlayCreek has put you in control of probably the coolest monster to ever grace the tiny screen: a giant toothed worm. Guide the wormy beast with your finger as it devours people, tanks, helicopters and even alien spacecraft as they attempt to stop your reign of terror. Oh, and it's in HD and has leaderboards--need we say more?
5. Drunk Man
If only this were a breathalyzer app, huh? You must guide a drunkard husband to the gift shop to buy his furious wife a birthday gift (he forgot, of course) in the middle of the night. Either use touch controls or tilt to balance the lush in this game, created by GameLinkMe, and go the distance for love. Right ...
6. Dragon, Fly
So, it's a Tiny Wings knock-off. At least it has dragons, right? Made by Four Pixels, Dragon, Fly truly is a carbon copy of Tiny Wings on Android ... with dragons. Just tap and hold the screen for the dragon to fly, and release at the right time to send it flying off even higher than before. Rinse, repeat.
7. Drag Racing
This game has been on the Top 10 list for some time, and with good reason, apparently. The game, created by Creative Mobile, allows players to fine tune and customize several cars found in the real world to their desired specs. Then, players can race one another online in the Pro League. And a version is coming to Facebook, so more to play with?
Death Worm Free
8. Angry Birds Seasons
Mighty Eagle or not, we still have nothing left to say.
9. Fruit Slice
This Fruit Ninja knock-off returns from last month, and looks just as uninspired as ever. I mean, couldn't have DroidHen used a more unique font, at least? And there's a free version of the real deal on the Android Market anyway. Why it's not on this list is beyond us, but do yourself a favor and go for the original.
10. 3D Bowling
Italy Games returns to the Top 10 this month with 3D Bowling, which really is just like it sounds: bowling with 3D graphics. Players go for strikes across five different backdrops and with multiple varieties of bowling balls. Your stats will also be tracked through the game, though no multiplayer just yet, it seems.
[Image Credit: Apple, Google]
Which of these games are you looking to download most? What's your favorite free game on either app store right now?
Cafe World Pasta Maker Goals: Everything you need to know
If anything, no one can say that Zynga doesn't routinely release content in Cafe World. Case in point: a new appliance-of-sorts has been released to the game this evening, along with a new set of goals. The goal series will teach us all about the art of making pasta, as Mama Gianna has come to your cafe long enough to help you out. Of course, you'll unlock plenty of new Pasta dishes as you complete these goals, so let's get started on our guide.
Pasta Party
Place the Pasta Maker
Serve 10 Tony's Pizza
Collect 7 Cloves of Garlic
The Pasta Maker is the new appliance in question, and we'll bring you a complete guide to building it later today you can check out our guide to building it right here. In the meantime, just serve 10 slices of Tony's Pizza, along with asking your friends for the Cloves of Garlic, and you'll be right on your way to finishing these seven new goals.
Very Vermicelli
Serve Spaghetti with Meatballs 20 Times
Collect 8 Bags of Flour
Spice 5 of your Neighbors' Dishes
Your reward for finishing this goal is a new dish, appropriately enough - the Venetian Vermicelli.
Lots o' Linguini
Collect 8 Lemon Slices
Serve Venetian Vermicelli 8 Times
Collect 8 Shitake Mushrooms
Another recipe is up for grabs with this one, in the form of Luigi's Linguini.
Alfredo Nothin'
Serve Luigi's Linguini 12 Times
Collect 7 Heavy Creams
Get 8 Bottles of Olive Oil
And the free recipes keep coming; this time, you'll be rewarded with Fettuccine Alfredo.
Woah, Gnocchi!
Get 8 Russet Potatoes
Serve Fettuccine Alfredo 20 Times
Collect 8 Spring Onions
Another free dish awaits you for finishing this goal: the Gnocchi Gianna.
Maine Event
Serve Gnocchi Gianna 8 Times
Collect 8 Lobster Tails
Serve Jumbo Shrimp Cocktail 40 Times
Another goal, another free recipe. This time, you'll earn the Lobster Stuffed Ravioli for completing this one.
We Can Carbonara
Collect 10 Slices of Prosciutto
Complete the Pasta Maker
Serve Lobster Stuffed Ravioli 12 Times
This goal happens to be the last one in the series, and it also gives you one final dish: Mama's Carbonara. From here, you'll be able to cook all of these dishes from your cafe cookbook on any stove. Appropriately enough, the Pasta Maker just makes the pasta for these dishes, but any cooking will be done the old fashioned way, allowing you to cook as many servings as you'd like, dependent on how many stoves you have in your cafe.
Additionally, it doesn't seem as though these goals differ across users, as they mainly concern cooking the new dishes that we've been given, rather than tons of dishes from past releases. Still, if you see things are different from the way we've listed them here, it's likely all part of Zynga's increased attempt to add variety to the game, and will be entirely normal. No, let's go make some pasta, shall we?
What do you think of these Pasta Maker goals? Would you rather complete more difficult goals and not have to spend time building the Pasta Maker for these recipes, or are you happy with the two-for-one release (of both goals and an appliance)?
Pasta Party
Place the Pasta Maker
Serve 10 Tony's Pizza
Collect 7 Cloves of Garlic
The Pasta Maker is the new appliance in question, and we'll bring you a complete guide to building it later today you can check out our guide to building it right here. In the meantime, just serve 10 slices of Tony's Pizza, along with asking your friends for the Cloves of Garlic, and you'll be right on your way to finishing these seven new goals.
Very Vermicelli
Serve Spaghetti with Meatballs 20 Times
Collect 8 Bags of Flour
Spice 5 of your Neighbors' Dishes
Your reward for finishing this goal is a new dish, appropriately enough - the Venetian Vermicelli.
Lots o' Linguini
Collect 8 Lemon Slices
Serve Venetian Vermicelli 8 Times
Collect 8 Shitake Mushrooms
Another recipe is up for grabs with this one, in the form of Luigi's Linguini.
Alfredo Nothin'
Serve Luigi's Linguini 12 Times
Collect 7 Heavy Creams
Get 8 Bottles of Olive Oil
And the free recipes keep coming; this time, you'll be rewarded with Fettuccine Alfredo.
Woah, Gnocchi!
Get 8 Russet Potatoes
Serve Fettuccine Alfredo 20 Times
Collect 8 Spring Onions
Another free dish awaits you for finishing this goal: the Gnocchi Gianna.
Maine Event
Serve Gnocchi Gianna 8 Times
Collect 8 Lobster Tails
Serve Jumbo Shrimp Cocktail 40 Times
Another goal, another free recipe. This time, you'll earn the Lobster Stuffed Ravioli for completing this one.
We Can Carbonara
Collect 10 Slices of Prosciutto
Complete the Pasta Maker
Serve Lobster Stuffed Ravioli 12 Times
This goal happens to be the last one in the series, and it also gives you one final dish: Mama's Carbonara. From here, you'll be able to cook all of these dishes from your cafe cookbook on any stove. Appropriately enough, the Pasta Maker just makes the pasta for these dishes, but any cooking will be done the old fashioned way, allowing you to cook as many servings as you'd like, dependent on how many stoves you have in your cafe.
Additionally, it doesn't seem as though these goals differ across users, as they mainly concern cooking the new dishes that we've been given, rather than tons of dishes from past releases. Still, if you see things are different from the way we've listed them here, it's likely all part of Zynga's increased attempt to add variety to the game, and will be entirely normal. No, let's go make some pasta, shall we?
What do you think of these Pasta Maker goals? Would you rather complete more difficult goals and not have to spend time building the Pasta Maker for these recipes, or are you happy with the two-for-one release (of both goals and an appliance)?
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Watch your back, Nintendo: GREE doesn't want just a piece of your pie
The Japan-based mobile social games company wants all of it. That's essentially what the company's founder and CEO, Yoshikazu Tanaka, told TechCrunch during its Disrupt event in Tokyo recently. The GREE chief told TechCrunch that most of the company's revenue comes from its Japanese audience, but that it hopes to follow Nintendo's example in creating a massive global audience.
But Tanaka isn't happy with just following Nintendo, he looks to displace the veteran games maker. He told the news outlet that he wouldn't surprised to see GREE's revenue in the West jump to four to five times of what it is in Asian within the next five years. "We definitely feel positive, and our goal is to make sure our brand is just as successful, if not better than Nintendo."
Nintendo is infamous for its unwillingness to enter the mobile games market through iOS or Android. While the company does plan to release an iOS version of its eShop (the downloadable games store on the 3DS), it simply refuses to create games for mobile phones. This is despite numerous studies suggesting otherwise and even investors clamoring for Nintendo games on iPhone.
Nintendo did, however, manage to sell more 3DS consoles in its first eight months on the market than the original DS system sold in one year. Perhaps there's still interest in a handheld device dedicated to gaming, but you could also chalk these immense sales up to the devices' price cut over the summer and a terribly strong Black Friday. Regardless, the mobile gaming world is after Nintendo, which leaves us wondering whether its stern strategy can withstand the onslaught.
Could GREE eventually overtake Nintendo through its mobile social games network? Can Nintendo continue to dominate the mobile gaming space with its current strategy?
But Tanaka isn't happy with just following Nintendo, he looks to displace the veteran games maker. He told the news outlet that he wouldn't surprised to see GREE's revenue in the West jump to four to five times of what it is in Asian within the next five years. "We definitely feel positive, and our goal is to make sure our brand is just as successful, if not better than Nintendo."
Nintendo is infamous for its unwillingness to enter the mobile games market through iOS or Android. While the company does plan to release an iOS version of its eShop (the downloadable games store on the 3DS), it simply refuses to create games for mobile phones. This is despite numerous studies suggesting otherwise and even investors clamoring for Nintendo games on iPhone.
Nintendo did, however, manage to sell more 3DS consoles in its first eight months on the market than the original DS system sold in one year. Perhaps there's still interest in a handheld device dedicated to gaming, but you could also chalk these immense sales up to the devices' price cut over the summer and a terribly strong Black Friday. Regardless, the mobile gaming world is after Nintendo, which leaves us wondering whether its stern strategy can withstand the onslaught.
Could GREE eventually overtake Nintendo through its mobile social games network? Can Nintendo continue to dominate the mobile gaming space with its current strategy?
Facebook gaming's fat cats will only get fatter, unfortunately
Companies like Zynga and EA (with the help of Playfish and PopCap) have long dominated the Facebook game scene. Sadly, it looks like that's not going to change anytime soon, according to a report released by Lazard Capital Markets. Basically, the report comes to the conclusion that, because they've already achieved critical mass, Zynga and EA will continue to rule Facebook games.
The report is based on meetings with six privately-held social game makers, including CrowdStar, Digital Chocolate, Funzio, HeyZap, IGG, and Tapjoy, according to All Facebook. "We acknowledge that toughening competition on Facebook could constrain margins and is generally negative for the space; however," the report reads, "we believe that rising user acquisition costs could be relatively positive for companies like Zynga and Electronic Arts that have already built large user bases on Facebook and disproportionately benefit from network effect and, therefore, may have an advantage over the newer companies in the space."
In other words, Zynga and EA will always competitive advantage over even relatively large companies like CrowdStar simply due to the fact that these companies already have created massive internal networks of players. This is exactly why no other company could release a game that amasses 5 million players in six days like CastleVille. The smaller developers' response?
Look elsewhere, basically. But when the majority of social gamers hang out on Facebook, where else is there to look? It's quite the predicament that the industry faces, especially considering the implications it could have as far as creativity is concerned on the platform. Developers will continue to create games that attempt to emulate Zynga and EA's wild success, and the copycat syndrome will persist. If the indie's time on Facebook is over, then all the hope we have for successful games that test the limits of the genre is for the players to grow tired of 'Ville after 'Ville.
Are you sick of the current stable of popular Facebook games? What new approaches or genres would you like to see on Facebook?
The report is based on meetings with six privately-held social game makers, including CrowdStar, Digital Chocolate, Funzio, HeyZap, IGG, and Tapjoy, according to All Facebook. "We acknowledge that toughening competition on Facebook could constrain margins and is generally negative for the space; however," the report reads, "we believe that rising user acquisition costs could be relatively positive for companies like Zynga and Electronic Arts that have already built large user bases on Facebook and disproportionately benefit from network effect and, therefore, may have an advantage over the newer companies in the space."
In other words, Zynga and EA will always competitive advantage over even relatively large companies like CrowdStar simply due to the fact that these companies already have created massive internal networks of players. This is exactly why no other company could release a game that amasses 5 million players in six days like CastleVille. The smaller developers' response?
Look elsewhere, basically. But when the majority of social gamers hang out on Facebook, where else is there to look? It's quite the predicament that the industry faces, especially considering the implications it could have as far as creativity is concerned on the platform. Developers will continue to create games that attempt to emulate Zynga and EA's wild success, and the copycat syndrome will persist. If the indie's time on Facebook is over, then all the hope we have for successful games that test the limits of the genre is for the players to grow tired of 'Ville after 'Ville.
Are you sick of the current stable of popular Facebook games? What new approaches or genres would you like to see on Facebook?
Microsoft wants the Xbox 360 to be the only box underneath your TV
Xbox 360 update
If you have an Xbox 360 in the house--and based on Black Friday, chances are you do--Microsoft wants that light shining a green glow for a long as possible. The imminent update to the Xbox 360 Dashboard (coming Dec. 6) will add more social and more entertainment options than you can shake a stick at, and no, we're not just talking faster ways to get to the shooting or stabbing.
We're talking more reasons to keep the system on even when the Call of Duty fan in the house needs a break. Sometime in December, the Xbox 360 will get a YouTube app that allows users to view all the cat videos they can take in one sitting. The console will also, soon after the update, gain access to content available on Comcast's Xfinity On Demand and 26 live cable channels through Verizon FiOS TV, though we imagine they're for subscribers only. (Prove us wrong, folks?)
Xbox 360 Verizon FiOS TV
"We think you're going to use one device for movies, music and games in the future," GM of Xbox Live entertainment and advertising Ross Honey told VentureBeat. "We want to make the content accessible and enhance the actual experience. We think you will will want to watch it on Xbox as it is more social and more personal."
According to Microsoft, Xbox 360 users are watching two hours worth of video content daily on the console, and the company wants that figure to increase. In addition to an updated Hulu Plus, the Xbox 360 will allows users to watch ESPN and Epix on their consoles starting tomorrow. Later on in December, users will score access to Crackle, Dailymotion, iHeartRadio, MSNBC.com, UFC , TMZ and more. And that's on top of social features like Beacons. Better put that family Xbox somewhere with lots--and we mean lots--of air flow.
Will you end up using your family's Xbox 360 more when these entertainment features hit? Could you ever unplug from cable providers and rely on something like the Xbox for all entertainment?
If you have an Xbox 360 in the house--and based on Black Friday, chances are you do--Microsoft wants that light shining a green glow for a long as possible. The imminent update to the Xbox 360 Dashboard (coming Dec. 6) will add more social and more entertainment options than you can shake a stick at, and no, we're not just talking faster ways to get to the shooting or stabbing.
We're talking more reasons to keep the system on even when the Call of Duty fan in the house needs a break. Sometime in December, the Xbox 360 will get a YouTube app that allows users to view all the cat videos they can take in one sitting. The console will also, soon after the update, gain access to content available on Comcast's Xfinity On Demand and 26 live cable channels through Verizon FiOS TV, though we imagine they're for subscribers only. (Prove us wrong, folks?)
Xbox 360 Verizon FiOS TV
"We think you're going to use one device for movies, music and games in the future," GM of Xbox Live entertainment and advertising Ross Honey told VentureBeat. "We want to make the content accessible and enhance the actual experience. We think you will will want to watch it on Xbox as it is more social and more personal."
According to Microsoft, Xbox 360 users are watching two hours worth of video content daily on the console, and the company wants that figure to increase. In addition to an updated Hulu Plus, the Xbox 360 will allows users to watch ESPN and Epix on their consoles starting tomorrow. Later on in December, users will score access to Crackle, Dailymotion, iHeartRadio, MSNBC.com, UFC , TMZ and more. And that's on top of social features like Beacons. Better put that family Xbox somewhere with lots--and we mean lots--of air flow.
Will you end up using your family's Xbox 360 more when these entertainment features hit? Could you ever unplug from cable providers and rely on something like the Xbox for all entertainment?
Zynga meets an IPO challenger, MapleStory maker to raise $1.2 billion
It looks like Japan is about to get its own Zynga. MapleStory Adventures maker Nexon has adjusted the price for its upcoming initial public offering (IPO) from $1.3 billion to $1.2 billion, likely in response to Zynga's recent adjustment. The San Francisco-based FarmVille creator recently upped its asking price to $1.15 billion, but brought down its expected valuation to $7 billion at most.
Nexon plans to sell half of its shares on the Tokyo Stock Exchange and half overseas, because of its huge presence in the US and abroad, at 1,300 yen, or $16.60 USD starting Dec. 14. "There are not that many Japanese companies with overseas growth stories. That makes it attractive," Stats Investment Management chief investment officer Toru Hashizume told Reuters.
This pricing will give Nexon a valuation, the projected total worth of a company based on several factors, of 560 billion yen, or $7.1 billion USD. And what do you know, that's worth just as much as Zynga expects out of its IPO. And rightfully so, Nexon is credited with popularizing the free-to-play game model in the US with games like MapleStory for PC. And now, the company enjoys success on Facebook, thanks to MapleStory Adventures and recently Zombie Misfits.
Zynga begins to make the rounds in its IPO roadshow this week. The question is, however, will investors be more interested in a company that's made as much in less than half the time as Nexon (it's been around since 1994), or a pioneer with a far longer track record of success? Ready ... Fight!
Do you think Zynga or Nexon will do better with its debut on the market? Which do you think is more worthy of the billions?
Nexon plans to sell half of its shares on the Tokyo Stock Exchange and half overseas, because of its huge presence in the US and abroad, at 1,300 yen, or $16.60 USD starting Dec. 14. "There are not that many Japanese companies with overseas growth stories. That makes it attractive," Stats Investment Management chief investment officer Toru Hashizume told Reuters.
This pricing will give Nexon a valuation, the projected total worth of a company based on several factors, of 560 billion yen, or $7.1 billion USD. And what do you know, that's worth just as much as Zynga expects out of its IPO. And rightfully so, Nexon is credited with popularizing the free-to-play game model in the US with games like MapleStory for PC. And now, the company enjoys success on Facebook, thanks to MapleStory Adventures and recently Zombie Misfits.
Zynga begins to make the rounds in its IPO roadshow this week. The question is, however, will investors be more interested in a company that's made as much in less than half the time as Nexon (it's been around since 1994), or a pioneer with a far longer track record of success? Ready ... Fight!
Do you think Zynga or Nexon will do better with its debut on the market? Which do you think is more worthy of the billions?
Monday, December 12, 2011
Internet safety expert accuses The Sims Social of promoting cybersex
I hope you packed some dry clothes, because we're about to lead you down one slippery slope. (Zing!) Charles Conway, self-proclaimed UK-based Internet safety expert and editor of Scam Detectives, alleges that EA and Playfish's enormously popular The Sims Social promotes cyber sex between children and adults (fat chance). And it's all thanks to The Sims Social's Woo-Hoo feature.
While playing the game, players can build asynchronous relationships with one another that can quickly grow into romantic relationships. Ultimately, those relationships will draw the players' avatars closer and can result in them having Woo-Hoo. And like any social activity in the game, players are rewarded Social Points for this that they can use to buy new items.
"Even if Facebook did verify the age of it's users (which it doesn't), at what age does it become acceptable for a child to engage in "virtual sex" for rewards," Conway asks. "Does it ever become acceptable? Isn't sex for rewards the very definition of prostitution? How is playing this game different to children having "cybersex" in a chatroom?"
The list of questions goes on. Sure, Woo-Hoo in The Sims Social is an allusion to having sex, but the "sexual" act displayed is arguably far from lewd--way less provocative than what children have access to on basic cable. More importantly, Woo-Hoo does not allow players to directly communicate within the game in real time like a chat room would.
"When 40% of kids admit that they have Facebook 'friends' that they don't know in 'real life,' there's a real risk of a predator using a game like this to build a relationship with a child that could lead to real world abuse," Conway writes. However, what is not pointed out is that all social relationships requested between The Sims Social players--including romantic ones--require the consent of the player from the start and at every stage of advancement.
If a player feels uncomfortable during any point of the "relationship," they can halt its progress. As for Playfish and EA restricting adult content (which suggestiveness is debatable), there are a number of Facebook games that arguably promote drug trafficking, serial murder and nearly genocidal manslaughter. Maybe it's time for Facebook to meet with the ESRB and PEGI.
Do you think that Woo-Hoo in The Sims Social promotes cybersex or prostitution? Would you agree with a rating system for Facebook games like one that exists for traditional games?
While playing the game, players can build asynchronous relationships with one another that can quickly grow into romantic relationships. Ultimately, those relationships will draw the players' avatars closer and can result in them having Woo-Hoo. And like any social activity in the game, players are rewarded Social Points for this that they can use to buy new items.
"Even if Facebook did verify the age of it's users (which it doesn't), at what age does it become acceptable for a child to engage in "virtual sex" for rewards," Conway asks. "Does it ever become acceptable? Isn't sex for rewards the very definition of prostitution? How is playing this game different to children having "cybersex" in a chatroom?"
The list of questions goes on. Sure, Woo-Hoo in The Sims Social is an allusion to having sex, but the "sexual" act displayed is arguably far from lewd--way less provocative than what children have access to on basic cable. More importantly, Woo-Hoo does not allow players to directly communicate within the game in real time like a chat room would.
"When 40% of kids admit that they have Facebook 'friends' that they don't know in 'real life,' there's a real risk of a predator using a game like this to build a relationship with a child that could lead to real world abuse," Conway writes. However, what is not pointed out is that all social relationships requested between The Sims Social players--including romantic ones--require the consent of the player from the start and at every stage of advancement.
If a player feels uncomfortable during any point of the "relationship," they can halt its progress. As for Playfish and EA restricting adult content (which suggestiveness is debatable), there are a number of Facebook games that arguably promote drug trafficking, serial murder and nearly genocidal manslaughter. Maybe it's time for Facebook to meet with the ESRB and PEGI.
Do you think that Woo-Hoo in The Sims Social promotes cybersex or prostitution? Would you agree with a rating system for Facebook games like one that exists for traditional games?
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