Look, recycling and resource management have always been snore-inducing topics. But those very issues have the world in quite a scary predicament right now, and New York City-based social game maker Guerillapps looks to change that with Trash Tycoon. Since our first look at the game, we recently sat down with the new developer's CEO Raviv Turner and community manager Chris Dugan to learn more about Trash Tycoon and get some pointers on how to make the most of the eco-friendly game.
"We had this idea that sometime in the near apocalyptic, but fun, future the city got destroyed with trash," Turner gushes to us. "But waste is your best friend--it's a resource, right? With this, we also hope to change the set of mind among our players looking at waste. Again, the idea was to create a 100 percent pure, fun and engaging experience, not to educate. So, we try to stay away from edutainment, take it to a fun place, but there is still this subtext once you're done playing for the day. Maybe the player is going to look at waste a different way."
Turner tells us that the developer has over 90 days worth of content planned, and later joint team features that make liberal use of its support from Terracycle will be implemented. Guerillapps is working with its strategic partners like Terracycle and Carbon Fund to help its players hopefully make a tangible difference in the environment. While players can only donate to the cause directly with Facebook Credits now, Guerillapps is working with Carbon Fund so its commercial partners will allow the company to donate to the cause through virtual goods bought even without Facebook Credits. But onto how to get by in Trash Tycoon:
Trash Tycoon map
Games.com: I noticed that you need to be at least Level 8 to access the next portion of the city in Trash Tycoon. So, what's the best or fastest way a player can reach that point?
Dugan: The map really is massive, and even in the area that's not fog-of-warred off it's nice to see how much there is to do and to clean up. The best way to reach Level 8 is really diligence, as with any Facebook game, and being on top of your productions as well as prioritizing.
You can level up a number of ways: through just cleaning up trash, you gain experience points for completing goals. With the goals, there are very obvious short term goals and there are long term goals, and you have to plan your playing time around those deadlines.
And you're referring to creating the fertilizer (pictured below) and other items?
Yes, and items can take anywhere from five minutes from a whole day to create. And some goals require a variety of items like five that take five minutes and one that takes a day. So, you have to figure out how long you can be logged on for a certain time to knock out those five items, but you need to think more ahead to be like, 'This glass window is going to take an entire day to construct, so I'm gonna put it on and come back to it.'
I saw that in the early goals you're given the option to create and upcycling building you want. Is there any advantage to certain buildings, or do goals require items from all of them?
Goals will require items from all, but I'd say that the main advantage is that you're getting a randomized generation of trash, so you never know what you're going to have. So, it's the kind of thing where you could have a lot of plastic, but you might be running low on glass. So, you might have to go to friends neighborhoods and check their piles--not using your Energy points, but Friend points.
Or, of course with most Facebook games, there's the idea that time will replenish your stockpiles. The trash does replenish over time, and will inevitably give you what you need for the upcycling machines.
Worm HouseNow, would you recommend building multiple instances of each machine?
It sort of depends--for example, in the first neighborhood the dirt area you have to build upcycling machines and worm farms is quite limited. I found that it was best to have a couple of worm farms, and then one of each of the upcycling machines, a warehouse and some other dumpsters just to make sure you never overflow. It's most efficient to have at least one of each upcycling machine. Prioritize that first, and everything will just fall into place with everything else you have.
Now, the social features: Are there other advantages to adding friends other than the five free points you get daily?
There's obviously the gifting feature, which is present in many Facebook games, kind of the idea that you can circumvent having pay up for decorations that increase your Greeness value. Also, the prospect of constructing teams and having that sense of community, which we tried to implement through the chat feature.
What advantages does the in-game chat feature bring?
[There is real-time interaction in the game, so] say you have your Friend points and your friend is low on Energy and they really need to finish cleaning this building. Then, that's something you could talk about that in team chat [and work it out in real time.]
If you could choose one thing that players should focus on in Trash Tycoon to advance, what would you say that is?
Certainly, the goals. It's great to sort of branch out and make upcycled items on a whim, [but] if you're kind of carelessly spending your resources you're likely to run into walls much sooner than other players. You have to be very efficient in how you manage your resources--very much like the real world, obviously. It's a constant battle between 'I want to make these things' and 'I need to make these things.'
Thanks for filling us in, Raviv and Chris.
Have you tried playing Trash Tycoon yet on Facebook? What do you think of social games that have real-world implications? Sound off in the comments. Add Comment
There may not be another Zynga game in which Energy is more important than in Adventure World. Every switch thrown, every puzzle solved and beastie whacked costs you the Facebook game juice. Players often find themselves without Energy minutes into an Expedition. But this isn't the time for whining--it's time to show you the value of upgrading your Tools and how to do it.
Tools: The Game Changer
If you noticed, each piece of debris and monster has a life bar, and normally take multiple hits with your Whip or Machete to whittle down. This, of course, quickly becomes a waste in later Expeditions purely due to the amount of obstacles in your path. But increasing the amount of damage your various Tools inflict against said baddies could considerably reduce the Energy spend in-game.
For instance, say a Snake has three hit points and is Level 5. Since monsters can hit back in this game, it could take three to five Energy before an enemy goes down. Now, imagine if you had upgraded your Whip to Level 2. Offing that Snake would take just two to four Energy with a beefier Whip. The same situation applies to Tools like the Machete.
Adventure World Tool Shop inside
And Now For Your How-To
Adventure World Tool Shop outsideUpgrading your Tools in Adventure World is simple. All you need to do is head back to Base Camp from an Expedition, and look for a makeshift hut that should already be in place in your headquarters. When you click on the Tool Shop, a window will appear featuring all the Tools you've found thus far on your journeys. Click on the Tool you wish to upgrade.
Once you click on a Tool to upgrade, you'll notice that each Tool costs Coins to upgrade. That's it--no asking friends to help you out with materials or farming certain crops for special items. Just the goods you find during your travels in search of El Dorado. However, Coins are actually quite rare in this game, so you'll need to save and spend wisely.
When you have enough Coins for an upgrade, just click on the appropriate icon to pay up. Tool upgrades are also level-locked, meaning you must reach a certain level for most Tools before being able to upgrade them using Coins. If you're feeling impatient, you could always unlock access to those higher level Tools early using Adventure Cash.
Just One Small Catch...
However, some Tool upgrades do require an extra boost: your Tool Shop. Yes, the building itself can be upgraded, too. And this time, you will need items from your friends. (Just think of how things work in CityVille.) Luckily, you only have to do this about twice to unlock access to all of the game's Tools. Then, it's back onto leveling up to access new upgrades for Coins.
Adventure World Tool Shop Upgrade
Upgraded Tools are hands-down the way to go, if you want to save precious Energy for the good stuff, that is. You know, exploring ... uncovering the secrets of El Dorado? That kind of stuff. Your wallet might thank us later.
Click here to find all of our Adventure World Tips in one spot >
[Source: Zynga]
Have you upgraded your Tools in Adventure World yet? What other Energy-saving tips might you have for your fellow adventurers? Sound off in the comments. 1 Comment
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