YoVille: Dress like Marilyn Monroe

    yoville hollywood outfits
Very soon, YoVille players will be able to dress like a couple of celebrities. Zynga announced today that Hollywood outfits will be arriving soon to the clothing boutique.

Check out the pictures of both male and female outfits above. Keep your eye on this page for more updates about the prices.

This article originally appeared on YoVille Lounge.

FarmVille: New Gamepoints 1$FV Promotion means free farm cash

farmville gamepoints
There is a new FarmVille promotion offering every farmer 1$FV for visiting the beta GamePoints website.
farmville free farm cash gamepoints
This article originally appeared on FarmVille Freak.

FarmVille Double Mastery Weekend

farmville double mastery weekend
Farmers will certainly be working extra hard in the next few days, below the FarmVille game screen there is now a notice for Double Mastery Weekend!

Right now there is no further information about this upcoming event. Be sure to check back.

This article originally appeared on FarmVIlle Freak.

YoVille Daily Bonus: Earn coins for logging in

This is an official post by Zynga's Platinum Ninja.

We've been listening to your feedback and want to give you another way to earn more coins! There is going to be an easy way for everyone to earn some extra coins coming soon!! It's as simple as logging into Yoville.

Players will receive 50 Coins at minimum for just logging into Yoville !! This daily bonus will start going up if you log in consecutively everyday. Once you hit the 5th Day in a Row you will hit the max amount of coins you can receive for daily log in.

For each consecutive day you log in after the 5th Day you will continue to earn the max amount of coins everyday if your are continuing to log in daily.
yoville daily login bonus
For example here is a player that logs in everyday for the next 8 Days:

    Day 1 – 50 Coins
    Day 2 – 100 Coins
    Day 3 – 150 Coins
    Day 4- 200 Coins
    Day 5 – 300 Coins
    Day 6, 7,8, – If you have made sure to log in everyday then you will continue to get 300 Coins per Day(which is the max # of coins for daily bonus) for logging in everyday.


Here is another player that logs in the first couple days and then forgets too but comes back the next day:

    Day 1 – 50 Coins
    Day 2 – 100 Coins
    Day 3 – no log in = no coins
    Day 4 – 50 Coins again!


So you control the amount you want to make everyday! If you are very diligent about making sure to log into Yoville everyday this feature can really pay off. So take advantage of it!! Don't you want to be the player that makes 300 extra coins everyday just by playing your favorite game! If you drop the ball and forget to log in, the next time you log in you'll be back to 50! So make sure to come back everyday and not forget!

Mafia Wars Arctic Mystery Crate offers icy items

mafia wars arctic mystery crate
Mafia Wars has introduced a new mystery crate. Like all other mystery crates, the Arctic Mystery Crate costs 12 Reward Points and purchasing three crates costs 35 Reward Points.

Upon opening the Arctic Mystery Crate, players have a sixty percent chance of receiving a common item and a 30 percent chance of receiving an uncommon item. Each mystery crate only has a ten percent chance of containing a rare item, so don't be upset if you don't find a rarity on your first try.

We're sure you're curious about what exactly you will find in your Mafia Wars Arctic Mystery Crate. We have the details after the link.
mafia wars arctic mystery crate

Common
Snow Shoes (36 Attack - 21 Defense) - Armor
Penguin Aquacraft (36 Attack - 25 Defense) - Vehicle
Ice Pick (22 Attack - 35 Defense) - Weapon

Uncommon
Polar Bear (43 Attack - 25 Defense) - Weapon
Glacier (42 Attack - 25 Defense) - Weapon
Immersion Suit (28 Attack - 44 Defense) - Armor

Rare
Snow Monster (62 Attack - 30 Defense) - Vehicle
Tundra SMG (37 Attack - 61 Defense) - Weapon

How do you like the new Arctic Mystery Crate and the items it offers?

FarmVille Unreleased Piglet

Thank you to FarmVille Freak Rjlefty96 for sending in the unreleased image of the FarmVille Piglet.

This article originally appeared on FarmVille Freak.


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New Permanent FarmVille Decor: Cattail Pond

A Cattail Pond is now available in the FarmVille market. It is locked until level 95 and is available for 1,500,000 coins.

Will you buy this pond when you reach level 95?? Email pictures of your Cattail Pond to editors@games.com.

This article originally appeared on FarmVille Freak.

FarmVille Unreleased Gem Trophy, Moss Rock, & Yellow Dome

    farmville moss rock     farmville yellow dome
Thank you to FarmVille Freak Martijn from FarmVille Code Hunters for finding these unreleased Gem Trophy, Lamp Sculpture, Lush Knoll, Moss Rock, & Yellow Dome!

Source: Zynga, FarmVille

Note: Unreleased items have no official release date or guarantee that they will make it to the FarmVille Market. Zynga is the sole owner of all their copyrighted images.

This article originally appeared on FarmVille Freak.

FarmVille Unreleased Daikon Crop & Daikon Mastery Sign

    farmville daikon crop     farmville daikon crop     farmville daikon crop
Thank you to FarmVille Freak Martijn and FarmVille Freak Hicham for finding these unreleased FarmVille Daikon Crop and Daikon Mastery Sign.

Source: Zynga, FarmVille

Note: Unreleased items have no official release date or guarantee that they will make it to the FarmVille Market. Zynga is the sole owner of all their copyrighted images.

This article originally appeared on FarmVille Freak.

FarmVille Unreleased Mafia Wars Mystery Box

Thank you to FarmVille Freak Hicham for finding this unreleased FarmVille Mafia Wars Mystery Box!

Source: Zynga, FarmVille

Note: Unreleased items have no official release date or guarantee that they will make it to the FarmVille Market. Zynga is the sole owner of all their copyrighted images.

This article originally appeared on FarmVille Freak.

Quote of the moment: My Farmville hobby

"Farmville isn't actually a computer game–it's a computer hobby. In his book Hobbies, Steven Gelber points out that "hobbies developed as a category of socially valued leisure activity in the nineteenth century because they bridged the worlds of work and home" (p. 2). He continues, "before about 1880 a hobby was a dangerous obsession. After that date it became a productive use of free time" (p. 3). ...
"Farmville is the ultimate hobby, the ultimate idealization of work. In Farmville, with a simple click, I can plant strawberries, wheat, or maybe a peach tree. The product of my near-effortless labor will be beautiful, and there for me to harvest in an equally effortless fashion–if I am merely attentive to return at the right time, like the good worker that I am. I can dream of building an empire, and with simple persistence it will be mine. And better yet, if I'm feeling impatient, for an amount of real dollars that is modest, I can have what I want without the wait or the work. ...

"I believe we can understand more about why people play games like Farmville by looking hard at stamp collections, sewing circles, and model railroads than by looking at the history of computer "games." Computer "hobby" is a better mental model."

-Social computing blogger Amy Bruckman ruminates on whether social games are more like hobbies.

Source

FarmVille drives in the Pick Up Truck Seeder

FarmVille announced via their official FaceBook Fan Page that the FarmVille Pick Up Truck Seeder would be coming soon to farms near you!

You may remember that earlier this month FarmVille polled farmers via the official FarmVille Forum and asked us to vote on what the next vehicle released should be.

We conducted the same poll at FarmVille Freak, and FarmVille Freaks also chose the Pick Up Truck as the next FarmVille Seeder with the most votes. Farmers have been requesting a Pick Up Truck for a long time now, as many feel that no real farm is complete without a Pick Up Truck.

Some of the other choices included in the poll were Fire Truck (second choice on FarmVille Freak), Trolley, and Dump Truck.

From FarmVille:

    "Earlier this month we asked for your help in choosing a new seeder or FarmVille. Today we would like to thank you by providing a sneak peek at the artwork for the vote winner: the Pickup Truck. Thanks for your help! **Please note that this is prerelease artwork and subject to change before you can get it on your farm.**"

Are you happy with the decision for the Pick Up Truck Seeder to be the next FarmVille vehicle? What other type of vehicle would you like to see on your farm?

This article originally appeared on FarmVille Freak.

Pet Society: Get your pets dancing with the new Party Invite feature

Wow, the new party invitation allows you to see many pets in one room! But here's another surprise: Hideeni can dance! Thanks to Aminisha for this awesome video:



This article originally appeared on Pet Society Anonymous.


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FarmVille: Video Spoofs Jimmy Buffet's MargaritaVille

The video "FarmaritaVille", above, is a fun FarmVille themed spoof of Jimmy Buffet's MargaritaVille.

The video jokingly depicts some of the addictions and obsessions that many FarmVille Freaks face. Here is an excerpt from the opening lyrics:

    "There's just too much violence in the World of War Craft, and I can't stand the guns in Mafia Wars, so I slip on my overalls and i log onto FaceBook. I want the feeling of working outside while I'm sitting indoors. So I'm wasting the day again in FarmaritaVille trying to raise my Carrots and Corn. Some people claim that I've got no life at all, but at least its better than porn."

My personal favorite line is, "Life is not about Carrots!"

This article originally appeared on FarmVille Freak.

FarmVille New Permanent Crops: Chickpea Crop & Heirloom Carrot

FarmVille Chickpea and Heirloom Carrot crop
FarmVille released two new permanent seeds that include a Chickpea crop and Heirloom Carrot crop. These seeds can be purchased in the FarmVille Market at any time as they are now permanent market fixtures. There is Crop Mastery available for both seeds.

Chickpea seeds are available to level 10 farmers and above. However, you must have already mastered Soybeans to unlock Chickpea seeds. The Chickpea seeds can be purchased for 80 coins and will take 20 hours to grow, when harvested it will yield 210 coins and 2 XP with a profit of 130 coins.

Heirloom Carrot seeds are available to level 57 farmers and above. However, you must have already mastered Carrots to unlock Heirloom Carrot seeds. Heirloom Carrots can be purchased for 110 coins and will take 12 hours to grow, when harvested it will yield 210 coins and 1 XP with a profit of 100 coins.

This article originally appeared on FarmVille Freak.

Pirates Ahoy Battle Arena: Everything you need to know

Ready your cannons! Hoist your sails! Man your battle stations! For today, the Battle Arena feature in Pirates Ahoy is here, and with it comes new opportunities for gold, booty, and combat. So how does it work? Well, in the most basic sense, Battle Arena plays like Rock-Paper-Scissors on the high seas.
Pirates Ahoy Battle Arena PvP icon
To get to the Battle Arena, there's now an icon on the right end of the menu bar called "PvP" (in gaming parlance, this is an abbreviation for "Player versus Player"). Click on that and you'll reach the Battle Arena roster. All of your friends who play the game will be featured here. Click on "Challenge" to start a fight, and you'll be taken to the Battle Arena screen (see image below).
Pirates Ahoy Battle Arena: Select your attacks
The actual combat portion involves filling 5 attack slots with different combos of 3 kinds of weapons -- Shot, Ram, and Shield. The rule you have to remember is that Shot beats Shield, Shield beats Ram, and Ram beats Shot. But since you'll never know what combos your opponent will use, the key to winning battles is being lucky and getting the more powerful weapons faster than the other guy can.

After you click "Send Challenge", you've got to wait for the other play to click "Respond". After they do that, you should see the "Result" button on your challenge roster. Clicking on that will immediately treat you to an animated battle sequence of your two ships!
Pirates Ahoy Battle Arena ships fighting
Everyone starts off with a Boulder, Nail Plank, Wooden Shield, and the Rank 1of "Landlubber" in the Arena. You get promoted through winning battles, and as you do, stronger weapons become available in the Equipment Shop. Victories will also earn skill points to increase the attack of the weapons that you already own. And the higher the rank of your opponent, the more points you'll earn when you manage to defeat them.
Pirates Ahoy Battle Arena Equipment Shop Cannon
In order to qualify for battles, you'll need a Battle Pass. Everyone gets 3 free Battle Passes per day, but you can get more when you win battles, dig for treasure on maps, or when your friends post their free winnings as Facebook wall posts. (NOTE: Only the first 3 people who click on the post will get a Pass. Tell your friends to leave a comment if they're going to take one, just so everyone else knows if there's any Passes left.)
Pirates Ahoy Rank Up rewards
You can also buy them from the game's store using Playfish Cash. One Battle Pass costs 2 PFC, five costs 9 PFC, and 10 costs 13 PFC.
Pirates Ahoy Battle Arena Battle Pass Shop prices

Pet Society: Buy Directly feature lets you shop in friends' rooms

Pet Society Buy directly from your friend's room!
Ever wonder how your friend got all that cool stuff in Pet Society? With the hundreds of items released every few weeks, and not all of them permanent, it can be hard to find out what's still around. Now this sounds like the job for the Buy Directly icon! This newest feature is an icon button that you'll only find when you're visiting your friends. You can toggle it on the left side of your game screen.

When you click the icon to turn it on, it does the following things:
1) Highlights all the items that are still for sale in the game, and grays out the ones that aren't.
2) Makes trees and plants clickable, so you can directly buy the seeds for them.
3) Tells you which Mystery Box or Treasure Map an item is from.
4) Makes fish clickable, so you can buy the right bait to catch the fish you want.
Pet Society Shopping Spree Buy Directly
Seeing that PetVille already introduced friendly shopping in April, it's nice to see Pet Society stepping up to make our shopping sprees easier.

Cupcake Corner on Facebook feeds your sweet tooth

Casual game developer OMGpop has just launched its first-ever Facebook game, Cupcake Corner. The game is strikingly similar to Baking Life by Zip Zap Play, but is much more active than most social games. Customers can enter your bakery at any time and order pastries that are coming hot out of the oven, and keeping up with all of it feels a lot like playing the classic time-management game, Diner Dash.

The idea of Cupcake Corner is to please as many customers as possible through preparing and selling various sweets like donuts, cookies and--you guessed it--cupcakes. Managing multiple ovens at once is key and becomes more challenging as you expand the size and scope of your bakery.
Expanding your bakery in Cupcake Corner
Another feature unique to Cupcake Corner is tipping. Customers will leave tips on the table after eating their meal based on the cost of the pastry baked, but it doesn't stop there. Patrons are likely to tip more to a bakery that looks snazzier. Thus, the Luxe rating. The Luxe value (which has a max of 500) can be increased by making cosmetic improvements to your fine establishment through the "Redecorate" button. Decorations range from new tables to better ovens and even nicer floors.

However, to increase the amount of decor you have in your bakery you'll need to expand, which can become costly. So, get to baking if you want to have the most luxurious bakery on Facebook.

Considering OMGpop recently signed on with social website myYearbook to integrate its games into the budding social network, could this mean the company is having the same talks elsewhere? All we know is that this marks yet another developer taking their chances at success with the social juggernaut.

Play Cupcake Corner on Facebook now.

FrontierVille Labor Day 'Back to School' missions: Time to get learnin'

In honor of Labor Day, Zynga has released new 'Back to School' Missions in the FrontierVille market.

The first mission, titled "Back to School," costs 5,000 coins (you can find it in the Market, under the *Special* section) and tasks you with prepping yourself for Labor Day to get a special dunce cap decoration. You only have five days to pick this one up and the mission expires September 10, so you better get crackin'.
frontierville back to school

See how to plan ahead for this series of limited-edition missions after the break. Below are the three parts of the Back to School missions, read the details and plan ahead so you'll get these missions done before they're gone forever.

frontierville finish the farm chores

Back to School Mission 1: "Finish the Farm Chores"

1. Harvest 10 pumpkins (pumpkins take one hour to grow)
2. Plant 10 fruit trees (hint: plant apple trees if you don't have any, because you'll need to harvest 15 of them in the next goal)
3. Sell 10 adult goats

Back to School Mission 2:

1. Water/harvest 15 apple trees
2. Feed 15 Pigs
3. Collect 10 "fair tickets" (ask friends to send them to you by posting a message on your Facebook wall)

Back to School Mission 3:

1. Visit 10 neighbors
2. Buy a swimming hole
3. Collect one schoolhouse daily bonus

Cafe World: The 24-hr Return of the 'No Spoil Genie'

Cafe World No Spoil Genie info
Cafe World Special Items sectionWe haven't seen the No Spoil Genie in over two months, when Cafe World warned us that the Genie would go poof by June 28th, but now it's back!

The No Spoil Genie grants players the option of making sure your dishes never go bad. To use it, drag and place it into your restaurant. To turn it off, put it into storage. When it first appeared, such was its awesome power that one player dubbed it, the "Unwither Ring of Cafe World", after a similar item in FarmVille. But such a power comes with a hefty price tag.

Originally, the Genie cost 145 Cafe Cash, or roughly $25 USD. Now the price has rose to 160 Cafe Cash. But guess what? The real world price still hovers around $25 on account of the fact that Cafe World is having a Coins & Cash sale right now. 120 Cafe Cash is currently $17 USD. And you can boost that pass 160 CC by going for the 55 CC for $8 USD option. That'll leave you with 15 Cafe Cash to use on other premium items.

You can find the No Spoil Genie in the Special Items section of the store. Go to where you buy stoves and counters, then click on the blue gem icon.

FarmVille Sponsored Link: 2 Farm Cash From Hellman's

farmville hellman farmcash
Under your FarmVille game screen tonight, you may find a sponsor link for Hellman's Mayonaise. Clicking on this and taking a look at their advertisement will grant you 2 FarmCash. Every little bit of FarmCash helps, especially when it's paid for by sponsors, thanks Hellman's!

This article originally appeared on FarmVille Freak.

YoVille English Cottage Kitchen furniture arrives in furniture store

yoville english cottage kitchen
Time to decorate the kitchens! YoVille English Cottage Kitchen Furniture is now available in the furniture store. Wooden counters, tables, bar stools and dining chairs, everything you need to make a warm, homespun kitchen to your YoVille Cottage. Chairs, islands and appliances in YoCash, tables, pantries and counters in Coins.
yoville english cottage kitchenyoville english cottage kitchenyoville english cottage kitchenyoville english cottage kitchenyoville english cottage kitchenyoville english cottage kitchen
This article originally appeared on YoVille Lounge.

Mafia Wars Prized Pigs: Everything you need to know

Zynga made mention of this mysterious Prized Pigs event in Mafia Wars last week, but the Mafia Wars Blog just gave us the skinny on just how this event will go down. Prized Pigs will only be around for three days starting today, according to the Mafia Wars Blog, and if you want the Oinker Vehicle with 100 Attack and 128 Defense, you'll have to collect a lot of piglets. Fortunately, there's more to win here than just the pig-mobile.

Each day a new pig will be released that players can gift to their friends and vise versa, which is the only way to receive these items (no Reward Point option here, you affluent folk). Each pig received will count towards a mastery total with the highest being Gold Mastery. Bronze Mastery for each Prized Pig rewards a brand new item with Silver and Gold offering stronger versions of that item. Check behind the cut for a list of of the three little piggies (we're sensing a trend here) and what you'll get for collecting them all.
Prized Pigs Promo
Here are the three Prized Pigs and what you can win for collecting them over and over again:


mafia wars curly tail
Curly Tail:

    Bronze Mastery (3 pigs): Garrote Weapon (60 Attack, 31 Defense)
    Silver Mastery (5 pigs): Garrote Weapon (67 Attack, 38 Defense)
    Gold Mastery (10 pigs): Garrote Weapon (73 Attack, 44 Defense)






Fresh Shank:

    Bronze Mastery (3 pigs): Fish Spear Weapon (59 Attack, 32 Defense)
    Silver Mastery (5 pigs): Fish Spear Weapon (68 Attack, 37 Defense)
    Gold Mastery (10 pigs): Fish Spear Weapon (72 Attack, 42 Defense)




Boss Hog:

    Bronze Mastery (3 pigs): Jointed Panel Armor (33 Attack, 60 Defense)
    Silver Mastery (5 pigs): Jointed Panel Armor (38 Attack, 72 Defense)
    Gold Mastery (10 pigs): Jointed Panel Armor (46 Attack, 74 Defense)



With 30 Prized Pigs to collect in just three days, getting a hold of that Oinker Vehicle is going to take some serious gifting.

FishVille Galapagos Theme bringing Darwin's best to your tank soon

FishVille Galapagos Items
You'll soon enough be swept away to the Galapagos Islands in FishVille with a slew of new items, fish and a seal (?), Zynga announced today. While details are scant on what will be included in this update, we hope to see lots of rare creatures and, dare I say, turtles.

Unfortunately, this also means out with the old and in with the new. We'll soon be saying goodbye to the Phosphorus Jungle items, so try to buy them all now if you want to keep the luminescent legacy alive. Oh, and one more thing: we told you so.

YoVille Cottage Mystery Box prizes revealed

yoville cottage mystery box prizes
More items from the free YoVille Cottage Mystery Box have been revealed. In addition to the cool Cottage fireplace everyone is looking for, you can find potted roses in different colors, book shelves, many paintings and cottage bushes. There is also a cottage chest hidden in the box, and as you can see in the picture to the left, it is huge. Don't say we didn't warn you!

Gift some of these boxes to your friends and ask them for some!
yoville cottage mystery box prizesyoville cottage mystery box prizesyoville cottage mystery box prizesyoville cottage mystery box prizesyoville cottage mystery box prizesyoville cottage mystery box prizesyoville cottage mystery box prizesyoville cottage mystery box prizesyoville cottage mystery box prizesyoville cottage mystery box prizes
yoville cottage mystery box prizes
This article originally appeared on YoVille Lounge.

FarmVille's Halloween item selection now bigger and better than ever

With just five days left until Halloween, Zynga has pulled out all of the stops to give you, the faithful farmer, everything you need to create a spooktacular farm for both your own and your neighbors' enjoyment this holiday. With that in mind, they have released one new Halloween-themed building and a whopping eight new decorations in tonight's item release, most of which were revealed in Monday's Item Showcase video which we told you about previously.

Meet us after the break to find out how to get your hands on all of these terrifyingly awesome new items.

While there was only one new building included in tonight's update, it deserves its time alone in the spotlight. Frankenstein's Lab is a menacing new structure that costs 42 Farm Cash. If you're into the haunted mansion or mad scientist genres at all, then this one is well worth the purchase.

Meanwhile, the eight decorations contain mostly new additions, but also two items that we first saw released last year. You can build a Halloween Train via a three-piece set (purchased individually) - the skeleton engine, a train car and a cart, or caboose. Altogether, you'll have to spend 32 Farm Cash and 120,000 coins to make this train yours, so make sure to check your pocketbook before making a purchase to make sure you can make your idea for a spooky train-ride a reality.

Other decorative items include both a Franken Gnome and Franken Bride Gnome, and a Ghostcrow scarecrow. Last year's items are the Jack-O'-Lantern trio, that flickers with an erie yellow/orange glow every few seconds, and a Dreadful Fence that would look absolutely fabulous around your Haunted House.

All of these items will only be available until Halloween proper, so be sure to shop fast if you want to have any real time to enjoy them on your farm before the holiday passes for another year.

FarmVille Feed Trough: Everything you need to know

Time to shove aside some of those FarmVille Halloween decorations and make room for the new Feed Trough. This new building will help you attract a rotating list of wandering animals by filling it up with animal feed. Check back once a day to see what new animals (some common, some rare) have been lured in by your bait, then add them to your menagerie or sell them for extra coins.

Here's how to get started:

When you log into FarmVille, you should receive a pop-up that lets you know your trough is ready to be placed on your farm. If you don't get the pop-up or can't place the trough right away, you can find it lurking in your gift box.

farmville feed trough gift

Click 'use' to place the Animal Trough on your farm. Note: I had to clear out a spot to do it -- this building is roughly the same size as the pigpen and takes up four plots of space of your farm.

Once the trough is placed, the work has just started. The good news is that you don't have to collect building materials from friends to complete it, but you will have to collect feed from friends to start attracting animals. This can be done several ways:

1. Post a message on your Facebook wall asking for feed from friends.
2. Buy feed using Farm Cash (each 'serving' costs 1 Farm Cash).
3. Visiting neighbors can fill up your feed trough.
4. Score extra feed (sometimes) by visiting neighbors and filling their feed trough.

farmville feed trough inside

The trough will change appearance as it fills up with food. See the progression below:

farmville feed trough stages

Once your feed trough is full (it'll take 20 units to fill 'er up), you will get a notification and the option to share feed with friends via a Facebook Wall post.

farmville feed trough full

After the trough is full, check back every 24 hours to see if a wandering animal has taken up residence in your new trough. Don't wait too long, though, or the animal will wander away, taking some of your feed with it.

farmville poncho llama

farmville feed trough missed animal -- games.com


Looks like there will be rotating list of wandering animals, and you can see exactly which animals are making the rounds by looking inside your feed trough. Right now, the lineup consists of six animals (see image above), and only one -- the Pancho Llama -- is new to the game.

farmville feed trough animals

On a scale of 1-10, I'd rate this new feed trough about a 6. I'm already asking my FarmVille neighbors for enough stuff already and now asking for feed to maybe catch a cool animal, well, it feels like overkill. Maybe I'd be more motivated to beg for feed if there were more exclusive animals for the taking -- maybe that will be the case in the coming weeks.

FarmVille creator ponders the future, Facebook Credits hit Wal-Mart, Best Buy [AM Linkage]

The Future of PC Gaming, According To The Creator Of FarmVille [Kotaku]

Facebook to sell gift cards in Wal-Mart, Best Buy [USA Today]

"Mertado Embedded Shopping" Lets Social Gamers Shop Within Their Games [Social Times]

Interview: Ubisoft's Chris Early on Moving Into Social Games [Inside Social]

A very early Disney-Playdom post-mortem [Gamezebo]

PayPal Launching Micropayment Service; Facebook On Board [All Things D]

For Myspace, a Redesign to Entice Generation Y [New York Times]

FarmVille Mystery Game updated with Gothic prizes

farmville mystery game prizes
In honor of Halloween, FarmVille has updated the Mystery Game with new Gothic themed prizes!

You can take your chances at playing for 16 FV$ per dart. This game will be available for 7 days.

What prize did you get?
farmville mystery game prizes     farmville mystery game prizes     farmville mystery game prizes
farmville mystery game prizes     farmville mystery game prizes     farmville mystery game prizes

:::Spoiler Alert:::

The following are confirmed prizes for this Mystery Game (Released: October 26, 2010):

    FarmVille Antiquated Home
    FarmVille Eerie Bridge
    FarmVille Gothic Fountain
    FarmVille Panther Cub
    FarmVille Rove Goat
    FarmVille Purple Gallinule


This article originally appeared on FarmVille Freak.

Realm of the Mad God Guide

realm of the mad god guide
Transported to a fantastical (and cute) world ruled by the Mad God Oryx, you must fight to survive his onslaught of minions, and hopefully, slay the Mad God himself. This is how Realm of the Mad God begins, a free online multiplayer RPG that requires no downloads, installs or registration; you just jump right in! This social game has you team up with other players, level up, find powerful items, explore dungeons, and slay the gods of the realm. Realm of the Mad God is an epic adventure and quite frankly, it's just about as good as online social gaming gets.
realm of the mad god guide
However, Realm of the Mad God is massive and pretty complex. Your first few trips to the realm might create more questions than answers. And although you will have dozens of allies, they may not be the most helpful towards beginners when danger lurks around every corner. In addition, trying to ask questions in-game might get you left behind or leave you vulnerable to enemy attack. To help you out, my Realm of the Mad God Guide tries to answer most of the questions you might have, and serves as a walkthrough to getting started. After reading my Realm of the Mad God Guide, you'll be ready to take on any challenge Mad God Oryx can hurl your way.

Continue reading to get started with the Realm of the Mad God Guide.

Make an Account
Before you even begin playing Realm of the Mad God, the best thing to do is create an account. Without an account, your character is stored in your cookies, which can be damaged or erased. With an account, you can use your character on any computer and you will never having to worry about unfairly losing your leveled hero.
realm of the mad god classes
Choose Your Character
The next step, is choosing your character class. Realm of the Mad God has 13 different classes. Only the Wizard is immediately available. They classes are as follows:
Wizard
Deals damage from a long distance and has a secondary burst attack.     realm of the mad god wizard
Archer
Unlocked by reaching level 5 with Priest. Has a long-range attack and can acquire very powerful weapons. His Ability is his quiver, which fires a very powerful, piercing, single arrow.     realm of the mad god archer
Rogue
Unlocked by reaching level 5 with Archer. Relies on his speed to deal damage at medium range while avoiding attacks. His Ability is a Cloak which allows him to go undetected by enemies for a time.     realm of the mad god rouge
Priest
Unlocked by reaching level 5 with Wizard. Attacks at long range and can heal himself and his allies.     realm of the mad god priest
Warrior
Unlocked by reaching level 5 with Rogue. Deals the most damage of any class and can wear strong armor to protect himself from enemies. His Ability grants extra strength and speed to those around him for a short time.     realm of the mad god warrior
Paladin
Unlocked by reaching level 20 with Priest and Knight. Can deal damage at close range, wear armor and heal himself and his allies.     realm of the mad god paladin
Knight
Unlocked by reaching level 20 with Warrior. Deals large amounts of damage at close range and has the highest potential defense of any character. His Ability provides extra defense in addition to damaging and stunning enemies.     realm of the mad god knight
Assassin
Unlocked by reaching level 20 with Rogue and Wizard. Fights from medium range and uses poison to damage his enemies over time.     realm of the mad god assassin
Necromancer
Unlocked by reaching level 20 with Wizard and Priest. Drains life from his enemies to heal himself and his allies.     realm of the mad god necromancer
Huntress
Unlocked by reaching level 20 with Rogue and Archer. Uses arrows and traps to defeat her enemies.     realm of the mad god huntress
Mystic
Unlocked by reaching level 20 with Huntress and Necromancer. Fights with a staff and uses her crystal ball to bind enemies to a distant plane.     realm of the mad god mystic
Sorcerer
Unlocked by reaching level 20 with Necromancer and Assassin. Uses his scepter to fire blasts of chain lightning at his enemies.     realm of the mad god sorcerer
Trickster
Unlocked by reaching level 20 with Assassin and Paladin. Fights with a dagger while using her magical prism to distract enemies.     realm of the mad god trickster

How to Play
After you choose your class, you'll be put in a tutorial. Follow the instructions on screen and you'll quickly get a feel for the game. The basics:

    Use W, A, S, and D to move and the mouse to aim and attack.
    Press the Spacebar to use your Ability.
    Obtain items by standing on a loot bag and dragging goods from them to your inventory. Or hold shift and click on an item to use it (keys, potions, etc.)
    Health is the red bar at the top right. If you die, you will have to start back at level 1.
    Above health is your experience. Level up and your heath and mana meters are fully replenished.
    Mana is the blue meter and is drained with each use of your Ability.
    To chat, press enter and type a message, then press enter again to send it. If you ever need help, trying asking those around you.
    Press T to toggle autofire.
    Press N, M, or B to toggle music, sounds, or bullet sounds respectively.
    Press H to display a list of controls.
    Press F5 to escape to the Nexus

realm of the mad god guide
Getting Started
Now that you've learned the basics, you're ready to set out into the Realm of the Mad God. Band together with other adventurers and patrol the realm, slaying beasts and collecting equipment along the way.
realm of the mad god
Team Up
Realm of the Mad God is a game best played with others. Just standing near people who are slaying beasts will earn you experience and help you level up.
realm of the mad god
In Realm of the Mad God, harder bosses can only be taken on with lots of people. Fighting in a crew lets you distribute the inflicted damage, flank your enemies, and lay down some serious fire power with the various classes. When fighting easier enemies, you'll see large groups more dispersed, ploughing through enemies. But when a group of warriors encounters an army of gods, you'll see them all tightly clumped up in a phalanx around the healing Priests and Paladins. I recommend doing the same.

Pro Tip: Once you get a feel for the game, teleport to the largest clump of players on your mini map. They are most likely fighting very hard enemies, so just hang back and let them slay the gods, earning you tons of experience super quickly.

Realm of the Mad God gives us a number of ways to work cooperatively. The most significant feature is teleporting. Using your mini-map, you can teleport to anyone, anywhere on the map. However, teleporting in Realm of the Mad God is both dangerous and useful. It's useful when you're about to die and need a quick way to escape. But it can be dangerous because you have no idea where you'll end up. I've died countless times teleporting into the cross fire of a massive battle. Also, by shift clicking people at the bottom left, you can lock them there, allowing you to easily teleport to your friends without using the mini map.

Pro Tip: In Realm of the Mad God, chat is global. This means that messages are sent to everyone on the server at once, which can often by quite annoying. By typing /ignore followed by the player's name, you can block all messages from a person for the duration of your stay on the server. This is great for dealing with trolls and foreigners.
realm of the mad god guide
Enemies and Bosses
In Realm of the Mad God, different enemies spawn based on the terrain you're in. At level one you're still very vulnerable so it's a good idea to stick to the beaches or forests where easier enemies appear. If you're in search of a challenge, harder gods and enemies will appear in the snowy and rocky terrains. Following roads will usually keep you among enemies of a similar difficulty.
               

In addition to regular enemies, there are various bosses and gods around the Realm of the Mad God. These will often be marked on your mini map with a red, pink, orange, or purple dot. On your screen, an arrow will point to them; moving your cursor over the arrow will tell you what god you're headed for.

Pro Tip: If you become overwhelmed in battle, use the panic button. Pressing F5 will instantly teleport you back to the Nexus. You can also click the white arch under the mini map to instantly return to the safety of the main lobby. Another option is simply quitting out of your browser.
Caves and Dungeons
While exploring the Realm of the Mad God you might find Pirate Caves, Spider Dens, Snake Pits, and more. If you have a key, simply shift click on it and a cave will open up where you're standing. The caves can be pretty long and full of tough enemies, so for the harder dungeons you're going to want a crew with at least one healer in it. Don't feel pressured to finish a dungeon either. If you know you're going to die, head back out the way you came, close your browser or just teleport back to the main lobby.

Equipment
There is a ton of different items and loot in Realm of the Mad God. In addition to rings, potions and keys; there are class specific items that include swords, staffs, robes, and much more. These items are most often dropped by enemies as loot. The harder the enemy, the more powerful the loot.

Pro Tip: Once having reached level 20, many players will want to start a new character, so they give away their valuable equipment. Very often they will drop their stuff in the main lobby, so always be alert for freebies!

Slaying the Mad God Oryx
The main goal of Realm of the Mad God is to defeat the mad god himself. Every time 25,000 monsters have been defeated and all the quests have been completed (red dots on the mini-map), everyone will be transported to the lair of the Mad God Oryx. The lair is shaped like a giant circle and the only cover provided is a couple of large pillars. Be very careful here because the mad god and his minions are the most powerful monsters in the game.
realm of the mad god     realm of the mad god     realm of the mad god
If you manage to kill the Mad God Oryx and his minions, he will drop a loot bag holding some of the best equipment in the game. So despite the danger, battling Oryx is not an event to miss. After he dies, the kill counter will be reset, and he will remain dormant until the next time 25,000 of his monsters have been slain.
realm of the mad god guide
Realm of the Mad God is a rich and ever changing world with endless possibilities. It's recent gains in popularity and attention have already prompted updates and expansions. It's unfortunate that traditional high-quality social games like Realm of the Mad God aren't featured on Facebook. I'd love to go adventuring with fifteen of my closest buddies and post high scores on my wall. But who knows, Realm of the Mad God is a game with incredible potential. I think it's only a matter of time before it's awesome-ness is fully realized.

So what are you waiting for, you've read the guide, you know the basics. Start your Realm of the Mad God adventure today:

Pet Society rewards fans with a cute Black Kitty Chair

pet society free black kitty chair     pet society free black kitty chair
Call the neighbors and wake the children, because for one day only, Pet Society fans can get their hands on an absolutely adorable Black Kitty Chair. Everyone loves free stuff, especially when it's a fun item. So make sure to tell all your Pet Society friends about the free kitty throne. Just imagine a kitty sitting on this kitty chair, could there be anything cuter?

All you need to do is make sure you've clicked 'Like' on the Pet Society Facebook fanpage, then click the link below:

Get your free Black Kitty Chair >
pet society free black kitty chair
If you're not yet a fan of Pet Society, just head to their Facebook fanpage by clicking here, and 'Like' the page. Then click the link above to get your free Black Kitty Chair in Pet Society.

ESPNU College Town: Giant Thanksgiving turkey terrorizes campus

No, don't run. Go get the basters and a fire pit going--stat! A massive turkey can be seen terrorizing campuses everywhere in ESPNU College Town. We imagine he's a mittle miffed about the Thanksgiving Feasts popping up. The most recent update also added some cheerful animations to the otherwise dead Thanksgiving items that were recently released.

In other (less exciting) news, Playdom fixed the Spirit calculation made on the post-Challenge screen to accurately display only the Spirit gained in the district it took place rather than the whole campus. We hope that issue wasn't a deal breaker for some players. Also included in the update is (a little more exciting, we promise) the ability to send friends a Gameday Challenge Gift, which gives your lucky friends another Challenge to pummel you in Football with. Wait, that's not how it supposed to work...

Pet Society Stadium Turkey Challenge puts your pet to the turkeys' test

Ready...set... gobble? In Pet Society, turkeys will be taking over the Stadium tomorrow through Thanksgiving. It's your job to show this birds who truly is fleet of foot. Or would it be fleet of feather? Anyway, today will be the last day for a little while that you'll be able to race normal pets as tomorrow they'll all be replaced by posthaste poultry that are ready to win.

No special prizes were mentioned on the Pet Society Blog, so this just looks like a novelty feature. Though, some dark meat sounds great right about now.

It seems like the same racing rules will apply: click to run, click to jump, click when over speed boosts and click to remove bananas. In other words, just click your fingers off and you should be OK (though, it does require some finesse). Check out Pet Society tomorrow to give these otherwise delicious birds a run for their money.

Find the rest of our Thanksgiving coverage right here.

(Facebook) Gaming United: GameGround powers up all your games

GameGround Facebook Games
We'll just come out and say it: there are too many social games. Alright, that's not necessarily a bad thing, but it can be a pain tracking all of them--not to mention your friends. GameGround wants to change all that through its unique web app that can collect a wide selection your PC, Xbox (in a future release), Facebook and casual web games into one, easy to manage portal. With features like stat tracking across profiles, level-up mechanics, missions and Gadgets (achievements or badges for the traditional folk), GameGround turns all of your gaming into a meta experience.

GameGroundEssentially, GameGround aims to be the leaderboard of all games. Players can also find new games to play on the various platforms based on what they're playing already, which is starting to become somewhat of a trend. As for Facebook games, GameGround already supports some of the biggest titles from Zynga, PopCap and Playfish like FarmVille, Pet Society and Bejeweled Blitz. Thankfully, GameGround supports Facebook Connect so you don't lose touch with your friends there.

Everything about GameGround seems to be about the gamification, if you will, of... games. Itzik Ben-Bassat, ex-Blizzard Entertainment executive and Co-Founder and Chairman of GameGround is confident that GameGround will be the one place people will go to socialize while gaming.

"Gamers want one-click access to their favorite games across platforms, as well as easy ways to find new challenges, leaderboards, and rewards," Ben-Bassat says. "All of this is made possible by GameGround's innovative offering."

Whether GameGround is successful, it's start ups like these that are making quite a statement about how fragmented our gaming has become over the years over several different platforms. Only time will tell whether GameGround will provide that solution. Until Nov. 24, GameGround is entering every new user in the GameGround Beta Launch Power Contest with a total of $500 in GameStop gift cards up for grabs. So, head on over and give it a shot--the only thing you have to lose is a chance at free money.

FarmVille Fruitcake: What is it for?

Update: The Fruitcake mystery has been solved: Click here to learn all about the FarmVIlle Thanksgiving Basket.

FarmVille farmers have been puzzled by the seemingly useless FarmVille Fruitcake turning up in their gift boxes. While the forums have been ripe with speculation about what these FarmVille Fruitcakes could be used for, I have some ideas of my own.

FarmVille Fruitcake can be gifted to friends when your Turkey Roost is ready to harvest. The more turkeys you have in your Turkey Roost, the better the chance of receiving Fruitcake. Those who were fortunate enough to get their hands on FarmVille Fruitcake have reported that it currently has no use. When they click the Fruitcake they receive the message, "Whoa there, farmer! We don't have anywhere for you to put this just yet. Why not hang onto it in your Gift Box for just a little longer?"

Continue reading to see what I think the FarmVille Fruitcake might be used for.
farmville fruitcake
Several clues have given me a few ideas as to what FarmVille Fruitcake might be used for. My first guess is that the FarmVille Fruitcake is part of the Thanksgiving Feast, pictured above. Both it's link to the Turkey Roost and the timing of the Fruitcake appearing in gift boxes, suggests that we'll be seeing Fruitcake as part of a collectible and giftable Thanksgiving collection or Harvest gifts for the Thanksgiving Feast.
farmville fruitcake
My other hunch is that the FarmVille Fruitcake will be part of a Holiday Collection. Much like the Autumn Collection, this assortment of giftable items (pictured below) will need to be collected for a prize. FarmVille Fruitcake is clearly included in the final assortment of goodies. Perhaps this Holiday Collection, including the Fruitcake, will be part of the Thanksgiving Feast next week. However, none of the items are very Thanksgiving-y, they look more holiday oriented. Fruitcake is usually a Christmas affair. It's also important to note that there are only five items, when past collections usually have six, which only adds to the mystery.
farmville fruitcake

Also, the fact that Fruitcake keeps glitching and disappearing out of FarmVille players' gift boxes, leads me to believe that the Fruitcake/Turkey Roost link may have been accidental, and the Fruitcake release: premature. This backs up the idea that the Fruitcake might be part of a collection coming later on.

Of course these are just my Fruitcake speculations, nobody knows for sure what the FarmVille Fruitcake is for yet. But I guarantee you the Fruitcake will be useful for something very soon. I definitely recommend hanging onto those mysterious FarmVille Fruitcakes for the time being.

Have you received any FarmVille Fruitcake? What do you think it will be used for?

Check out the rest of our Thanksgiving 2010 coverage right here.

Mafia Wars headed to Android this month, FarmVille to follow

Mafia Wars Android
Right now if you're a user of an Android phone, your only option is to use the built-in browser to play Mafia Wars (which is slow and clunky) or play by SMS. However, by the end of the month you will be able to get the full Mafia Wars experience in an application made for Android phones.

At LeWeb '10, Senior Vice President of Mobile at Zynga David Ko has announced that Mafia Wars will be coming to mobile this month. Currently, the only Zynga game available in the Android Market is Zynga Poker. In addition, Ko let it slip that FarmVille will also be coming to Android in the future as well. This is pretty big news, although we were pretty certain this was going to happen. Having confirmation is always a good thing though!

At this point, we do not have a release date for Mafia Wars on Android. We're looking forward to giving it a try when it happens though!

Monster Galaxy on Facebook: It's basically Pokemon, but with the zodiac

Ever wanted to play Pokemon on Facebook but were disappointed when you found out that you couldn't? Gaia Online solves this problem by releasing the Zodiac-inspired, pet filled game Monster Galaxy on Facebook. To give you an idea of just how much the game resembles Pokemon, the game's Facebook page advertises the title as: "Catch Them All! Collect wild monsters and battle to tame the zodiac and save the world!"

To see if this game stands up to the likes of such an established franchise, meet us behind the break.



You'll start the game by picking your first Moga, or monster. This is done by choosing the Zodiac symbol that you'd like your Moga to have, and then choosing from the three options that appear for each. Each zodiac symbol corresponds to different Attack, Defense, and overall Zodiac stats. Moga, like Pokemon, tend to look like customized forms of everyday animals, along with some completely new creatures. You can adopt red and yellow tigers, a dark red pig, a bright pink sheep, and so on.

Your first Moga chosen, you are then shown an introduction to the game's story. The world has fallen into chaos since it has been rocked by earthquakes. The stars begin falling from the sky, and your first Moga appears as one such falling star. You feel an instant connection to this creature (you should, since you just picked him/her), but you aren't given time to really grasp the situation, as a wild Moga attacks from the nearby bushes.

Battles play out as you would expect, if you've spent any amount of time with turn-based gameplay, regardless of whether it was Pokemon or not. Each Moga can choose an attack from two different types - a physical attack or a magical zodiac attack. You, as the Moga tamer, will be able to tell your Moga which attack to use, from a list of four. As all Mogas have zodiac signs, these attacks come into play as the "elemental" portion of gameplay. Certain signs are weaker or stronger against other signs, and you'll need to quickly learn which signs your pet is stronger against to make the most of your time in battle (that is, to be able to win quicker, or at least easier). For those that don't wish to memorize the chart of weaknesses and strengths, once you've entered into battle, a simple hover over the Elemental Attack will show you how well that attack will do against the current sign.

Through the game's tutorial, you'll learn how to add to your Moga collection, which is done by weakening the enemy Moga and then tossing a Starseed out to capture it. In future battles, if you simply defeat the enemy Moga(s), your battling Moga will earn experience points that work to level them up. A higher level Moga has more health and stronger attacks, as you might expect. Once you gain some experience with the game, you'll be able to take up to three Moga into battle at a time, and you can store an apparently unlimited supply of Moga for future use.

In order to give the game some progression, you're given a personal assistant named Tobi, who will keep track of your quests. You'll travel throughout the expansive game world completing these quests, with each location being represented on the overall map by a black dot. You get a preview of the location you're about to enter, which tells you how difficult the area's wild Moga will be to defeat, which is nice for lower level players that wouldn't has as much strength as a Master Tamer.

All told, you'll continue to unlock new areas on the map as you travel there, where you'll continue to complete quests, add to your Moga library, defeat enemies and unravel the story of why the Moga have suddenly turned violent. Yes, the gameplay is repetitive, but so is Pokemon, which, again, Monster Galaxy mimics in more ways than not.

Coming from Gaia Online, the game has some fantastic production values. The graphics are lovely, with most Moga being downright adorable. The game's soundtrack changes from and epic score during battle to a hard rock track when you've successfully captured a new Moga, and the entire game displays a real attention to detail and polish.

While Pokemon may have come first, Monster Galaxy looks to be a worthy alternative for those that like sticking close to the Facebook gaming world. To try your hand at Moga Taming, heading into the world of Monster Galaxy for yourself.

FarmVille isn't a chore for stay-at-home parents

It's a commonly known fact that the most popular demographic for FarmVille players is middle aged women. This doesn't necessarily mean that they're all stay-at-home parents, but there is a good chance that a large percentage of FarmVille players enjoy the game while their kids are taking a nap. A blogger and stay-at-home mom, Cynthia Gregory, wrote a cute post about why she enjoys playing FarmVille.

    Not many accomplishments are measurable in real life when you are a stay-at-home mother. I get no awards or stars or extra cash for successfully cleaning toilets or washing dishes every day. If they had toilet cleaning and dish washing in Farmville, I would get points, coins and maybe a cute sign to display on my property.

    When I plant a crop or place a building in Farmville, it stays there. No one walks behind me trampling my work or breaking stuff.

    My little avatar doesn't talk back.

    My puppy doesn't puke or poop on my pretend farm.

    I can shop as much as I like, because I am rich in Farmville.

    My avatar hair is exceptional and quickly changeable, there is no need for a baseball cap. She never needs a face wax either.

    I can get more help from people on my pretend farm than I could ever get in real life.

    When you help someone on Farmville, you are rewarded. Rewarded with pretend useable stuff, not just a sense of accomplishment.

There is so much truth in her statements. People might make fun of the 'pretend' rewards and sense of accomplishment, but they can be very fun and motivating for people. There is nothing wrong with enjoying playing FarmVille, and for someone who stays at home and has constant distractions - social games can be the perfect way to pass the time in short chunks.

Like Zynga? Prove it and receive a free Holiday Cow in FarmVille

The Zynga Inc. Facebook fan page sits at just over 933,000 "Likes," as of this writing. With 1 million "likes" being the next big milestone, the folks at Facebook's biggest developer have decided to give the gaming community a little push, or incentive, if you will, that will hopefully cause that number to grow to 1 million and beyond in a short time frame.

The incentive comes to us as news from the FarmVille Sheep fan page, which tonight writes that if Zynga Inc.'s fan page on Facebook reaches over 1 million Likes, we will receive a "special present... for this holiday season." The present is a lovely Holiday Cow in FarmVille, and who doesn't love cows?

This free cow (we're calling it the Holiday Cow, but the final name has yet to be revealed) is a brown and white bovine with a lovely green wreath hanging around it's neck. It's presumed that once (if) the Zynga Inc. fan page breaks the 1 million Like mark, that the developer would simply post a link for all interested users to claim their free cow, as that seems to be the method employed by most other games in such "giveaway" circumstances, but it may very well turn out to be a more complicated system than that.

Email delivery? Redeemable codes? All of that remains to be seen, but we'd be willing to place a wager on Zynga reaching their 1 million Like goal, mostly because, hey, who doesn't like free things? Besides, in just the time it's taken us to put this post together, the Like count has risen by over 1,000 - we'd say the Holiday Cow is in the bag for the lot of us.

If you'd like to help make sure that the cow is indeed handed out to users, make sure to like the Zynga Inc. fan page on Facebook. Remember, you can always "Un-Like" the page after the promotion is over - we won't tattle.

FarmVille Sneak Peek: Winter Bridge, Frozen Pond, Stocking Arch, Holiday Trees & More

A new batch of unreleased images have leaked from the world of FarmVille, and we've gotten our hands on the lot of them, allowing us to bring you another edition of the FarmVille Sneak Peek, where we show off these images, along with our thoughts on these unreleased new items, which may or may not be launching in the game in the near future.

This time, we have five new decorative items to show off, all of which fit in the current Winter Holiday theme of limited edition items. They are the Winter Bridge, Winter Fireplace (this looks an awful lot like the Fireplace just released in Cafe World as part of their holiday theme), a Winter Home, Frozen Pond, and Stocking Arch.

For those familiar with the Holly Arch, which was first released in the game for last year's holiday celebration, and was then re-released in this year's Winter Wonderland quest set, the Stocking Arch looks to be an exact replica of that item, except this one has brick columns and a few stockings attached to the front and sides. Meanwhile, for those that like the look of running water on their farms, the Winter Bridge unfortunately looks to offer a self-contained pool of water, so if you have a group of blue Hay Bales that you're waiting to connect to this item to continue an imaginary stream or river, there will be some continuity issues to be aware of.

In addition to these decorations, there are also two new holiday trees that will apparently be coming to the game, in the form of a Sugar Plum Tree and a Peppermint Tree. The Sugar Plum tree is a very pretty lavender and pink tree that looks like it came right out of a Dr. Seuss story, while the Peppermint Tree resembles the Bubble Gum Tree, except the bubblegums have been replaced with red and green striped peppermint candies. Both of these trees will apparently be masterable, as you can see the signs associated with each tree in the image above.

We can't wait for these items to release in the game, but remember, there is no actual guarantee that we'll see these items in the game, so keep that in mind.

Wishful Features: Automatic neighbor additions in FarmVille

I've been playing FarmVille since around the time of the Halloween celebration in 2009. During that time, I've accumulated around 80 neighbors, which is a respectable number, but nowhere near the mass amounts of some of my friends. Regardless, one of the biggest technical issues concerning FarmVille neighbors, in my mind, is simply what a hassle it is to add those neighbors to your in-game account in the first place.

Other games, from other developers, seem to have figured out that users who are adding a game probably want to play that game with friends, and have since incorporated an automatic neighbor addition tool that will show you each and every friend that has installed the game on your neighbor bar, even if they stopped playing the game months ago. Why can't FarmVille do the same?

One could argue that Zynga refrains from adding such a feature because it would throw off the items in the store that require you to add a certain amount of neighbors to unlock access to purchase them, but this just doesn't seem fair.

As I look at my in-game neighbors page, I see seven people that actively play FarmVille, but technically aren't my neighbors. I can send them gifts via Facebook news feed items, and we can send free gifts between one another, but I can't visit their farm. The most basic of social interactions in FarmVille and I have to go through special steps to activate it. Sure, it doesn't take much for a neighbor request to be sent or accepted, as it is done through a basic "gift request" scenario, but the fact that we have to do it in the first place just seems a bit silly.

For now, though, I guess I'm stuck with trying to remind myself to frequently check on my Neighbors page to find those farmers that I've left out in the cold. Hopefully that won't be the case for much longer.

Do you regularly check your Neighbors page to find those neighbors that you may have forgotten to add? Which other Facebook games would you like to see automatic neighbor addition added to?

Zynga releases Chinese FarmVille with surprisingly few changes

It was only a matter of time before Zynga introduced China to the farm. It was reported recently that a Chinese FarmVille has appeared on Facebook, already roping in over 300 thousand players, according to Inside Social. While previous Zynga localizations like Zynga Texas Poker, a Chinese version of Zynga Poker, were mere translations, this rendition of FarmVille was built from the ground up for its audience.

However, not much has changed aside from the language, if images like this are any indication. Animals and farmers generally look the same, but the FarmVille interface has received some changes to its color palette and the plots of farmland appear to be much larger than in the U.S. version. If anything, this is a sure sign that Zynga's focus has gone global. Especially considering a Japanese version of FarmVille, known as Farm Village, is on the way. And don't forget that CityVille launched in five languages earlier this month. As CityVille inches closer to FarmVille's former peak with 69.8 million monthly players, it might not be long before the city reaches across the Pacific.

FrontierVille Cattle Drive Timed Mission now available

Back in the middle of the month, we brought you news concerning the then-unreleased Cattle Drive Timed Mission in FrontierVille. Now, just in time for the launch of a new year, Zynga has released the Timed Mission to the public. As we told you then, you'll need to complete three tasks to finish this mission: Sell 20 Adult Cows, Collect 20 Rodeo Hats and Collect 20 Feed Bags.

Now that the mission has launched, we know that you'll have until January 7 to accept the mission on your account, and you'll need to complete it within a four day time limit in order to receive your reward of a single Horse and 250 XP.

As for collecting the items themselves, the Rodeo Hats are collected through individual gift requests that you send to your friends, while the Bags of Feed are collected through general wall posts, where your friends receive a Feed Bag every time they help by giving you one.

Remember, you don't need to actually start the mission until January 7, so if you know you don't have 20 Adult Cows on your Homestead, feel free to take a few days to grow your cows to adulthood before starting the mission. In this way, you won't have to worry about whether or not you can make it to 20 Adult Cows within a four day time limit!

As we get closer to the new year, we'll make sure to let you know if Zynga releases any other missions, or even a themed mission to celebrate.

Cafe World Rock Concert Catering Order: Everything you need to know

Just in time for their in-game New Years celebration, Zynga has launched a new party-themed Catering Order in Cafe World entitled simply "Rock Concert!" This Rock Concert Catering Order will have you cooking a very special meal for some hard rockers, for a backstage party, so you'll need to bring a lot of food, and collection items in order to make the party a success.

The Rock Concert catering order will have you cooking three meals, along with collecting three different items to finish off the order. You'll have just three days to earn a three-star rating for this order, so make sure to meet us behind the break to find out everything you need to know about this new order before time runs out!

First and foremost, you'll have to cook three dishes for this Rock Concert order. You'll need to cook Vegas Buffet (a 9 hour dish) 138 times, Blood Sausage (a 6 hour dish) 100 times, and Overstuffed Peppers (a 12 hour dish) 138 times. You'll be able to bring 10 other people into this mission with you, bringing the total Catering Crew to 11 members. While 11 people may sound like a lot, if you only have one or two active members, you'll probably have a hard time finishing this mission within the three day time limit for the 3-star rating.

Aside from cooking, you'll also need to collect three items with the help of your friends. You'll need to ask them for 5 Concert Tickets, 9 Foam Rocker Hands, and 9 Guitar Picks. You can do so by clicking on the "Ask" button next to a particular item, and then sending individual gift requests to those friends that you think would be most likely to help you.

If you and your Crew can cook the required dishes, and collect the required items within three days, you'll receive the 3-star rating for the job, 9 Catering Points, 6,300 Cafe Points, 141,750 coins, and a Rock Concert Guitar decorative item. If you finish within three to five days, you'll receive 2 stars, 6 Catering Points, 4,500 Cafe Points, and 101,250 Coins. Finally, if you simply finish the mission at any point after the first five days, you'll receive 1 star, 3 Catering Points, 2,700 Cafe Points, and 60,750 coins.

If after a few days you find that your progress won't let you earn the star-rating that you'd like, you can instantly finish any of these tasks using Cafe Cash - 10 or 22 Cafe Cash for each of the dishes you'd like to complete, and then single amounts of Cafe Cash for each collectible you need to earn - 1 Cafe Cash for each Concert Ticket, and 4 Cafe Cash for each Foam Rocker Hand or Guitar Pick. Altogether, that would result in spending a pretty penny in premium currency, but if you're like us, and think that these missions have gotten harder over time, rather than easier, it might be a nice idea to consider.

As a final reminder, you don't have to start the Catering Order before starting dishes to cook. To make the most out of your three day time limit, make sure to cook a full round of food (we'd suggest the Stuffed Peppers, since they take the longest to cook) before starting the mission, so that you can instantly serve them and get a head-start on your overall progress.

CityVille: Dubai Shipping mission now available

If you're a CityVille player that takes advantage of shipping missions in order to earn extra Goods for your town, you'll be happy to know that Zynga has added yet another option for you when it comes to sending your ships out to sea.

The new mission is called the "Dubai Direct," and it will allow you to send a ship to Dubai on a journey that takes 12 hours and costs 76 coins to launch. For doing so, you'll earn 100 Goods for each boat that makes the trip. This is an especially great thing to have added to CityVille, as formerly the game was without a 12 Hour Shipping mission. This gives users a chance to have missions going twice per day, constantly, without any wasted time, so long as they are around the game once every twelve hours to collect their shipments.

In addition to this new Shipping Mission, Zynga has also announced that they have changed the appearance of the coin Bonus Items, and have fixed and Out of Sync error that appears when players attempt to collect from a franchise without having any energy.

With the game now having almost 70 million installed players, it's great to see Zynga continually updating the title with bug fixes, as well as new content, and we'll be sure to let you know when more is added.

CityVille Sneak Peek: Bank, Pharmacy, Factory, Quick Stop, Gas Station

Earlier today, we found a slew of unreleased item images of new Businesses, Homes, and decorations that are likely to come to CityVille in the near future, but it turns out that the folks at CityVille Info haven't stopped there, as they have released images of even more as-of-now unreleased Businesses in the game.

The new Businesses are a Bank, Pharmacy, Factory (complete with smokestack), Quick Stop, and Gas Station. The Quick Stop appears to be some sort of a convenience store, while the Gas Station is a very cute little building with a single gas pump sitting outside. As for the Pharmacy, there are two supposed images available for the building, and we're not exactly sure which (if either) will be released as the final product in the game.

As usual with unreleased images, there are no guarantees that any of these items will officially launch in the game, or how you'll earn them. They could be available to purchase for coins or City Cash in the market; they could be available as rewards for Collections, or they could even be free gifts. We'll make sure to let you know all of the details around these new items if they do officially make it to the game.

Dick Clark stars in Retro World, a social game featuring Elvis, Belushi

Just when you thought it couldn't get any more studded with stars (or weirder), Dick Clark revealed his video game debut in Retro World, Entertainment Games' upcoming Facebook game, according to Hollywood Reporter. You know, the same social game that looks to somehow bring Elvis, John Belushi and classic cars to Facebook, Google+ and smartphones?

Yeah, that one. Now that Entertainment Games's first social endeavor is out in the open, Clark said that his likeness from the '70s and '80s will serve as the game's tutorial. Of course, Retro World is looking to hit the growing 40 plus demographic of social gamers.

"The idea of using past images of myself to guide players through a current online social game is a very innovative approach that I found intriguing," Clark said. "I look forward to serving as your host on this nostalgic and ground-breaking gaming experience."

According to Hollywood Reporter, Entertainment Games president Gene Mauro said Clark might even become a playable character in the game along with Elvis, Belushi and more retro celebrities down the line. Because this was made possible through a licensing deal with Dick Clark productions, the company will sell Dick Clark-themed items to players within the game. We've certainly heard of social games centering around a single brand or even a single celebrity, but a project that looks to capture the power of numerous celebs from the '50s, '60s, '70s, and '80s at least gets points for originality on paper.

With PlayJam, Flash-based social games could hit your HDTV in 2012

Games like Zynga's Adventure World and Vostu's GolMania sure look nice in full screen, but how about in a really full screen? That's what London, England-based PlayJam looks to make possible. The company just announced an agreement with Adobe, the creator of Flash (the most common technology behind social games), to bring Flash-based social games to Internet-connected HDTVs.

PlayJam, which works with social game developers to bring social games to HDTVs from Samsung, LG, Panasonic and Sony, will bring both 2D and 3D-based Flash games to said flat screens. "Features such as billing, leader-boards, tournaments and integration with third party social networks and TV programming can be seamlessly integrated via PlayJam's SDK," PlayJam said in a release.

The developer tools are said to release in the second quarter of 2012, so between Jan. 1 and March 31, 2012. PlayJam currently has deals with developers like Relentless--the studio behind console quiz game series Buzz--but these tools will be up for grabs from any developer. And the fact that the company just scored another $5 million funding from investors like GameStop Digital Ventures and Adobe Ventures should nudge social game makers along.

With social game makers including Zynga looking to branch off of Facebook and onto new platforms, it's easy to see a day when we could manage our metropolises in CityVille on the old 55-inch plasma. And when you consider the imminent advent of 3D graphics through Flash, thanks to Unreal, (in theory) PlayJam offers an intriguing prospect. Well, at least the potential end of click-and-drag navigation.

King.com hits top 10 Facebook developers, 1B games played a month

But wait, there's more: the company has also opened offices in San Francisco and Romania. King.com, London, England-based creator of hit Facebook games like Bubble Saga, announced it is now a top 10 Facebook app developer, according to AppData. The social game maker and games portal chalks the accomplishment up to reaching 1 billion games played monthly.

While that measure is across all King.com game platforms, the developer welcomes 17.6 million monthly and 4.2 million daily players on Facebook. Of course, the top performing King.com game is Bubble Saga. The company's Romania office will handle its mobile efforts, while North American business development will be led by former Gamelab president Jong Woo, King.com's new senior business development director in San Francisco.

"We are ecstatic to have not only reached a billion monthly gameplays, but to also become a top 10 Facebook developer. It's rewarding to see our games gain so much interest and excitement among our players–across all platforms," King.com CEO Riccardo Zacconi said in a release. "We are taking this recent momentum and expanding our reach through North America by adding an office in San Francisco and new employees to that region so we can more closely connect with our partners and gamers there."

Most recently, King.com released Bubble Witch Saga to Facebook, which boasts more daily players than the company's top game at 1.7 million. Perhaps most importantly, this news confirms King.com's plans to strengthen its mobile presence, as social game makers are so wont to do these days. And something tells us those bubble-loving witches might get the treatment next.

Free Team Fortress 2 turns 20 to 30 percent of players into payers

Show me the mon--wait, scratch that. Valve has already seen it, and co-founder Gabe Newell is interested. During a conference in Seattle, the overseer of hit hardcore game franchises like Portal said that Team Fortress 2--its popular multilplayer shooter that recently went free-to-play--has seen incredible results in how many paying customers it has created.

"And then the conversion rate, when we talk to partners who do free-to-play, a lot of people see about a 2 to 3 percent conversion rate of the people in their audience who actually buy something, and then with Team Fortress 2, which looks more like Arkham Asylum in terms of the user profile and the content, we see about a 20 to 30 percent conversion rate of people who are playing those games who buy something," Newell revealed, according to Geekwire.

Newell alluded to the average number of social gamers that pay for in-game items and boosts. Calling it a fairly recent statistic, the Valve CEO said that's far larger than games like, say, FarmVille experience. "We don't understand what's going on," Newell said. "All we know is we're going to keep running these experiments to try and understand better what it is that our customers are telling us."

So, expect more of Valve's game franchises to go free-to-play for its 35 million plus Steam (its popular games distribution service) users. But consider the ripple effect Newell's words might have on other traditional game companies. Other than Valve's games, more hardcore games will undoubtedly go free-to-play. And they'll all have those blasted social games to thank.

Planet Cazmo: Monster Battles enters MocoSpace's orbit on HTML5

Planet Cazmo: Monster Battles
HTML5 gaming is about to (hopefully) nail yet another landing. Boston, Mass.-based social game platform MocoSpace announced that developer Planet Cazmo will release its first HTML5-based social game, Monster Battles, this December. The game will debut to the 22 million gamers on the MocoSpace games platform with a bevy of unique creatures to enter the ring.

In Planet Cazmo: Monster Battles, players will capture, collect, trade and, most importantly, pit different creatures against one another in brutal (but probably adorable) combat with flashy powers. "We are thrilled to be working with MocoSpace and creating a new HTML5 mobile game title especially for their users," Planet Cazmo CEO Michael Levine said in a release."We believe that HTML5 is a great way to reach large numbers of gamers."

Of course, Planet Cazmo is far from alone. Zynga just made a big bet on HTML5-based social games with mobile web versions of FarmVille, Words With Friends and Zynga Poker. CrowdStar CEO Peter Relan made clear his goal of launching the first game to reach 1 billion players through the mobile web, and Wooga released an HTML5 version of its new Magic Land.

Mobile gaming is undoubtedly huge, but HTML5 games in mobile browsers have yet to reach the caliber of native mobile games. MocoSpace's confidence in Planet Cazmo's ability to put out a graphically-rich HTML5 is promising. But really, we just want to see the flashy powers in action.

Babies Everywhere on Facebook: If only raising a real-life baby was this easy

It's one thing to take care of adorable virtual animals, but what happens when you replace a furry, four-legged critter with a ... baby? If the new Facebook game Babies Everywhere is any indication, then you get a game that's plenty cute, but somehow still manages to feel like work. Seems hard to imagine ladies playing this to relax and escape from it all when they might, in fact, be spending their days tending to a real-life baby. (Then again, maybe that's just me.)
babies everywhere on facebook

In this baby sim game from Sixits, the goal is to custom create your own little nugget, name it and then teach it the ways of the world. You do this by teaching it to crawl and then to talk, etc by playing with a variety of toys available in the in-game store. Each toy can only be played with once in a certain amount of time, so you'll have to wait to play again. You'll also be tasked with keeping the nursery tidy, and every time you log into the game, there will be something that needs to be cleaned or straightened.

Every action in the game requires energy and once completed, yields you some type of reward, whether its cash (used to buy items in the store), hearts (used to build toys), food (used to buy more energy) and "smiles" (yes, smiles), experience points which level up your baby. As you reach higher levels, you will have access to more furniture, clothes and toys for your little tot.

babies everywhere on facebook

The game's other form of currency is 'Teddies,' which can buy using real-life cash. So between the Teddies, cash, hearts, food and smiles -- there's actually a lot to keep up with in the game. So far, I've had plenty of everything but the hearts -- so I find myself continually clicking on the baby to 'play' and earn extras.

Babies Everywhere employs a simple quest system, encouraging you to do things like teach the baby to say 'mama' and buy a certain type of toy, decoration, etc. The toys require you to spend energy and then ask friends for materials -- and considering that a handful of people are playing the game right now, it's a little difficult to pull off without spending Teddies.

So far, that's pretty much the breadth and depth of Babies Everywhere. It's only fair to point out that this is an Alpha version of the game, so that might explain the lack of things to do overall. Basically, once you cleaned up spilled milk and other debris, played with a few toys -- there's not much else to do for the next few hours. You don't actually have to feed the baby or change its diaper, it just kinda hangs out in a giant nursery by itself. We'll see if this baby's got what it takes as it continues to develop over the next few months.

Gossip Girl on Facebook: Social games and high society don't mix

Just to save all of you some time, let's just get right to. Arkadium's Gossip Girl: Social Climb for Facebook is downright confusing. Based on the hit TV series on the CW Network surrounding rich 20-somethings living in Manhattan, Gossip Girl inundates you with text and question from the moment you log in. First, it's a series of profile questions to determine your nickname. Then, it's a list of mundane questions based on hoity-toity events you'll attend in the Big Apple.

And this is the majority of Gossip Girl: pressing miscellaneous buttons and answering questions based on your own morality (if you want to call it that). The game is deeper than that, but not by much. Find out why after the break.

Social Dashboards
While the game certainly looks gorgeous, I'd imagine that's not difficult when there are few actual pieces of artwork in the game aside from the intro upon logging in. After creating your profile, you will be invited to your first event and given your first mission. But really, neither are important--it's the process of the event itself that matters. Once you're at an event found on one of the four quadrants of the Manhattan mini map, you will be given access to a series of abilities that will raise a "Scandal Bar" in reference to an event progress bar. If you fill the Scandal Bar before the event is over, you will fail at socializing at this event. The goal is to keep the bar with in the sparkly box for the duration of the event, which is done by waiting for the bar's progress to decrease over time.

Do this correctly and you'll be presented with morally challenging scenarios that will affect your progress. Well, if you call the choice between taking advantage of a drunk girl at a party or giving her a glass of water morally challenging, then this game is absolutely for you! Frankly, choosing the options that most sane individuals would consider humane scores you less Spotted Points to buy new outfits with. Basically, the goal of the game appears to be as belligerent, catty and asinine as possible to score the most "Scandal Points" to climb up the social ladder.

Events
Oh, and the game runs on real time, meaning you can only attend events that match your time in the real world. It's basically Arkadium's answer to Energy in most social games, but this system will likely inspire you to crawl right back to the Energy mechanic. There are several achievements to collect for leaning towards different ends of the social and moral spectrum in events and ways to compete with friends. But generally speaking, this game is downright confusing and, if socialites truly act like this, terrifying for all of us. (And given Arkadium's pedigree, this does not hold up to their modus operandi.)

Then again, I'm likely not included in its target demographic. Gossip Girl, from as objective a viewpoint as possible, is a functional social game with an attractive presentation. From a perspective littered with disdain for this type of behavior in the real world, no. Just no. If you happen to be one of the millions of fans of the series, then give it go for sure. Just don't expect much praise for your taste in social gaming.

FarmVille Sneak Peek: Visit England Sign hints at European expansion

Just like Lexilicious said, we'll soon be traveling to a faraway land in FarmVille. The folks at FarmVille Freak have stumbled upon an image of a sign that reads "Visit England Soon." It actually looks very similar to the recent sign promoting CityVille in the game, so perhaps this will be a portal into another location in FarmVille.

However, it could just as easily be a new theme of items that will release. But I would hope with a build up like this--between what sounded like a British man teasing the feature on the FarmVille podcast and now a promotional sign--that England in FarmVille would be much deeper than that. And unlike most of FarmVille Freak's findings, this is, in fact, confirmed. Stay tuned for when the time comes to journey across the pond.

[Image Credit: FarmVille Freak]

What do you think the new England expansion will turn out to be? When do you think it will be released to the game?

FarmVille Valentine Costumes: Dress your avatar as Cupid or a Pink Rabbit

Since Zynga has released a slew of new Valentine's Day decorations in FarmVille, many users began to wonder if we'd soon be able to dress up our in-game avatars in new themed costumes, as well as decorating our farms. We receive our answer this week, as Zynga has released three new Valentine's Day limited edition costumes to the store.

These three costumes actually come in only two varieties - Cupid Costumes, and a Bunny Costume. There is a completely different Cupid Costume available for either boy or girl avatars (the girl costume is a dress with pink wings and red tights, while the boy costume is a white suit with white wings), but both costumes cost the same at 15 Farm Cash each You'll receive 525 experience points for purchasing either one.

The Pink Rabbit costume however, is unisex. While males might scoff at the thought of dressing their avatar as a fluffy pink bunny, I personally think it would be downright adorable. Maybe that's just me though. Regardless, anyone interested can pick up this costume for 10 Farm Cash. You'll receive 350 experience points as a bonus.

All told, these costumes will be available in the game for the next 17 days, bringing us right up to Valentine's Day proper. It's unknown as of now whether or not more costumes will be released in the future, but you'll be the first to know if there are.

FarmVille: Unintentional(?) update brings Red Pagoda and New Year Rabbit to market early

Earlier today, we brought you a sneak peek of some unreleased Chinese New Year items that we believe will be coming to FarmVille in the near future. This afternoon, we've received confirmation that at least two of those items will in fact be released officially, as they have - get this - already appeared in many users' games.

That's right, two particular items - the Red Pagoda, and the New Year Rabbit - have been spotted on many users' farms, at the very back of the Building and Animal tabs of the store. I personally have the Red Pagoda in my own store, and have purchased one of these buildings for myself, confirming that it works. It is available to purchase for 40,000 coins. While you can purchase the building early if you'd like - one word of warning. The building is... well, it's rather blurry, as if Zynga hasn't put all of the finishing touches on it quite yet. This makes sense, as we didn't expect these items to be released until at least next month as part of an eventual Chinese New Year theme in the game. I've added a full-size screenshot of the item on my farm to show you just how big this item is, and its current state.

As for the New Year Rabbit, it is a much more costly item, priced at 250,000 coins. It also further explains the unintentional nature of this weird update, as it is invisible. It's position is found in the store, and the animal itself can be purchased, but it will show up as an invisible spot on your farm, that is, if you can find the item in the store before Zynga catches to their accident and removes both it and the Pagoda.

Whether or not you want to take a risk on purchasing either of these items will be up to you. Either way, though, it is nice to get a heads-up on what these items will eventually cost, so it might be worth looking into.

Lunchtime Poll: FarmVille News Feeds: 'Like' 'em or leave 'em?

Like Button
The FarmVille forums have been buzzing for some time about News Feed posts and the infamous "Like" button. Apparently, players hold several different codes of ethics when it comes to the "Like" button and taking something from the News Feed. So much so that the thread is 21 pages long. Some interpret it as an abstract aspect of Facebook, "Liking" things because, hey, they genuinely like them. Others use it to notify others when an item is already taken, while some hate the button altogether as it muddles up their Feed and confuses them. The problem stems from the fact that "Like" is not a Zynga feature, but a Facebook one, meaning it truly is an interpretive practice when it comes to social games. So, we ask you, fine digital farmers:
FarmVille News Feeds: "Like" 'em or leave 'em?
Like 'em, because I generally "Like" things I... like.Leave 'em! I'm so sick of them messing up my feed.They're a good way to avoid defunct News Feeds. Like 'em!Who cares? I use a bonus collector anyway. Doesn't everyone?
VoteView ResultsShare ThisPolldaddy.com

CityVille and Leveling Up: What's the point?

Simply put, who knows. A large number of CityVille's players have reached the maximum level of 100 in Zynga's city-builder. What's worse is since Level 63, there has been nothing waiting for them but new titles. Energy doesn't even increase after Level 28 and Community Buildings have stopped coming in for the veterans since Level 60. CityVille forum user SirDadHellfire questions, "What is the purpose of leveling?"

Sure, millions play the game out of simple enjoyment, but as forum user PanALF says, "I like to be on top, so I'm pushing my level up. [The] only benefit I think is unlocking some buildings, but there is no other point to level up over 63." There you have it, folks. It's an issue that a litany of players is suffering: What's the point of leveling up anymore?

Levels for everyone!Honestly, there doesn't seem to be one yet. Leveling up in any videogame should mean something, especially those with a persistent element like social games. Achieving a level should feel like reaching a new height in the game with added features and powers. At the moment, leveling up in CityVille is just another number. Thankfully, Zynga realizes this and is likely working to fix it, but it will take time to make 37 levels of content worthwhile.

An ideal temporary fix would be to add small rewards (in addition to the Energy refill) to each level beyond 63. For instance, Level 64 rewards players with a free Tower Eats. Reach Level 65 and you're rewarded with an Expansion. (Side note: Expansions shouldn't have been tied to cash reserves at all. Wouldn't it feel that much better to receive an even bigger city each time you grew as a mayor? [Logistically speaking, maybe every other level?])

However, this doesn't solve the problem of leveling up too quickly. Frankly, too many tasks reward XP. Everything from harvesting crops to collecting from Residencies to collecting from Businesses rewards XP. One of two things needs to happen to slow this process down: Either fewer things reward XP or the XP required to level increases. The best route to solve the issue while maintaining that feeling of accomplishment? Replace XP in some places with more tangible rewards. How about allowing Businesses to randomly provide new decorations relevant to that type of business rather than XP when collected?

Either way, something must be done to improve the endgame experience past Level 63. If not, Zynga could soon lose a major portion of its 20 million plus daily players. It won't be much longer before these folks head elsewhere, and there's no guarantee that it will be the English Countryside.

Facebook games will access your address and number (again)

That wasn't long, was it? Facebook games will once again have access to more of your personal information, Mashable reports. Just over a month ago, Facebook retracted its change to third-party applications (i.e. games) that would allow them to access your home address and mobile number due to feedback. Then, members of Congress brought the change into question, leading to a lengthy exchange between Facebook and US representatives Edward Markey (D-Massachusetts) and Joe Barton (R-Texas).

Facebook responded to the questioning with, "We have not yet decided when or in what manner we will re-deploy the permission for mobile numbers and addresses," Facebook Vice President of Global Public Policy Marne Levine said. "As noted above, we are evaluating whether and how we can increase the visibility of applications' requests for permission to access user contact information. We are also considering whether additional user education would be helpful."

New Permissions window
In other words, Facebook has every intention of bringing the change back. However, how clear the website will make it within that initial "Request for Permission" window is up in the air. According to Mashable, the above image wasn't enough for the disgruntled users. Later in its response to the representatives, Facebook noted adding another pop-up notifying users of this increased access could reduce click-through rates by as much as 3 percent, Mashable reports. Well, duh.

Mass. representative Markey reports that he will continue to watch Facebook, all the while the website recently released a new draft of its privacy policy that's far more legible than before. Yet this doesn't change the fact that games are about to get a lot more personal with your data.

[Image Credits: Masalai and Mashable]

What do you think of this change coming back to Facebook games? Will this cause you to stop playing them or play them differently?

EA offers indie Facebook game creators helping hand with EA Partners

Indie game developers always have great ideas, right? So, why not throw a bunch of them at Zynga the market and see what happens? EA announced that its EA Partners group will now provide funding and its resources to independent Facebook and mobile game developers, Social Times reports. Of course, EA will take a cut of said developers' profits for using the company's publishing prowess.

Developers who take EA on will have access to both Playfish and Chillingo, the publisher of Angry Birds stateside, for assistance. No one knows how big of a cut EA is talking, but surely developers will consider it plenty worthwhile to have a massive publishers vouch for them. Here's what CJ Prober, VP of Publishing and Product Management for Playfish, had to say of the news:

    As a social gaming pioneer, Playfish helped shape the face of the Facebook platform through original titles and classic EA franchises such as Pet Society, FIFA Superstars and MONOPOLY Millionaires. Playfish is looking forward to continuing a tradition of innovation and quality by extending our publishing framework to a select group of independent game developers. Partners will be able to leverage Playfish's deep experience and expertise – as well as EA's vast third-party publishing resources – to enable them to achieve unprecedented success for their games on Facebook.

However, this move can't help but be seen as a last ditch attempt to put a dent in Zynga. (In their defense, who wouldn't at this point?) By odds alone, one of these indie social games has to catch on, right? Right? We'll see just that in a few months.

[Image Credit: John Lund]

What do you think of this move by EA? Do you think the company can finally compete with Zynga this way?

Bejeweled Blitz OK'ed by Australian politician for his employees

Caroline Beinke, an employee for liberal, Australian politician Victor Dominello has been given permission by her boss to play Bejeweled Blitz while on the job. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, Beinke needs a distraction to pass the time while taking long phone calls. How much do you want him for a boss?

"When I have long conversations on the phone to constituents it is my version of doodling, a mental chewing gum of sorts," Beinke said. That's odd, because PopCap's gem-buster gets pretty intense in my sessions. Regardless, Dominello said that it is alright with him if it's alright with the Speaker. "My staff work very very hard," Dominello said. "If they are sitting at their desk on hold to a department for 15 minutes, I do not have a problem with it."

Unfortunately, Legislative Assembly Speaker Richard Torbay said he would deny the approval, though he has yet to see it, according to the Sydney Morning Herald. "I put filters in place to stop staff accessing inappropriate websites in the Parliament and I do not think we should be paying people to play games, " Torbay said. Oh, lighten up, guy. We all need a break once in a while, right?

Not to mention this isn't the first time social games have crept their way into the political world, either. Bulgarian politician Dimitar Kerin was removed from his party last year for playing too much FarmVille. His defense? "He said he had reached only Level 40, whereas Daniela Zhelyazkova, a councilor from the rightist Democrats for Strong Bulgaria party, was already at Level 46."

[Via Kill Screen Magazine Twitter]

[Image Credit: We Interrupt]

Do you play social games at work or have you ever asked permission? How do you feel about social games in the workplace?

Cafe World gets new Cookbook in scrumptious update

Finally, Zynga has taken it upon itself to update the unnavigable horror that once was the Cafe World Cookbook. It seems the company has applied many of the same principles in its Catering redesign to the new menu. At last, you can sort the list of recipes by cuisine, name, level requirement and more. Mousing over recipes will reveal cooking statistics like Cafe Points yielded and servings created. It's unsure when the update will be released or whether it's slowly rolling out to players now, but keep your eyes peeled as you work on that 7th Inning Snacks Order. Hopefully this is just a taste of future interface updates across Zynga games. (If only Flash had a spell checker--take a close look five seconds in.)

Have you seen the new Cookbook make way into your game? What do you think of the redesign and what else do you think could use a second look?