Zynga drops the Flock: Social browser dies; developers join new team

Zynga--well, social gaming in general, but mostly Zynga--has had an incredibly disruptive effect on not just the gaming industry, but now on the information technology industry. Since the FarmVille creator bought Flock, the social browser, just this past January the 6-year-old team has, um, swarmed (did you see that terrible pun just miss me?) to Zynga offices. Officially, the site will go kaput on April 26, PCMag reports.

In fact, Flock specifically recommended that fans move on to popular browsers like Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome. Why? Because while Flock will still be available, it will no longer be monitored or updated after April 26, leaving it wide open for attacks from hackers as a gateway into your files. If you're even still using Flock, just take their word for it, please. It's sad to see such an ambitious, original piece of software go, but such is the massive crater social gaming has left in the tech world's side.

[Image Credit: Flock]

Were you a Flock fan? If so, how are you adapting to life without it now that Zynga has all but killed it? How much more do you think the social gaming industry disrupt in the tech world?

FarmVille Sneak Peek: Gypsy King Horse gallops onto the scene

Gypsy King Horse
Another horse from the world of royalty is about to strut into FarmVille. Zynga has leaked yet another item to FarmVille Feed, the Gypsy King Horse. It's unknown exactly when this steed will be released, but FarmVille Feed predicts that it will be part of a larger medieval or King Arthur theme in the game. Either way, odds are it'll cost Farm Cash, so start saving if you want a way into the finer equine world where people raise their noses and always respond with, "Mmm... yes, with puffed chests. Alright, it won't be that bad, but expect it to cost a pretty amount of Farm Cash, if it lands in the Market. Stay tuned to find out when and how this new horse will stampede FarmVille.

[Image Credit: FarmVille Feed]

What do you think of this brand new Horse? Would you ever pay for a horse in FarmVille, or any game for that matter?

Zynga shears illegal FarmVille Sheep Breeding, but the damage is done

Did any of you inherit an awesomely-colored Sheep from a friend recently while on the English Countryside? As it turns out, that ewe or ram could very well be the descendant of an illegitimate, unreleased Sheep in FarmVille, according to Zynga. The company published a blog post today describing the situation, but admitting that it's almost impossible to remove the offspring of the illegal Sheep even after stopping the source.

This is especially due to the fact that those new branches on the Illegal Sheep Family Tree are 100 percent legit, at least in their methods. Furthermore, Zynga cannot even explain how a few players got a hold of the previously unreleased Sheep varieties to breed them for the masses. "Please bear this in mind if you think someone has 'cheated,'" Zynga wrote. "Chances are, they haven't been."

What's a bummer about this is that some minor content planned for Sheep Breeding has leaked, just like that. This could mean that it might be a little longer than usual before Sheep are updated again with new colors. In other sheepish news, the post goes on to reveal some more details and changes. Check them out:

    We also wanted to let everyone know about a change in how sheep breeding works. Previously when you got three lambs of the same gender in a row, you received a lamb of the opposite gender automatically. Currently we've made an alteration to this process so that the chances of getting a ram or a ewe are completely random, though the possibility of getting a ewe is higher than getting a ram.

    Finally, the 100 bred sheep limit (which includes current bred lambs and sheep on your farm as well as in your sheep pen or in your Gift Box) applies for each farm. So, for instance, if you have just 75 bred sheep on your English Countryside Farm, you should still have the capability of having 100 bred sheep on your Home Farm.

Reverting the recent change that guaranteed results in different Sheep genders should even the playing field a bit. Though, it's not entirely clear as to why Zynga leans farther one way--the Ewes--than the other--the Rams. As for the final revelation, have fun taking care of 200 Sheep at once.

[Via FarmVille Feed]

Have you been gifted a uniquely-colored Sheep? What do you think of the fact that now it has a genealogy of illegitimacy? Will you keep the tainted lovechild?

FrontierVille Injured Critters: Waaaay too much of a good thing

FrontierVille players, I have an apology to make. When I complained about the lack of injured critter variety in FrontierVille back in March, I had no idea what was ahead. In the month+ since, we've seen the release of Black Deers, Spring Robins, Spring Bear Cubs, Mules, Spring Chinchillas, and even a Turtle to the game, all of which require time, effort, and lots of clicking to return to full health / lure out of their hole / break their shell. I never thought I'd say this, but it almost seems as though the system has gone too far the other way, at least in some respects.

Ok, so maybe I'm not personally responsible for the over-crowding of our land with Injured Critters, but it does bring up another discussion that Zynga should be having. While I'm all for (let me repeat - I greatly encourage) the critter variety in FrontierVille, it's more the quantity and simultaneous appearances of these animals on my land that has me down. Look at the screenshot above. That's my Homestead - a picture taken just a few moments ago. I haven't been saving up animals to write this story; I haven't purposefully ignored animals just to have something to complain about. These animals have all spawned on my land in less than 24 hours - the only one I'm missing is a Mule! I love these animals once they're full grown, as I love the ability to "harvest" them (generally) for great experience point and coin rewards, but the actual process of healing this many animals at once is overwhelming to say the least. It seems that I'm constantly asking friends for berries, blankets, or bottles to help these defenseless creatures, and while I'm glad that helping them also helps me earn the Veterinarian Badge, I often wonder when I (or my friends) will hit their breaking point with these item requests.

Now, I'm not saying that these animals need to be removed from the game. I'm not even saying that their "healing" requirements should change/lessen. The only thing that really needs to happen here, at least in my eyes, is to put a cap on how many of these animals you can have on your land at once. While I've never been in a situation where I have more than one of the exact same critter, with more than one critter requiring each healing item, that might as well be the case.

Hey Zynga, why not allow us to only have one injured critter at a time? Add more animal variety to the mix if you'd like, but know this - if I suddenly have to dedicate an entire corner of my land just to injured critters, you might force me into a rash decision. You really don't want to make us resort to abandoning these poor animals, do you?

What do you think of the overload of injured critters in FrontierVille? Do you dread seeing the green cross pop-up above a new animal, or are you a collector of these animals?

FrontierVille: Free Elbow Grease goes a long way

While we may have gone a few weeks, or even a few months in FrontierVille without really needing to call on the powers of Elbow Grease (yes, the building ingredient) to get things done, times have changed my friends. These days, you'll need Elbow Grease to do all things from building the Ponderosa Lodge to repeatedly expanding your Storage Shed, making this an item that's in high demand, but pretty time-consuming to come by.

Whether you're allowed to ask for Elbow Grease individually from friends, or in a random post to your news feed (that very well might be ignored), wouldn't it be great to at least check off one of those Elbow Grease from your list for no effort? Apparently Zynga thinks so, as they're giving away a free Elbow Grease to all users that head to a particular link today, and today only. Hint: It's this big link right here.

Sure, a single Elbow Grease may only take a few minutes off of the build time of your next project, but any free item is better than no free item, at least in my book. Besides, as so many people often complain about having to ask for so many ingredients, this will at least save one of your friends from a little bit of "spam." So what are you waiting for? Grab your free Elbow Grease while you can!

Do you like seeing free building ingredients given away on the FrontierVille fan page, or would you rather those giveaways offer exclusive decorations / items instead?

G5 preparing to stock the shelves with Supermarket Mania 2 on iPhone

Back in February of 2009, G5 released the first Supermarket Mania on iPhone. What quickly went on to become both a critic and fan favorite has now spawned a sequel - Supermarket Mania 2, which will be launching on iPhone on May 12. I had a chance to go hands-on with the final version of the game, and can say that while the main gameplay ideology hasn't changed, there have been tons of upgrades released on these store shelves.

For those unfamiliar with the story of the first game, in this sequel, you continue to follow Nikki, grocer extraordinaire, who is invited to open a new chain of supermarkets in Tinsel Town after successfully defeating a robot army back home (of course the robots wanted to take over the entire supermarket profession, what else would they be interested in?). Now, Nikki is surrounded by the surf and sand and must start from the bottom once again by making sure her customers' every wish is taken care of, all in a level-based, time management format.

Supermarket Mania 2 sees Nikki taking on basically every job in the supermarket, except for perhaps security guard. Each of the game's chapters sees you taking over a new (and usually more complex) supermarket than the last, but throughout them all, you'll need to keep track of the stock on shelves so that your customers always have enough fish, bread, chips, and even ice cream to buy. Where that used to be the end of the story, in Supermarket Mania 2, there have been a ton of other features added.

For one, the floors now become dirty, and fast. You'll be given a mop, and by simply tapping on the mop, Nikki will automatically clean every aisle in the store. This is a time consuming process, however, meaning that shelves could be emptied while you're cleaning, and guests could even become frustrated and leave. Other features include a bread-baking station, a milkshake machine, a coffee maker, and a delivery grocer, among others.

For the milkshake and coffee stations, you'll have to first tap on the machine to transition to the "cooking" mode (she loses the cart), where Nikki can then either automatically grind coffee grounds, or you'll have to run out into the store and collect milk and ice cream to put the milkshake together yourself. This of course takes away some of the stock your customers could purchase, but if you manage to keep these luxury items available, you'll earn more money in the end.

The same can be said for the delivery grocer, who stands near a window outside and waits for you to gather three or four food items from your shelves and then deliver them, fast food drive-in style. The bread machine is the simplest item of the bunch, requiring you to simply tap on the bread shelf, wait for a loaf to be cooked, and then carry that bread to its shelf on the main store floor.

As you play the game, your cart will often become empty, forcing you to head back to the stockroom to resupply, and you'll even have to run up to the cash register to handle check-outs, along with resupplying the grocery baskets your customers use to shop. Each level has a timer and a base dollar requirement that you must earn before moving on (as in most every other time management game), and you'll be able to use these earnings to upgrade your store, allowing for everything from automatic store clean-up, to more stock being held on a shelf at once (so that you don't have to refill them as often). You can make Nikki a faster worker, hire a cashier, and can even use a security guard to chase off annoying teenagers.

Gallery: Supermarket Mania 2 iPhone


As a big fan of the first game, I have to say that Supermarket Mania 2, while much more complex and hectic, still doesn't lose its charm or fun, at least from my time with the game. The final product will span 80 levels, across six new stores, and will be released on both iPhone and iPad on May 12. For more information about the game, check out G5's official website, or you can check out my hands-on gameplay in the video at the top of this post.

Will you purchase Supermarket Mania 2 when the game releases next week? Have you ever played the first Supermarket Mania or other time management games on iPhone? How do you think the gameplay handles on such a small screen?

Zynga giving away 250 Cafe Cash on Cafe World fan page for Mother's Day

While many Cafe World players will fondly remember the days of mass amounts of free Cafe Cash, the supply has slowed in recent months. This makes Zynga's announcement all the more exciting - on Mother's Day, to celebrate mothers, Zynga will throw five separate Trivia Giveaways on the Cafe World fan page on Facebook.

These trivia giveaways will likely be about Cafe World and its features, although Community Manager Pinky Chefcadero didn't exactly make the theme clear. What we do know, however, is that these contests will be held from 12 PM PST to 8 PM PST on Sunday, May 8 - Mother's Day proper. Also, if you play the game anytime this weekend, you'll receive two free Instant Spices, just as a way for the Cafe World team to say "thanks" for our patience and continued support.

Each of these five trivia giveaways will offer 50 Cafe Cash as the final prize, which is enough to purchase either a ton of additional spices for your cafe, or even finish most of a Catering Order for you automatically (among dozens of other opportunities). Since contests like this don't come around very often, you might want to set your alarms for 12PM tomorrow - just make sure you spend some quality time with mom first, before abandoning her for the Cafe World fun.

FarmVille Sneak Peek: American Express promotion coming soon

It looks like Zynga will be partnering with American Express for a new promotion in FarmVille in the coming days and weeks (perhaps for tomorrow night's update?), as FVNation has spotted images of the new promotion's loading screen, along with the prizes you'll receive.

For this promotion, it appears as though a new farm will be added to the game for us to visit, and for helping the farm in some way, we'll receive a themed Windmill (in the American Express classic blue color), an Instant Grow, and a Mystery Box, which contains an as-of-now unknown prize.

Just remember, as this is an unreleased cross-promotion, things could change before its actually launch in the game, so don't get too excited just yet. Ok, sure, get a little excited - this is a free installment of Instant Grow we're talking about here! And those four-day crops aren't going to master themselves! Put two and two together, and you've got instant progress, and there's nothing wrong with that.

[Image Credit: FVNation]

What do you think of the supposed prizes for this American Express promotion? What do you think is inside that Mystery Box? What do you hope is inside?

Cafe World Pizza Oven Goals VIII - XIII: Everything you need to know

Similar to the situation with the Deep Fryer in Cafe World, which saw an initial set of missions released, only to be added to about a month later, Zynga has done the same thing with our Pizza Oven. The first set of Pizza Oven goals took us through Parts I - VII, but now, we've been given parts VIII - XIII (that's 8-13), which will grant us three new recipes in addition to those pizza dishes we already unlocked in the past, according to Di's Mingle Network.

To start, Part VIII of XIII has us starting simply, all things considered.

Cook Meat Craver's Pizza
Ask for 3 Tomatoes
Ask for 4 Cups of Flour

We're all used to these sorts of requirements by now - simply prepare four Meat Craver's Pizzas, which take 12 hours to prepare, and then ask your friends to send you the ingredients you need.
Part IX of XIII is a similar setup, in that you'll need to serve items and collect ingredients, but this time around, you'll receive a new recipe at the end, so it seems a bit more worth it.

Ask for 4 Pineapples
Ask for 4 Mozzarella
Serve 14 Pita and Dolmas

Pita and Dolmas can be cooked for 1100 coins, and is ready after four hours. Remember to check your Gift Box to see if you have any extra servings so that you can skip the waiting time. For finishing this goal, you'll receive the Pineapple and Ham Pizza recipe, which takes a whopping two days to cook, and costs 6000 coins.

Moving on, Part X of XIII marks the halfway point, and is simply a time-sink, rather than anything offering you another free recipe (those come later).

Serve 10 Margherita Pizzas
Ask for 5 Tomatoes
Ask for 5 Onions

Margherita Pizzas costs 1300 coins to prepare, but is ready after just 30 minutes, so at least this high quantity won't take you too long to get through.

For Part XI of XIII, we've past the halfway point, and will receive another new recipe for completing the following:

Ask for 6 Green Peppers
Spice 5 of your Neighbors Stoves
Serve 6 Margherita Pizzas

At least we only have to ask for six ingredients this time around. As for the other task, simply head to your friends' cafes and click on any stove that isn't already glowing to "spice" it. Finishing this mission unlocks the Green Pepper Pizza recipe, a pizza that costs 2300 coins to cook, and takes two hours to prepare.

We're almost done as we reach Part XII of XIII, which is more about serving food than collecting ingredients, but that's represented here too.

Serve 5 Green Pepper Pizzas
Ask for 5 Mozzarella
Serve 8 Sausage Deep Dish Pizzas

Sausage Deep Dish Pizzas cost 1000 coins to prepare, and are ready after four hours. Again, no free recipe for this goal, but you are looking at receiving one more, so keep it up!

Finally, Part XIII of XIII marks the current end for the Pizza Oven Goal series, and sees you collecting the most ingredients of any one goal yet.

Ask for 10 Cups of Flour
Ask for 10 Mushrooms
Serve 5 Green Pepper Pizzas

Your reward for this mission is the Veggie Calzone. Not technically a normal pizza, but it's definitely something you might see served in such a restaurant, or listed under the Italian portion of a restaurant's menu. You'll be able to cook the Veggie Calzone for 1400 coins, and come back to serve it 22 hours later.

All told, you're looking at another fairly time-consuming mission series, even if only for the fact that you'll have to wait for so many items to be sent to you from friends. Will we ever see a mission series that can be completed mostly on our own? I doubt it, but I suppose there's always hope.

[Source Di's Mingle Network]

What do you think of these new Pizza Oven goals? Had you finished Parts I-VII, or are you still trying to make your way to this point?

FarmVille Bug Report: Rollback issue under investigation as players lose levels

Late last week, players on the officlal FarmVille forums started reporting that they had lost progress on their farms. After experiencing a refresh or out of sync notice, players would finally reach their farms only to see that they've experiences a serious rollback - grown Lambs are missing, Mystery Seedlings hadn't been grown, old crops are on their land (and withered), animals haven't been fed, coins have gone missing, and even levels have disappeared from users' experience point totals.

Thankfully, the FarmVille team at Zynga has officially acknowledged the issue, and have flagged it as "Known." While the issue is currently still "Under Investigation" - Zynga's code for "We're working on it" - they have encouraged players that have suffered any amount of rollback, no matter how minor, to contact Zynga Customer Support, so that you may be reverted to your proper and original state. Hopefully, the FarmVille team will learn from this issue, and we won't have to worry about it happening again.

[Image Credit: Adventures in Agile]

Have you experienced the "rollback" issue in FarmVille this week? What would you do if you suddenly lost a level of progress, along with all of your other earned goodies?

Cafe World Book Club Brunch Catering Order: Everything you need to know

While summer may be a time for outdoor activities, if you're the kind that would rather sit inside and curl up with a good book, Cafe World has a new catering order that's just for you. The Book Club Brunch sees you catering a book club's meeting, with the prize being a novel meal in the form of a Book Party Plate (fruits, cheeses, and what appear to be crackers).

In order to earn this new recipe, you'll need to complete this order's five tasks. While only two of these five tasks are actual cooking requirements (the other three have you collecting items from friends), you'll soon see that this isn't as good of news as you might have hoped to hear. Meet us behind the break to see just what you'll need to do here to walk away with a new recipe.



For the Book Club Brunch order, you'll need to serve two dishes: Stuffed Mushrooms (a 24-hour dish) 108 times and Impossible Quiche (a 48-hour dish) 77 times. In this is where things get tricky. Sure, you only have two dishes to cook, but one dish could take two hours itself to finish! If you're a lower-level player, that doesn't have dozens of stoves to cook on, or even more spices to use in speeding up their cooking times, you'll be lucky to finish this one with the three star rating (through no fault of your own).

You can bring up to 13 of your friends in to this order with you, and while you're all cooking, you can personally ask your friends to help you collect 22 Bookmarks, 11 Highlighters and 11 Reading Lights. If you can finish both dishes and collect all of these items within three days, you'll receive the three-star rating, 12 Catering Points, 6300 Cafe Points, 75,000 coins and the Book Party Platter recipe I mentioned earlier.

Unfortunately, if you don't finish in under three days, you won't receive the recipe as a prize. If you can finish within five days, however, you'll still receive 8 Catering Points, 4,500 Cafe Points and 50,000 coins. Finally, if you finish at any point after the first five days have elapsed, you'll receive a single star, 4 Catering Points, 2,700 Cafe Points and 30,000 coins.

Remember, these dishes, while low in quantity required, take a heck of a long time to cook and serve. Make sure you're ready with a slew of spices and tons of friends on hand to make this one work. Good luck!

Farmers Insurance soars back to FarmVille, CityVille et al this summer

The zeppelin is back, baby. (But unfortunately not that Zeppelin.) Farmers Insurance has announced that it will soon return to FarmVille this month with the familiar "Win a Ride on the Farmers Airship" promotion. We hope this will ring in the return of the Farmers Airship to the farm and some free wither protection with it. During that time, farmers will be able to "Like" the Farmers Insurance Facebook page again for a chance to ride the real Farmers Airship. But this time, Zynga plans on taking the company ship for a tour around its stable of games.

Soon after the FarmVille promotion returns, Farmers Insurance will find its way into CityVille, Cafe World and Mafia Wars over the next four months, though the company isn't ready just yet to spill all the beans. However, what we do know is big prizes are in store for Zynga gamers, not to mention that Farmers Insurance agents nationwide will jump in on the fun through their own Facebook pages.

"Millions of Farmers Airships were placed on FarmVille farms," Marc Zeitlin, Farmers Insurance VP of e-Business, said in a statement. "FarmVille players were exposed to the Farmers brand billions of times, raising our Facebook fan base by more than 100,000 in the first week of the promotion. It was one of the most successful things we've done from a branding perspective." Now do you see why Farmers and, um, us farmers are such a good fit? It's not just the name!

FarmVille-maker Zynga 'throws bodies at problems,' acquiree says

If you've ever wondered how Zynga operates, just ask one of the 14 companies it has gobbled up in the past year. Business Insider did just that--anonymously, of course--and discovered that the creator of FarmVille has a very direct way of handling issues. "They move really fast and they're good at executing, but they just kind of throw bodies at problems," an anonymous executive told Business Insider. "Not thought. [They'll just say], 'This game isn't working? Hire 20 more people.' [It's like,] maybe we should fix the game dynamics?"

Of course, Zynga gamers cry for just that daily on the forums, but this certainly the first time anyone from within the company has reportedly spoken up about it. The executive went on to mention that he doesn't criticize Zynga's strategy (it's obviously effective), but the exec did say that the company isn't afraid to let go. "They're really ruthless with cutting things that don't work," the executive revealed. "If a game doesn't work, they kill it. They'll throw those resources somewhere else. I definitely get that."

The exec even went on to say that Zynga has the phrase "Move at Zynga speed" is all over its walls, implying that the company and its employees hustle to keep ahead of the competition. And, more importantly, it's working. "Zynga is making way more money than anybody, but they're also spending more money than anybody."

Well, we could have figured that considering the millions Zynga has likely spent over the past year on hires and acquisitions alone. While not nearly as racy as previous anonymous statements about the company from the inside, at least one ingredient to Zynga's special sauce has been reportedly revealed: speed ... Zynga Speed.

Pocket God for Facebook Episode 8 pits Pygmy against Pygmy

pocket god episode 8
There can only be one Hi-islander--wait, isn't it Highlander? Not in Pocket God for Facebook, which has just entered Episode VIII: Hi-islanders. Frima Studio has taken Pygmy-pummeling to the next level, introducing the mysterious LARP Rack (you gotta' love Frima's sense of humor), an item holding five different weapons for your fearful subjects to bash each other with. The new content update introduces a new God Challenge against the might Kali, and five new solo quests to complete.
Pgymy Duel


Pocket God LARP IdolFacebook demigods can now outfit their pygmies with clothing inspired by the Pocket God comic book. Though, just hope it doesn't get ruined in the scuffles that are bound to happen between Pygmies, thanks to the LARP Rack. Well, they're more like battles to the death that you can sit back and enjoy. But if you get bored of their deadly squabbles, remember: you're a god. So, just pick a Pygmy up and--just like that--it becomes a piñata for your other armed Pygmies to pound into a pygmy pulp.

The fight against Kali involves ... her rack. But before you fall into the gutter, we're talking weapon racks here--focus! Defeat her in battle to prove that your (weapon) rack rules them all, and you'll win a weapon rack idol for yourself.

Canada-based Frima Studio has introduced characters from the Pocket God comic as well, like Ooga, in addition to some improvements to the game's interface. It's as if Frima breathed new life into the Pygmies ... only for them to pulverize each other. Look, did you really expect a Pocket God update that didn't promote the Pygmies' premature end? We didn't think so.

FarmVille 2nd Birthday Goals: Everything you need to know

It's almost time to blow out FarmVille's second set of candles this June 19. But before we do that, Zynga has some goals in store for us to help ring in the game's third year right. The series of three Goals has no overarching title, because we kind of already know what they're all about. However, these are limited edition, timed Goals that are only around for the next two weeks. So, hurry on over behind the break to find out how everything you need to know to celebrate FarmVille's second year of life.
FarmVille 2nd Birthday Goals

1. Happy Birthday to FarmVille

    Get 8 Party Hats
    Harvest 100 Strawberries
    Buy 1 FarmVille Flag

Happy Birthday to FarmVille rewards
You can likely already guess that the eight Party Hats are found through asking your buddies, which can be done easily through the Goal menu. All the while, you should plant 100 Strawberries--that will cost you a mere 1,000 Coins and take at least four hours to harvest without any Instant Grow. The FarmVille Flag can be found in the Market for 500 Coins. Complete these tasks and 200 XP, 2,500 Coins and a Birthday Gnome decoration. You'll have the option to share a Mystery Gift with your friends.

FarmVille turns two
2. FarmVille Turns Two!

    Visit Five neighbors
    Buy 1 Zynga Flag
    Harvest 100 Cupcakes

FarmVille turns two rewards
Before you visit those five friends, remember to plant those 100 Cupcakes, which will cost a total of 2,500 Coins and take at least eight hours if you plant all 100 at once without using Instant Grow. The Zynga Flag is available in the Market for 500 Coins--just like the FarmVille Flag. Finish this Goal, and enjoy 2,500 Coins, 200 XP, a Mini Party Horse and Fireworks.

farmville mini party horse

And many more!
3. And Many More!

    Harvest 200 Peppermints
    Get 6 Party Favors
    Place 1 set of Birthday Fireworks

And many more rewards
Acquiring the six Part Favors is as simple as posting a News Feed update through the Goal menu. The 200 Peppermints will cost a nice 10,000 Coins, but the rewards from the previous Goals should cover a chunk of that expense. Then, all you need to do is place the Fireworks on your farm as if they were a decoration. For toppling this challenge, you'll sit pretty with another 2,500 Coins, 200 more XP, four Glitter and one Birthday Trophy.

Google Games says, 'When you can't beat 'em, undercut 'em' [Rumor]

Man, I don't know if that's even considered undercutting anymore. That's just plain crazy talk. According to All Things D, the recently revealed Google+ Games platform will only charge developers 5 percent of revenue from in-app purchases like, say, FarmVille (oh, wait).

If the website's anonymous sources are correct, and Google decides to charge a similar amount for in-game purchases, this undercuts Facebook's current service charge of 30 percent by an incredible amount.

And, if true, this appears to the strategy Google is going with. No need to sign on major talent in dangerously symbiotic contracts--ahem, Zynga--just undercut the hell out of the competition and make developers like you better.

Who knows exactly what Google+ Games will look like, but you can bet it'll have a metric ton of games at launch. That offer would simply be too goo to pass up. We've contacted Google for comment, stay tuned.

[Via Mashable]

Do you think Google can win this battle undercutting the competition alone? How else do you think Google could up the ante on Facebook?

Games.com Free T-Shirt Giveaway

Update: This contest has ended. Head to Blog.Games.com or our Facebook fanpage for more awesome giveaways and game news.

Free T-Shirts! As promised, this weekend Games.com is giving away T-shirts to thirteen lucky fans. Our Facebook fanpage recently reached 100,000 'Likes' and we wanted to celebrate by doing something special for the loyal fans. So what better way to give back to the Games.com community than by giving away free gaming T-shirts?

Check out all the shirts we're giving away below, and continue reading to find out how to win!

Click on a shirt to see it larger!
free t shirt games
1. Pet Society
Size: Women's S     free t shirt games
2. GameDaily
Size: Women's S     free t shirt games
3. Girl with gumption
Size: Women's M
free t shirt games
4. All in a day's work.
Size: Women's M     free t shirt games
5. Dream it, do it
Size: Women's M     free t shirt games
6. Not another princess
Size: Women's L
free t shirt games
7. Elbow grease
Size: Women's L     free t shirt games
8. Link & Epona
Size: Men's L     free t shirt games
9. It's on like Donkey Kong
Size: Men's L
free t shirt games
10. Goldeneye Oddjob hat
Size: Men's L     free t shirt games
11. It's party slime
Size: Men's L     free t shirt games
12. Medal of Honor
Size: Men's XL
free t shirt games
13. Peggle
Size: Men's XL
How to win a free T-shirt:

Step 1. Click the 'Like' button below to share the contest with your friends.



Step 2. Head to the Games.com Facebook fanpage and click 'Like' if you haven't done so already. This allows you to leave us messages.free games t shirt

Step 3. Leave us a message on the fanpage telling us:

    What is your favorite part about Games.com? What has been your favorite Games.com experience?
    What are the top two shirts that you'd like to win?


(Example entry: My favorite Games.com experience is hanging out in the Papa's Taco Mia chat room and making jokes with the other players. My first pick is shirt 8, the Zelda shirt and my second pick is shirt 5, dream it do it. )

Then, on Monday I will select winners at random. As long as one of their top two shirts is still available, "Alexander Armero" will message them on Facebook for their address and send out their prize to them. (Realize then that it might pay off to choose the less popular shirts to increase your chances of winning.)

If there are any leftover shirts, I will post another quick giveaway on Monday. Head to the Games.com Facebook fanpage to get started entering for a free T-shirt. Good luck!

Note: To enter you must be a resident of the United States and have a Facebook account.

War Commander is Kixeye's next Facebook RTS, keepin' it hardcore

Yeah, son! Better believe it. What? Hey, if Kixeye is planning to bring the hardcore to Facebook, you got to start playing the part--nobody likes a bad trash talker. Formerly known as Casual Collective, Inside Social Games reports the creator of Backyard Monsters will release War Commander, the result of developers' Paul Preece and David Scott mission to "get hard" in its Facebook games.

The game is due out sometime this August, and the game is said to play a lot like the classic Command and Conquer series, with players able to select individual and group units--and there will be 27 playable units at launch. This represents the company's mission to present itself as the hardcore developer for Facebook games.

Though, with companies like Kabam saying the exact same thing with games like Kingdoms of Camelot, it looks like the battlefield for War Commander will extend beyond the browser. Now, can Blizzard just bring Starcraft to Facebook already?

Are you psyched to see Facebook get another hardcore RTS? Do you think this emergent genre and fanbase is just a fad, or is this genre set to grow into the official hardcore sector of Facebook?

FarmVille gets classically sweet with new Parisian Theme items

FarmVille ain't done classin' up just yet, fellas. Zynga has released a new set of Parisian Theme items to the game, and most of them are fancily French. If that's what tickles your fancy these days, take a look at all of the items that await. The "daww"-inducing Merens Pony is here, as are the scrumptious-looking Cocoa Truffle Trees. It's too bad most of which cost Farm Cash, but that's the price of fancy, no?

FarmVille Parisian Theme 2

    Cocoa Truffle Tree - Level 1, 5 Farm Cash
    Giant Cocoa Truffle Tree - Level 2, 10 Farm Cash
    Merens Pony - 24 Farm Cash
    Marans Chicken - 20 Farm Cash
    Museum - 65 Farm Cash
    Parisian Hotel - 30 Farm Cash
    Cancan Gnome - 15 Farm Cash
    Forest - 10 Farm Cash
    Champs Elysees Trees - 5 Farm Cash
    Thinker Statue - 3 Farm Cash
    Parisian Table Set - 50000 Coins
    Parisian Bench - 10000 Coins

FarmVille Parisian Theme 3
FarmVille Parisian Theme 4

[Source and Image Credits: Zynga, FarmVille Feed]

Do you plan on picking up any of these new, limited edition items? What's been your favorite theme thus far?

FrontierVille's Inn L'Amour Collection and Badges have comfy rewards

Zynga released the, um, comfiest building upgrade in FrontierVille to date today with the Inn L'Amour--or maybe we're just really tired. (Hey, it's Friday, people.) At any rate, the release of this new upgrade reigned in a brand new Collection and, of course, some new Badges to obtain. But first, the Collection, which you can complete simply by collecting Daily Bonuses from the Inn L'Amour, is made of these items:

    Toiletries
    Room Service
    Broken Lamp
    Bed Bug
    Tips


Collect one of each of these items, turn them all in, and the Fuzzy Blanket is yours. While not all of the information on the new Badges is available, at least we know generally what will happen. The first Badge, titled "2 Stat Standard Inn," requires players to book 18 guests in their Inn. From there, you can likely guess that we'll have to book more and more guests for a special reward and title. Now that you know what's ahead, go on and do it, will ya?
FrontierVille Inn L'Amour Collection
FrontierVille Inn L'Amour Badge

{Source and Image Credit: Zynga]

Which of these new features are you working toward first? Do you like the new Inn features, or would you rather have something else?

The creator of Mega Man has a Facebook game sans the blue bomber

Wow, what's next, Miyamoto announces a Facebook game? (Wait, no, that'll never happen.) Keiji Inafune, the legendary Japanese game producer and co-designer behind the original Mega Man, has announced his first project since leaving publisher Capcom. He left to make his own studio, Comcept, and The Island of Dr. Momo is the final result.

Set to release in Japan initially through the Gree social mobile games network, Dr. Momo a mysterious character that Touch Arcade reports is a lover of cute stuff, so your mission is to help him gather the cutest animals on Earth for some super-secret, super-cute project. Of course, the game will be supported through micro-transactions like paid currency and digital items. Inafune didn't mention a U.S. release, though we're not going to get our hopes up, and neither should you.

Seriously though, what Japanese (or American) designer can we see head to social games next? Hey, maybe this will be the next battle of the mega designers like the glory days of the SNES and Sega Genesis. If that's the case, social games are headed down a road filled with awesome.

Do you hope the man behind Mega Man will bring Dr. Momo overseas? What do you think the amount of major designers behind social games means?

Cafe World Super Lost Pages Goals: Everything you need to know

Part two of the Grandma's Lost Recipes event in Cafe World will see you completing a Super Lost Pages goals, which coincide with the Grandma's Lost Pages goals we told you about earlier today. As a recap to the event, you'll need to complete both of these goal series within the next two weeks in an effort to receive a new 4X Lightning Stove, up to eight new recipes, and even an exclusive decoration for Grandma. This feature includes a new building project - a Doghouse for Grandma's dog Sally - and a new setup that may change the dishes you're actually required to cook to something randomly chosen from your available dishes.

Now that you're back up to speed, let's jump straight into the Super Lost Pages goals - a five part goal series that is admittedly harder than its predecessor, but apparently worth the difficulty in the end (says Zynga).

Super Lost Pages 1:

Serve 15 French Onion Soups
Spice 8 of Your Own Dishes
Ask for 5 Dusty Recipe Sheets

Note: There appear to be some discrepancies with these tasks. The tasks above are according to Zynga, but in my own game, this first goal replaces the spicing dishes requirement with placing the Doghouse. Keep that in mind.

Super Lost Pages 2:

Serve 20 Angel Food Cakes
Ask for 7 Old Recipe Sheets
Ask for 6 Super Lost Pages

Unlike the "regular" Lost Pages that were required for the Grandma's Lost Pages goals, these "Super" Lost Pages are much more exclusive. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but unless you have a ton of active friends, you might be slowed down a bit here, as you'll only be able to request additional Super Lost Pages from the same friend once every 36 hours, rather than once every day as normal.

Super Lost Pages 3:

Serve 25 Chashu Ramen
Spice 10 of Your Own Dishes
Ask for 10 Old Recipe Sheets

Fairly self explanatory, just ask your friends for additional Old Recipe Sheets and you'll be able to finish this one off with (hopefully) little difficulty.

Super Lost Pages 4:

Serve 3 Pulled Pork
Serve 30 Chicken Adobo
Ask for 8 more Super Lost Pages

As in past events, you'll need to finish this goal by having 14 Super Lost Pages in total, but will be able to carry over your six from the second goal in this series, leaving you to gather only eight more now.

Super Lost Pages 5:

Serve 3 Dishes with the Pastry Station
Serve 35 Pumpkin Pies
Ask for 12 Old Recipe Sheets

For finishing this goal (and therefore the entire series), you'll receive a mystery prize which we've been told will be one of the eight new dishes you can receive through this goal series. You'll also receive the Grandma's Easy Chair decoration, so that Grandma can have somewhere to rest her tired feet after spending so much time digging through old cookbooks in your cafe.

Again, these goals are repeatable, but only available for a limited time (a little under two weeks). If you're not a fan of either of these goal series, there's also a new themed Catering Order to complete in this event as well, and we'll bring you a guide to finishing it just as soon as we can. Keep checking back chefs!

[Image Credit: Zynga]

What do you think of these Super Lost Pages goals? Are they as difficult as Zynga claims them to be, or do you appreciate any challenge the developer will throw your way?

Game of the Day: Pop & Drop

A herd of colored balls is headed your way, and unless you act quickly, they'll drop right on top of you! Pop all the colored balls before they reach you by creating sets of three or more.

Pop & Drop features two awesome game modes: action mode and the strategy-based perpetual mode. I promise you though, you'll be kept on your toes regardless of what mode you play. Make sure to use the special power pieces to help you rack up the big points.

Click here to play Pop & Drop!
pop and drop game of the day     pop and drop game of the day
Pro Tips:

    Pop & Drop shows you where your next shot is going to land. This is an invaluable tool! With it you can line up insanely tight shots through gaps, enabling you to hit those huge combos.
    Bank balls off the walls. As I said before, Pop & Drop shows you where your next ball will land, even for banked shots. Use it to access those hard to reach places.
    Be precise! When the balls are closing in, don't fire wildly. Calm down and make sure you hit an intelligent shot. For example, don't just shoot the ball onto the first level, or you'll need two more balls of the same color to knock it off. Instead, stack it onto another color so when you knock that set off, both colors will pop.
    When all hope is lost, and the colored ball armada is knocking on your door, don't forget to use your arsenal of destructive grenades.

Diamond Dash maker: Social games 'will evolve again in the next years'

Frankly, they kind of have no choice. That's general idea Wooga studio head Henric Suuronen (pictured) seems to have put forward in an in-depth interview with Gamasutra. And it would be wise to listen--the Berlin, Germany-based Facebook game creator is third behind Zynga and EA (now that PopCap's numbers have been integrated), according to AppData.

During the interview, Suuronen gave Gamasutra a detailed explanation of where Facebook games have been, what it takes to create them from a design perspective and, most importantly, where they're going. Specifically speaking to social mechanics in Facebook games, Suuronen said to Gamasutra:

"Now moving four years forward, you have games like CityVille, Pioneer Trail from Zynga, Kabam games, Digital Chocolate games, and Zombie Lane -- great game -- and now Magic Land," Suuronen told Gamasutra. "So it has really evolved. So why would the progression stop here? So I think it will evolve, as it has done from four years ago with Jetman and Scrabulous and Tower Bloxx. So it will evolve again in the next years."

The hit maker behind Diamond Dash recently released its seventh game on Facebook, Magic Land, which enjoys a healthy 3.4 million monthly players and over 330,000 daily players. According to Suuronen, Wooga's latest game had the most man hours thrown into it, a trend he seems to believe will continue. "The whole myth of the minimum viable product -- it's gone," Suuronen told Gamasutra. "It's something that you say to investors to sound cool."

Sure, Suuronen believes that players will eventually get tired of the standard social gaming mechanics of sharing gifts and helping asynchronously. However, the Wooga studio head also points out that the harsh reality of designing Facebook games to get players to pay up isn't going anywhere, and some traditional designers have trouble coming to grips with that.

Considering social games are expected to make $1 billion this year alone (and cash in even more from there), traditional designers and companies better wise up quick if they want to fit in the next big money machine. Read Suuronen's full interview with Gamasutra here, in which he predicts how you might be enticed to pay up in the future.

Do you agree that Facebook games can only grow into more robust entertainment options from here? Where would you like to see the industry go from today's CityVille's and other life simulators?

Retro World contest: Enter to get your 15 minutes of fame

Still waiting for your 15 minutes of fame? Entertainment Games' new Retro World Photo contest might be your lucky break. Enter and you might win a starring role in this new point-and-click adventure game on Facebook alongside some of Hollywood's most memorable faces, such as Elvis "The Pelvis" Presley, Marilyn Monroe and a much (much) younger rendition of Dick Clark.

retro star contest

To enter the contest, submit a full-body picture of you wearing your best Sixties era getup. Two pictures will be chosen and the winners will star in a new episode of the game. Click here to enter the contest. While you're at it -- give the game a try. Love it or hate it, Retro World certainly offers something a little different than the rest of those 'Ville' games out there.

Capcom feels the power of The Smurf, gets bullish on social games

Seriously, those blue buggers must be hypnotizing or something. Capcom, the Japanese games company behind serious game franchises like Resident Evil, has revealed serious intention to take advantage of the social games movement. 1UP reports that Capcom will employ a laser focus on the social games industry, the same industry that kept it in the black in 2011.

"Capcom has decided to look at the social-game field from the scope of the entire company," Street Fighter IV producer Yoshinori Ono told Famitsu Magazine, translated by 1UP. "Instead of framing it in its own section like consoles or mobile games, it's something that all of Capcom development is involved with."

The news comes just as Capcom announced that the next game in the wildly popular (in Japan) Monster Hunter series would appear on mobile phones through Japanese social game publisher Gree. Ono, who will lead the charge, went on to say that this company-wide push into social will ultimately lead to new properties, as not many social gamers are also fans of, say, Street Fighter, even in Japan. (Though, Ono has admitted that fighting games would fit right on Facebook.)

"We discuss all the issues that go behind a platform choice, then go with what we think is the best solution," Ono said. "If we have titles suitable for the overseas market, for example, then Facebook or Google+ are viable choices for that."

Capcom's strictly-social subsidiary, Beeline Interactive, has enjoyed immense success in the U.S. with games like Smurfs' Village. That said, we'd be surprised if this new found social initiative didn't creep over into Capcom's Western efforts. Facebook gamers: Better start practicing your Hadouken.

[Via GamesIndustry.biz]

Do you think Capcom is making a smart move in focusing more on social games company-wide? What Capcom franchise do you hope hits Facebook or Google+ first?

FarmVille's co-creator not sure selling to Zynga was the best idea

Well, duh. Now that Zynga is supposedly looking at $20 billion, thanks largely to FarmVille, we'd feel a tinge of regret too. The game's co-creator, Sizhao Yang (pictured), told FINS Technology about early interactions with CEO Mark Pincus, creating what would spawn an industry-changing revolution and ultimately selling MyMiniLife (and that game) to Zynga in June 2009.

"If I had known then what I know now, I don't think we would have sold [MyMiniLife]," Yang admitted to FINS. "But we did fairly well for ourselves, as well as for our investors." A little over a year later, Yang left Zynga on a day's notice, never looking back. Sure, Yang may seem to regret his decision to sell FarmVille, but his decision to leave came down to a simple idea.

"I left about eight figures in restricted stock on the table," Yang revealed to FINS. "I realized that when I'm 80 or 90 years old, am I going to be more proud of the fact that I created FarmVille and BetterWorks, or more proud of the fact that I have $20 or $40 million in my bank account? For me I was going to be more proud of the things I create and the things I do."

Yang moved on to found other tech startups, most recently BetterWorks, a company that makes Web-based software for small companies to more easily obtain company perks for their employees. Since the FarmVille mastermind's departure, Zynga has gone on to create several more games based on the FarmVille blueprint (which has since been put into question), each more successful than the last. That said, the all new CastleVille has quite a lot to live up to.

[Image Credit: TEDxOrangeCoast]

How do you think the social game scene might have been different had Yang not sold FarmVille? Would you have sold in the same situation?

The Oregon Trail: American Settler combines Pioneer Trail and CityVille on iOS

In the time that Zynga's Pioneer Trail (formerly FrontierVille) has been available on Facebook, many similar games have been released, but perhaps no other game has been so downright similar (the word "clone" quickly comes to mind) as Gameloft's The Oregon Trail: American Settler. The main difference here is that Pioneer Trail is available for play on Facebook, while American Settler is for iPhone / iPad.

The game starts with your family of three ending their trip on the Oregon Trail and winding up in the overrun wilderness of the open frontier. You'll be asked to construct items like a cabin for your family, farm plots to grow food for your family (and eventually visitors), chop down trees for lumber, and complete quests for your family members and friends alike. That being said, some of these features do introduce slight differences to the experience.

For instance, some buildings, instead of automatically turning a profit every few hours, require food to operate. It's a situation similar to that of another Zynga game, CityVille, in that the food here is the "Goods" there, and you'll receive coins and experience points when they're gone (this could take minutes or hours). In keeping with the CityVille comparisons, we also see decorations being used to offer bonuses to the payout of surrounding items. For some originality, and to bring in a classic "Oregon Trail" element, your family members can get sick. You'll need to collect medicine to help them by asking your friends to send it to you.

Speaking of traditional Oregon Trail elements, you'll also have a chance to go hunting for food by shooting at the random critters that appear while chopping trees and performing other "nature-themed" tasks on your land.

Gallery: The Oregon Trail: American Settler iOS


Once you start building your city out in the frontier, you'll quickly need to build more homes so that you can staff more businesses (again, this is the CityVille element of the game), but will also run into random encounters a la Pioneer Trail. You'll be given a short story and will then need to choose from various options, depending on the risk you're willing to take to be successful, or how many resources you'd like to dedicate to that choice.

Even though I could continue (for quite a while, I'd imagine) with the comparisons to other games, as, let's face it, Gameloft is kind of known for that, The Oregon Trail: American Settler is a pretty fun game in its own right. It runs great technically, and looks pretty sharp as well. The game's social elements are handled directly through either Facebook or Gameloft Live (your choice), and you can post rewards or requests directly to Facebook (after connecting to your account), asking your friends to come play the game with you. Best of all? The game's free to download and is universal, meaning that it will handle equally well on both iPhone or iPad, although I can see there being some issues with the iPhone version, if only due to the size of the screen.

If you've ever wished you could take these sorts of Facebook games with you on the go, why not try out American Settler as a substitute?

Download Oregon Trail: American Settler from iTunes -->

Have you tried the Oregon Trail: American Settler on your iOS device? What do you think of this frontier-themed combination of Pioneer Trail and CityVille gameplay mechanics?

Fact: Women who play online games have more sex

Yes, it's true, says a new survey by Harris Interactive for GameHouse. Women who play online games are not only a little older, a little happier but they're also making whoopie more often than those who don't play games. Hel-lo Mrs. Robinson.

"Maybe if we all watched a little less TV and played more games online, we'd all be having a little more sex," GameHouse Chief Gamer Matt Hulett says. "Joking aside, this survey matches up with our internal data that women are widely embracing online games with 63% of GameHouse players being women. It's nice to know that females who play online games are happy – both in their relationships and even in the bedroom."

OK, so if you take a closer look at the numbers in the infographic (below), only a small percentage of people in this group have sex more than your typical non-game playing woman. But even a slight change in amorous activities may be reason enough to start playing FarmVille or the umpteen other free online games.

The survey also says ladies who play games online have better relationships -- 64% are married or living with someone, 70% are happy with those relationships and about half of the respondants say playing games make them feel both happier and smarter.

As an added bonus, lady online gamers generally do not fit the sedentary, overweight gamer stereotype. In fact, they are just as physically active as someone who doesn't play online games. What kind of activity does that entail? Apparently, workouts both outside and inside the boudoir.

Check out more factoids from the survey in the infographic below.

women who play games online have more sex

Zynga gobbled up two unnamed companies for $4.9 million in 45 days

Talk about nom-noms. VentureBeat reports that FarmVille maker Zynga has acquired two unnamed companies between Oct. 1 and now, citing an amendment to an S1 filing submitted to the U.S. Security and Exchanges Commission yesterday. Zynga has filed several amendments to the S1 filing in preparation for its expected $1 billion initial public offering, but this is by far the juiciest (and most positive, frankly).

According to the filing, Zynga paid a measly $4.9 million total for both companies, meaning they were likely rather small. But it's exactly these tiny acquisitions that have helped the company amass over 2,500 employees globally. With this news, Zynga has bought 15 companies in the past year, all for a total of $45.5 million. Zynga's most recent acquisition (that we know of) was Astro Ape back in August

EA paid nearly $1 billion upfront for Bejeweled maker PopCap, while Disney played upwards $500 million for Playdom last year. Keep in mind, however, that both EA and Disney are basically in a position where small startups simply won't do, if they want to combat Zynga. But don't think Zynga hasn't at least considered a major purchase ... or made major offers outright. Now, who's next?

Who do you think Zynga might have purchased? Do you think EA and Disney could employ a similar strategy to compete with the company?

Casual gamers dump 3DS, PSP to hook up with iPhone, Android

As Facebook would say, "It's complicated." According to a survey released by research firm Cowen and Company, only 26 percent of casual gamers are playing on a Nintendo DS, 3DS or Sony PSP, GamesIndustry.biz reports. By contrast, 52 percent of those surveyed reported playing games on their phone. Granted, this is a survey, but we smell a trend ... a bittersweet one.

"Over the last five years, the penetration of dedicated handheld platforms into survey respondents self-identifying as casual gamers has declined by 29 per cent, with the vast majority of that decline occurring in the last two years," the report reads, according to GI.biz. "We believe cellphone and smartphone gaming is significantly impacting demand for dedicated handheld devices."

The report is based on a survey conducted in September across 1,300, randomly selected people throughout the US, 1,001 of which reported that they've played video games. The report resonates with not only recent surveys, but with how a lot of investors feel. Well, at least in Nintendo's case. The big N's response?

"The concept of having our core franchises on other systems really flies in the face of what we believe in, and that's because by understanding the hardware, that's how we're able to bring these great experiences forward," Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime recently told us, referring to games like Super Mario 3D Land for 3DS. At the very least, bonus points for sticking to your guns, guys.

Do you think Nintendo and Sony have a chance to regain supposedly lost ground in portable gaming? Where do you play most of your handheld games now?

Quote of the Moment: 'People will get burnt out on' today's social games

Better prepare your last words, CityVille. Alright, so the top Facebook game might have longer than that in it, but Glitch developer and Tiny Speck founder Stewart Butterfield says that games designed like Zynga's best can't last forever. Speck, best known for creating Flickr, made the projection during an in-depth interview with GamesIndustry.biz.

"People will get burnt out on this," Butterfield told GI.biz. "Maybe some of them will last for a very long time, but I feel like the easy successes have been taken already, and that won't work in the long run. I mean, I could be wrong about that, and I hope I am, because that would be a lame future for games."

The social game rookie is speaking to how the majority of, if not all, popular Facebook games are designed: the Energy system. Butterfield thinks that social gamers will eventually grow tired of being forced to either wait to progress in a game after their Energy is spent or put up a buck to keep going. (Only it's slowly becoming more like $5.)

"Just my own reaction, the first time I saw that it was okay, the second time I saw that it was okay, and by whatever time it is now I'm like, 'I get this. It's transparent, and I don't give a shit about having a bigger building here that cost me three dollars.,'" the Glitch maker admitted to GI.biz. In other words, he's tired of the gated progress design in Facebook games. Actually, so should we after four years of putting up with it.

Are you sick of Energy in social games? What should social game makers do to change this system yet remain profitable so that they might keep making games?

Ever want to joust on a Vespa? Then thank social game maker Naoplay

Soon, friend--your weird, weird dreams of impaling your best friends while riding a motorscooter will come true. French social game developer Naoplay has announced MetroJoust, a new social game headed to Facebook, iOS and Android come 2012. Expected in the year's "first trimester (what kind of time frame is that?)," MetroJoust sounds fairly self-explanatory.

You'll get to compete in a joust ... in a metropolitan area with metropolitan themes. We can already imagine how this is going to turn out. (Spoiler: It'll probably be a skill-based affair.) According to the announcement, "MetroJoust offers different and complementary playing experiences depending on the platform you play it on." We're just gonna go out on a limb and guess that means you'll earn rewards usual across multiple versions of the game.
MetroJoust artwork
Naoplay says that MetroJoust will start off like a casual social game, but later ramp up in complexity. The game will later feature "real RPG dimension including character leveling, interaction with other players but also non playing characters, a complete guild system and from the start, a thousand items available, allowing players to upgrade and personalize their characters."

Based on these initial screens, we know that the game will focus heavily on artwork evocative of themes like urban decay or perhaps even post-apocalypse. Players will get to deck out their modern knights like new shields, armor and steeds--er, rides. Naoplay will release another teaser for MetroJoust on Dec. 8, and maybe we'll get to see a Vespa joust in motion. But only if it's a Vespa.

Are you intrigued by a Facebook game focusing on modern jousts? Which of the three platforms do you think a game like this would do best on?

Zynga owns the 'Ville' suffix, apparently, Night Owl Games fights it

Oh, yeah? Well, then we're trademarking "'Town"--ha! Houston, Tex.-based social game maker Night Owl Games has filed suit against Zynga over the fair use of the title "Dungeonville" in a new level or gameplay mode in its Dungeon Overlord. Night Owl Games took the case to federal court on Nov. 18 after months of dispute with the gaming giant.

Night Owl Games, which received full rights to Dungeon Overlord (which it developed) from SOE recently, filed for the "Dungeonville" trademark in Feb. 10, 2011. In July--just as Zynga filed with the U.S. Trademark office to delay the approval process of "Dungeonville"--the company's lawyer started an email exchange with Night Owl Games. The emails, featured as evidence in Night Owl's lawsuit, ask the company to abandon the trademark.

According to the lawsuit, Night Owl Games offered to hold off on "Dungeonville", but only if Zynga agreed to do the same. Of course, Zynga refused. Based on this email exchange, Zynga seems to believe that it has rights over any use of the suffix "'Ville". Well, at least as it pertains to video games. Basically, Night Owl is asking a Houston federal court judge to rule that "Dungeonville" is not a trademark infringement. Houston Examiner reports that a hearing should be scheduled within 30 days.

This is far from the first time Zynga has attempted to trademark "'Ville" at the butt of a video game title, nor is this a first for the company to oppose potential competitors using the suffix. What might be a first, however, is if Zynga wins.

Does Zynga have rights to any video game with suffix "'Ville" in its title? Can Night Owl Games win this case?

Angry Birds Seasons Halloween update means a new bird is in town

Oh, and let's not forget about the 30 "bone-chilling" new levels and the bunch of new Game Center achievements to earn. Rovio unleashed a new update to Angry Birds Seasons today, and confirmed our suspicions that a new bird was in the works.

We're not sure of the new avian's name, but at least we know what it does. This orange little bugger isn't much of anything when first launched, but tap the screen while it's in midair and the bird will balloon several times its size.

Of course, this means it'll gain an enormous amount of weight, so the bird might be ideally used once inside a pig structure. The list of Game Center achivements to earn includes defeating 300 skeletons, finishing all 30 new stages, earning three stars on every level and more. And, like all Angry Birds updates, this one is absolutely free.
Angry Birds Seasons update
Well, given that you've already purchased Angry Birds Seasons for the buck. Look, we may be sick of Angry Birds around here, but not even we can help getting just a little giddy over a newly announced bird. This must be the power Rovio has over everyone else--must ... fight it ... but, I need that bird. And I just bought it. Now we have a better idea as to how Angry Birds might be worth more than $1 billion.

[Via Pocket Gamer]

Check out the rest of our Halloween coverage right here.

You've already downloaded the update, too, haven't you? For how much longer do you think Rovio can keep up the Angry Birds planet-like gravitational pull?

Quote of the Moment: 'PC gaming press is discovering what to cover'

And they're mumbling and grumbling the whole way too. During an interview with [a]list daily, A Bit Lucky CEO Frederic Descamps said that "hardcore" games and social games are merging as more complexity and depth is introduced to Facebook games. However, the company's (which just launched hardcore Facebook game Lucky Space) CCO Jordan Maynard alluded to social gaming's effect on games media too.

"I think the PC gaming press is discovering what to cover," Maynard said to [a]list daily. "While initially there was a lot of rejection of the F2P space, games like League of Legends are making them rethink that. Facebook is on your PC so it is sort of PC gaming, but they didn't want to believe it."

And perhaps Maynard has a point: It's only recently that most traditional video game news outlets began to cover the social game scene. And even then it's been generally limited to Zynga and Playfish's efforts. Does this mean that Facebook games have "arrived"? Well, social games can only go up from here, one would guess.

As the two disparate game genres continue to close the gap, surely they'll garner even more attention from mainstream PC gaming press. But it makes you wonder: Do Facebook games even need to be legitimized by big time press outlets?

ews Add Comment Are social games cool now? Gen Y is 30 percent of US social gamers

Social games aren't just going "hardcore", but it seems they're no longer just for old middle-aged folk. According to an eMarketer report citing data from Information Solutions Group (ISG), 30 percent of US social gamers are between 18 and 29 years old. That figure is as of September of this year, and in January 2010, Generation Y made up for just 15 percent.

With that change, the average age of the social gamer has dropped from 45 to just above 41 years old. So, social gamers are getting younger--how did this happen? Well, "hardcore" games are generally for younger audiences, so perhaps the recent boom in strategy games on Facebook accounts for at least some of this shift. Generally speaking, social games are slowly becoming more visually attractive and action-packed. Take The Sims Social, CastleVille and Mafia Wars 2, for instance.

As for what this could mean, social game makers are likely going to create games that are more appealing to this younger crowd. That's especially considering the data from ISG finds that younger social gamers are more likely to pay up for virtual items. Will 2012 be the year of the Facebook shooter? Probably not, but you can probably expect more games like this.

Will social games change now that younger players are getting into the mix? If so, how will they change, and if not, why should they remain the same?

Your mission, should you accept, is to play this branded Facebook game

Hey, no one said you had to dig it. Paramount Pictures and New York-based Funtactix have launched Mission: Impossible The Game on Facebook to coincide with Mr. Cruise's fourth flick in the series, Ghost Protocol. The game puts players through the gauntlet of missions set to take down enemies of the IMF--the Impossible Missions Force, not the International Monetary Fund.

Players are sent on a series of eight missions through heavily-guided quests that tell them exactly what needs to be done. That amounts to clicking enemies to take them down, clicking items to search or hack them and--you guessed it--clicking things to add more gear to your home base. Mission: Impossible The Game will take players across the globe in over 200 missions, all accomplished through the almighty click.

"Mission: Impossible The Game goes well beyond a typical social game and brings an unprecedented level of detail and authenticity," Funtactix CEO Sam Glassenberg said in a release. "It allows fans of the action-packed Mission: Impossible movies to create an agent in the official M:I universe and live a life of espionage and covert operations with their real-life friends as accomplices."
Mission Impossible The Game
However, it's not exactly what one would expect from a game revolving around explosions and espionage. At least there is something in it for you ... should you choose to accept it. (Sorry, it's just too easy.) In the coming weeks before the movie's Dec. 21 release date, Paramount Pictures will dole out prizes that Mission: Impossible fans can only get through the this game.

Want free tickets to see the Ghost Protocol US premiere, or a hometown screening for you and 30 friends? How do free tickets to the movie when it releases and signed memorabilia sound? Well, then you better stick with the game through Dec. 21. Hey, it's not like clicking things around is hard labor--just don't expect giant explosions or epic chase scenes with doves.

CastleVille beats CityVille as Zynga's fastest growing Facebook game

It's a good day to be the king. Zynga tells us that CastleVille has amassed over 5 million daily players in just six days. (However, AppData tells a different story, though we're told it will reflect this number in a few days.) That's leaps and bounds beyond how quickly the developer's top Facebook game, CityVille, grew. The city-builder took on just 3.2 million daily players in the same time frame when it launched in December 2010. Zynga provided more fun facts.

The San Francisco-based social games giant says that 68 percent of CastleVille fans are logging in twice daily, and that 135,176,035 quests have been completed. Players have expanded their kingdoms in the Gloom 4,594,750 times, all the while bashing 23,845,983 beasties with their bare hands. If anything, that's one helluva lot of clicks.

CastleVille launched just last week to fanfare, but likely exploded over the weekend thanks to cross-promotions in FarmVille and CityVille--two of the developer's most popular games. In CityVille, players can earn 20 free Zoning Permits for reaching Level 5 in its medieval counterpart, while FarmVillers will score five Instant Grows for doing the same.

These rewards are far more substantial than usual cross-promotions, and we bet there will be more where that came from. Adventure World failed to grow on its own for its first few weeks of existence, but Zynga stepped in with liberal use of cross-promotions to skyrocket its player base to over 16 million monthly. While the big Z might be more reliant on its existing players than it would like, this growth is nevertheless ... insane? Yeah, we think that's the word.

Are you enjoying CastleVille so far? What do you think Zynga will need to put out in order to top this potential milestone?

Zynga starts decorating really early in CityVille Holidaytown for iPhone

We can just imagine the meeting that spawned CityVille Holidaytown: "You know what, this is the holidays, gosh darn it! Forget an in-game event--we're doing a full-blown Christmas--er Holiday game." Zynga has released its second CityVille game to the App Store, CityVille Holidaytown, and what better way to stir the Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa (did we get them all?) spirit than an iPhone game?

The game looks like it plays essentially the same way as CityVille Hometown, but swap the human residents for elves and and bricks homes for gingerbread houses. Players are tasked with building the ultimate Christmas town with, of course, the help of their Facebook friends. Zynga's first-ever holiday-themed game is governed by quests, much like the original, though it's not connected to your web CityVille game.

Simply put, CityVille Holidaytown is a CityVille dedicated solely to ringing in the holidays (even if a tad early). With the stress of the holidays that begins on the dot on Nov. 25, the least this game could do is get you in the mood to celebrate amidst the Christmas chaos. Besides, it's 100 percent free to play ... now we've got your attention.
CityVille Holidaytown on iPhone
Click here to download CityVille Holidaytown for free from the App Store Now >

Are you ready for Christmas just yet? Do you think a Christmas game wherever you go can put you in the spirit?

Disney, Playdom look to former OnLive exec as head of social games

Former OnLive VP of games and media John Spinale got traditional game publishers interested in streaming their games, perhaps he has a trick or two up his sleeve for Disney. VentureBeat reports that Spinale has joined Disney as its head of social games, essentially taking over Playdom GM (and Disney Interactive Media Group co-president) John Pleasants's duties.

Spinale, now based in DIMG's Palo Alto-Calif. offices, will cover Playdom's day-to-day activities and report to Pleasants, according to VentureBeat. Before coming to Playdom, Spinale handled bringing dozens of new games and publishers on board to OnLive's video game streaming service--quite the feat, if you ask us.

"Playdom has an exciting road map for 2012 and beyond, and John will play an important role in bringing the magic of Disney to the world's most popular social media platforms," Pleasants said. "Social games are a key part of Disney's digital strategy, and will be a critical driver of DIMG's future success."

This news comes just after Business Insider's scathing report on the state of Disney and Playdom, citing nameless sources. One source even said, "Six top executives at the VP level or above have moved on in the last three months including Playdom's Co-COO." If those statements are to be true, then Spinale has quite a lot of work ahead of him. Spinale will have the golden opportunity to oversee Disney's long-awaited entry into social games ... aside from Gnome Town.

Is this the nudge that Disney and Playdom need to make even bigger waves in the social games space? What Disney franchise do you hope hits Facebook first?

Black Friday doorbusters: Coming to an online game near you?

Black Friday is the biggest shopping day of the year in retail stores and, apparently, in online games.

Maple Story creator Nexon reports a massive surge in in-game item purchases during BF 2010 and expects history will repeat itself this year. On that day, which is generally devoted to gorging on Thanksgiving leftovers and stalking doorbuster deals, the company saw a 240% increase in virtual goods sales compared to the previous week. What were virtual shoppers snapping up like cheap flat-screen TVs? An item called a Miracle Cube in Maple Story, which can be used to randomly upgrade in-game items.

That statistic certainly leads one to wonder if other online games will roll out some doorbuster deals of their own. I'm sure more than a few people would be willing to wait on a virtual queue to buy, say, a deeply discounted FarmVille Unwither Ring, a rare (and pricey) item that ensures you'll never see a withered crop on your farm ever again.

Black Friday deals in games -- would that entice you to buy virtual goods?

Disney-branded Facebook games coming in 2012, Playdom head says

Can we all just say, “finally?” During a panel named “The Rise of Social Games” at the f8 Facebook Developers Conference in San Francisco, Disney Interactive and Playdom head John Pleasants revealed that two to four Facebook games surrounding Disney xd brands will hit Facebook in 2012. The general topic of the panel was the fact that branded social games are taking off.

Pleasants was joined on the panel by Kabam CEO Kevin Chou, EA Interactive head Barry Cottle and Zynga CBO Owen Van Natta. Facebook director of games partnerships Sean Ryan moderated the panel with the preface that branded games will take over the Facebook platform. And he might be right: EA just released The Sims Social, Zynga will soon re-brand its new Adventure World with Indiana Jones and Kabam recently announced The Godfather: Five Families.

Playdom, which Disney acquired in July 2010 for a whopping $740 million, is ahead of the pack with two branded games on Facebook: ESPNU College Town and ESPN Sports Bar & Grill. Both games performed well, thanks to advertising through the ESPN TV network. While Disney owns the ESPN brand, notice how neither of those actually involve the insanely popular Disney characters we’ve come to love.

Honestly, we’re surprised this didn’t happen sooner. Consider this: Disney has its own cable TV channel through which it could, in theory, advertise whatever it wants. Pleasants didn’t get into why it’s taken this long for disney channel games to throw its cast of characters into Facebook games, but did reveal the power of the Disney name.

Gnome Town, which Playdom launched in the summer–and we enjoyed quite a bit–peaked at 530,000 daily players. But just plopping the Disney logo on top of the existing one made users more likely to spend in the game just through trust of the company’s name, according to Pleasants. “We think it’s an advantage, if you put game play first,” Pleasants said.

It’s comforting to hear this emphasized by these developers. (Kabam’s Chou shared the same sentiment.) Branded games on Facebook are OK in my book, but the last thing anyone wants to see is the genre become a branding machine.

Phineas And Ferb 3D Game – Disney XD Games 63

New Disney Game – Phineas and Ferb

Disney released a new game. Phineas and Ferb 3D online game. Klick here to read the complete review.

The new game is available at the Disney XD discovery channel. Get ahead of the game before its officially released next week!

Disney is introducing the brand new DisneyXD game. Phineas and Ferb in: The Transport inators of Doooom!

Doofenschmitz is up to his old tricks again, and who has gone missing? Phineas! Help Ferb find his brother and try to help Agent P thwarth Doofenschmitz evil plans!

Check out this new exciting Disney XD online game before all others do at the Disney Cartoon network games website!

Check out Disney’s cartoon network to find a lot of amazing games and news. Disney offers a lot of cartoon games on their site. So head over to the Disney XD site and play the new Phineas and Ferb – The Transport-inators of Doooom! game!

Play the Scary Maze Game With Your Friends!

Have you ever played the Scary Maze Game 8 now? If not, brotha you haven’t lived!!! This maze game is the most awesome game on earth! But in order to play it you MUST have a partner in the room with you. So go find a friend, co-hort, or even an enemy – it doesn’t matter! Then match your wits and your mouse skills with the game and see if you’re awesome enough to win the BIG prize at the end!

Chinese Couple Sells All Three Kids to Play Online Games

A young Chinese couple has sold all three of their children in exchange for money to play online Nick jr games at Internet cafes, reports a southern Chinese newspaper.

According to Sanxiang City News, the couple met in an Internet cafe back in 2007 and bonded over their obsession with online video games.  A year later, the parents — who are both under 21 — welcomed their first child, a son.  Days after his birth, they left him home alone while they went to play online agame at an Internet cafe 30 km away.

In 2009, Li Lin and Li Juan welcomed their second child, a baby girl, and came up with the idea to sell her for money to fund their online game obsession.  They did so, receiving RMB 3,000 (less than $500), which they spent entirely shortly after.  The couple then proceeded to sell their first child and got 10 times as much for him — RMB 30,000, or about $4600.

Upon having their third child — another boy — the parents followed in their previous footsteps and also got RMB 30,000 for him.

They were finally turned into authorities when Li Lin’s mother found out what her son and his girlfriend had done.

When asked if they missed their children, the parents answered, “We don’t want to raise them, we just want to sell them for some money.”

Sanxiang City Newsreports the couple didn’t know they were breaking the law.

Official Pokemon Game Coming To Smartphones

The Pokemon Company is set to bring an official Pokemon Online game to smartphone devices, marking the first time that an official Nintendo-copyrighted app will be available on the iOS and Android.

Called Pokemon Iie Tap (rougly Pokemon: Say Tap?), the app appears to be a rhythm game where players “tap on Pokemon indigo trading cards to the beat of a song from the anime,” according to a translation by consumer video game site GamesRadar.

According to the game’s official announcement, it will be available for most iOS devices, as well as Android devices running version 2.1 of the platform.

Though this is the first iOS or Android application to carry an official Nintendo copyright, it is not the first mobile app of any kind: a Pokemon mobile phone game called Pokemate was released in Japan in 2006.

Though it is a rarity, Nintendo does have a history of releasing official games on platforms that are not its own, including a promotional Flash game to promote its Tingle character.

A release outside of Japan has not been announced.

Nick Jr., MTVN expand in Asia

Rugrats and music fans in Singapore and Malaysia will be able to tune in to “Dora the Explorer” and 24-hour music videos, docus and concerts with the launch of Viacom’s Nick Jr. and MTVN HD in the territories in coming weeks.

Nick Jr Games. will bow on Singapore’s Starhub from May 18, while MTVN HD will air on Telekom Malaysia Berhad’s HyppTV in Malaysia from June 1.

Nick Jr. will be available on the StarHub TV’s Kids Basic Upsize Group, while MTVNHD will be available to existing StarHub TV’s Entertainment Basic Group customers who are subscribed to the Basic HD Upsize group.

TM will offer the two channels a la carte to its subscribers on HyppTV, Malaysia’s newest pay TV service.

The services will roll out to the rest of the region at a date to be announced.

Disney XD Games

Disney Friends for Change Games

To support the “Disney Friends for Change Games” on Disney Channel and Disney XD, Disneychannelgames.biz has launched an online destination at Disneyxd.biz, where kids and families can take part in the Games from home and help the planet — by making personal pledges of their own, playing online versions of the Games, and making art that matters! When kids play online versions of the Games at Disneyxd.biz, they can donate the points they earn to one of the four charities involved. At the end of the Games, the charity with the most points given by the Disney.com online community will receive $100K.


Friends for Change
Courtesy of Disney

In addition to playing online games for charity, kids can view exclusive video content and participate in a number of funonline activities.  Kids can create online art on the Friends for Change Group Wall at Disneyxd.biz, where they can see the transformative power of friends everywhere pitching in to make a difference. The Disneyxd.biz site will also feature exclusive videos from the “Disney Friends for Change Games,” including a special wrap-up show hosted by Tiffany Thorntonand Jason Earles. Kids can also download the official 2011 Friends for Change anthem “We Can Change the World” featuring Bridgit Mendler on Disneyxd.biz


Friends for Change
Courtesy of Disney

Over 30 Disney Channel Games and Disney XD Games stars from around the globe will compete in “Disney Friends for Change Games.” Four teams will play on behalf of a global charity — Fauna and Flora International, World Wildlife Fund, Ocean Conservancy and UNICEF. For five weeks beginning Friday, June 24, Disney Channelwill present “Disney Friends for Change Games” in interstitials during its Friday, Saturday and Sunday primetime original series programming, and Disney XD will present a special episode from the games Monday nights beginning June 27 (9:30 p.m., ET/PT). The Games will culminate with a special half-hour episode Sunday, July 31 on Disney Channel.


Friends for Change
Courtesy of Disney
About Disney’s Friends for Change

Disney’s Friends for Change is a multi-platform initiative that helps inspire kids and families to join together and make a positive impact on their world (and the people and animals that live there). Through PSAs on-air and online tool-kits, the program aims to provide useful information to help kids make small changes that add up to big differences. As part of the program, Disney donates $1 million dollars annually to fund projects all around the globe and has funded over 41 projects that help the planet ranging from educational & community programs to species & habitat protection. Friends for Change currently has over 4 million actions taking place from kids in 33 countries throughoutthe United States, Europe, Latin America, Japan, India and China. For more information, please visit Disneyxd.biz.

- Disney XD gets its game on

Astral-owned Disney XD Canada is delving deeper into the gaming space in a month-long promotion that will see the multi-platform brand take viewers behind the scenes of June’s Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), offer up two new games on DisneyXD.biz every week and give away five video game consoles to Disney XD viewers.

The Level Up contest runs through the month of September and is set to feature the star of What’s, Up Warthogs!, Eduard Witzke, reporting from this year’s E3 in eight short interstitial reports entitled Ed’s E3. New episodes of Ed’s E3 will premiere every Tuesday and Thursday from September 1 and will air throughout the Disney XD schedule. Additionally, a weekly entry word will appear in each episode, which can be used to enter the Level Up contest online to win one of five game consoles.

On top of entering the Level Up contest on DisneyXD.ca, viewers can explore a dedicated minisite to re-watch episodes of Ed’s E3 as well as test their skills on brand-new Disney XD games. Two new games will be unveiled each week with a bonus game available for those who can work out the special DisneyXD.biz game code.

Disney XD News

DISNEY XD TO PREMIERE “FORT BOYARD – ULTIMATE CHALLENGE,” A REALITY ADVENTURE SERIES ON MONDAY, OCTOBER 17

Geno Segers (Disney XD’s “Pair of Kings”) and popular British television presenter Laura Hamilton (“Dancing On Ice”) host an exciting competition requiring brainpower, courage and teamwork, “Fort Boyard – Ultimate Challenge,” a 10-part series premiering MONDAY, OCTOBER 17 (8:30-9:00 p.m., ET/PT), with a thrilling finale MONDAY, NOVEMBER 7 (8:00-9:00 p.m., ET/PT) on Disney XD. Based on the international game show phenomenon “Fort Boyard,” the series is set in a 19th century sea fort off the coast of France. It introduces six teams — 24 teens from the United States and the United Kingdom — who team up for a tournament where only one team will ultimately get the key to unlock the historic fort’s hidden treasures and win the honor of calling themselves “the conquerors of Fort Boyard.”

The reality adventure series marks the first kids’ version of the popular game show which premiered more than 20 years ago and has since been produced in over 38 countries worldwide.

In the premiere episode, team members from the Red Vipers and Yellow Scorpions compete in the first round of challenges to find out which team has what it takes to move on to become the conquerors of the fort.

“Fort Boyard – Ultimate Challenge” is produced by Zodiak Media Group’s production companies The Foundation and Adventure Line Productions, who created the concept for the original “Fort Boyard” and have been producing the series for 22 years.

The executive producers are Nigel Pickard and Ged Allen for The Foundation, Pierre Godde for Adventure Line Productions and Jamila Metran for CiTV. The producer is Steve Pinhay.

The series will be televised on Disney XD cable and satellite channels around the world (excluding France and the Nordics) and CiTV in the UK.

About “Fort Boyard”

“Fort Boyard” is the most successful adventure game show in the world, having sold to over 30 territories, while dominating France 2′s primetime summer schedule every year since 1990. The action takes place in an imposing fortress built in the middle of the ocean. This provides the perfect backdrop for strenuous, against-the-clock physical challenges and mind-boggling riddles, featuring strange characters and fearsome animals. All this and more awaits those attempting to reach the Treasure Room! Only the fittest and most intelligent contestants can hope to conquer Fort Boyard.

About Disney XD:

Disney XD is a basic cable channel and multi-platform brand showcasing a compelling mix of live-action and animated programming for Kids age 6-14, hyper-targeting boys and their quest for discovery, accomplishment, sports, adventure and humor. Disney XD branded content spans television, online, mobile and VOD platforms. The programming includes series, movies and short-form, as well as sports-themed programming developed with ESPN. In the U.S., disney channel XD is seen on a 24-hour, advertiser supported network that reaches over 78 million households via its basic cable and satellite affiliates. There are 22 other Disney XD Games channels around the world.

BBCW launches CBeebies games app

Games based on popular CBeebies Games series Charlie & Lola, Teletubbies, 3rd & Bird and Numberjacks are available through a new app launched by BBC Worldwide.

CBeebies On The Go is available for free on the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad to pre-school children in Australia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka and South Korea.

Developed by Tag Apps, it includes matching pairs picture games for the Teletubbies and Charlie & Lola, a Kerwhizz jigsaw game and a 3rd & Bird tap-the-fruit challenge. It also holds a number of short video clips from popular shows.

Director of CBeebies investment at BBCW, Henrietta Hurford-Jones, said the team had “worked hard to build a product that upholds the core values of learning through play”.

She added: “This new kids’ app is a first for the Channels business, so the learnings from this pilot phase will help shape any future plans to roll CBeebies Games On The Go out to new territories and different devices.”

More than 53m homes have access to the CBeebies channel worldwide.

CityVille: Deck the halls with Winter and Christmas themed items

December is right around the corner (as in, just a couple of hours away!), so what better way to bring in the new month than by turning your city in CityVille to a winter playground?! Only a few items have been released in the store's Winter theme thus far, but if you want to get a head-start on your holiday decorating, here's what's now available to purchase.

Holiday Radio Station (Community Building)

    Costs: 60 City Cash
    Allows: Raises max population by 2,250


Mistletoe Manor (Home)

    Costs: 45 City Cash
    Population: 1,100 - 2,180
    Rent: 149 coins every two hours


Redwood Tree (Decoration)

    Costs: 3 City Cash
    Payout Bonus: 3% to surrounding homes and businesses; extra 3% to Winter items


Gingerbread Man (Decoration)

    Costs: 3 City Cash
    Payout Bonus: 3% to surrounding homes and businesses; extra 3% to Winter items


Holiday Bakery (Business)

    Costs: 9,000 coins
    Requires: 245 Goods
    Supplies 1,376 coins


McCallister House (Home)

    Costs: 10,000 coins
    Population: 170 - 320
    Rent: 93 coins every hour


Candy Side Walk

    Costs: 25 coins per piece


The McCallister house has to be one of the neatest buildings I've seen released in CityVille, whether in a holiday theme or not, as it makes a subtle reference to the classic holiday movie franchise Home Alone. All things considered, the base of this home is rather small, when compared to what the home looks like in the movies, but at least that will help you better manage your space in your town (if land space is still a problem for you).

All of these items are marked as being limited edition in the store, but since December hasn't even technically started, giving us a few weeks before the big day (Christmas day, of course), I wouldn't expect these items to leave the store anytime soon. What I would expect, however, is for more items in the Winter / Christmas theme to launch between now and the end of the year, and you can be sure we'll let you know what those items are once they launch.

Check out the rest of our Holiday 2011 coverage right here.

Are you excited to see Christmas / Winter items start to roll out in CityVille? What other sorts of movie-inspired Christmas items would you like to see released

FarmVille: Santa's coming soon - have you been naughty?

While Winter Wonderland might offer FarmVille players more than enough content to last them through the month of December, the Christmas holiday and beyond, we'll apparently be receiving a visit from the big man in red himself: Santa! Santa looks to be coming with a new feature, if we can take a new gameplay loading screen seriously.

While it's no secret that Santa will indeed make an appearance in the game - "Guess Who's Coming to FarmVille?" pretty much guarantees it, it's what role Santa will play in the game that remains to be revealed. We're asked if we've been naughty of nice, with that text presented above a pile of presents. Could this mean that Santa will be part of an in-game gift exchange? Or, will we be able to complete a set of goals to prove to Santa how nice we've been, so that we'll be given more presents? At the very least, it looks like we'll likely end up with a Winter-themed collection event in the game, (most likely) bringing some limited edition goodies with it.

The possibilities here are endless, but we'll make sure to stay on top of things to make sure you're the first to know when Santa himself shows up on our farms.

Check out the rest of our Holiday 2011 coverage right here.

Are you excited that Santa will be making an appearance in FarmVille? What sort of feature do you think Santa will be involved in?

FarmVille: Pick up a pair of Unwither Rings for home and Lighthouse Cove

Even though Winter Wonderland is now available in FarmVille (for users willing to pay $10 to get in, that is), we've yet to see an Unwither Ring released on this new, fourth farm. Instead, we've seen two Unwither Rings launch in the store. The first, the regular blue Unwither Ring is available only on your Home Farm. The other is the purple Unwither Ring that's locked to your Lighthouse Cove.

Both of these rings, regardless of color of location cost 250 Farm Cash. There hasn't been a change in their prices, but if you've yet to pick one up for either of these farms, and would like to rest easy, knowing that your crops (on those specific farms) will never wither again, you can shell out the $45 or more that it will cost you in Farm Cash.

As a suggestion, these rings will be available for the next five days, so if I were you, I'd wait until a Farm Cash promotion (say, a free-gift-with-purchase promotion) launched within the game. At least that way, you'd receive two items for that incredibly high Farm Cash price. Just don't wait too long, or you might miss out on these rings, and be forced to wait until Zynga re-releases them yet again.

Do you have an Unwither Ring on either your home or Lighthouse Cove farm? Do you think the permanent boost is worth such a high price

FarmVille Winter Holiday Items: Holiday Cookie Tree, Wreath Chicken and more

With tonight's FarmVille update, we see a slew of new items being released in the current Winter Holiday limited edition item theme. While these items would look great on your new Winter Wonderland farm, if you're waiting for free rides before heading to the game's new snow-covered farm, you can still purchase these items on your other farms, giving each of them a touch of the holiday spirit. Here's a look at what's available (hint: get your Farm Cash ready).

Trees

Holiday Cookie Tree - 6 Farm Cash
Big Holiday Cookie Tree - 12 Farm Cash
Snowflake II Tree - 8 Farm Cash
Big Snowflake II Tree - 14 Farm Cash

If it still needs to be said, remember that if you're a tree collector, you'll only need to purchase the first two trees in each pair, as the "big" versions of each can be earned for free from Mystery Seedlings grown either in your own Orchards, or claimed from friends.

Animals

Snowflake Mini Horse - 24 Farm Cash
Holiday Light Cow - 20 Farm Cash
Holiday Bell Ram - 16 Farm Cash
Wreath Chicken - 18 Farm Cash
Mini Candycane Pony - 26 Farm Cash
Black Caribou - 2.5 million coins

Unfortunately, if you're an animal collector, you're in for a pretty expensive time with this release. Even the Black Caribou costs a pretty extreme amount of coins, if you don't save them up routinely.

Buildings

Holiday Clock Shop - 15 Farm Cash

This building is a fairly small one, with just a few natural elements sitting around its base (a tree and some flowers). It's still a cute building, even though it's not very large, and at least its lower price tag matches its size.

Decorations

Holiday Forest - 4 Farm Cash
Caroling Gnomes - 12 Farm Cash
Holiday Birdhouse - 50,000 coins

If you purchase nine of the items in this week's release (including all four trees), you'll also be given a free Cider Waterfall. Although, after all of the Farm Cash you've spent to earn it, it wouldn't exactly be free anymore... Either way, these items will be available in the game's store for the next two weeks. Remember, you can purchase them across all four farms, but if you want one item on each farm, you will have to purchase duplicates separately.

Check out the rest of our Holiday 2011 coverage right here.

What do you think of this newest batch of Winter Holiday items? Will you purchase them just for your Home Farm, or will you use them to further decorate your new Winter Wonderland farm?