Little has been heard from Zynga Japan since the company shut down the Japanese versions of FarmVille and Treasure Isle on social network Mixi, but now the studio seems to be making up for lost time with Montopia, a new … Continue reading →
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/InsideSocialGames/~3/tthwL7AM-X0/
Now, Zynga fans across the Pacific can beat the living crap out of each other over Facebook. Zynga Japan has successfully translated the social game giant’s Empires & Allies into Japanese, its 13th available language. However, according to Serkan Toto, the Facebook games isn’t so hot in Japan. Japanese Facebook users amount to just 6 million–some of Facebook’s biggest games double that number in daily players.
Based on what we can gather from the announcement (thank heaven for Google Translate), nothing has been changed in E&A for Japanese audiences. The same was not the case for Japanese Zynga releases like FarmVille, which had its name changed to FarmVillage upon release. Many chalk up Zynga’s wild success to capitalizing on its existing player base, but we’re launching in several languages helps quite a bit, too.
However, Serkan Toto reports that Zynga Japan isn’t doing so well. On Mixi, a Japanese mobile social network that’s far more popular than Facebook, the Zynga satellite studio closed two of the global company’s largest properties: FarmVillage and Treasure Isle. It’s unfortunate events like this that are proof that not even social games are universal in appeal. We’re not sure there are too many mega popular strategy games in Japan, so whether E&A will float there is up in the air.
Why do you think some of Zynga’s most popular games have failed in Japan? Will the social game giant ever find similar success there? Sound off in the comments. Add Comment.
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Source: http://blog.games.com/2011/12/23/empires-allies-japanese-localization/
Filed under: News
Hey, look on the bright side, Zynga: At least the guy didn’t leave for a competitor. IndustryGamers reports that former Zynga studio VP Lou Castle (pictured) left for Shuffle Master, a Las Vegas-based creator of various casino game products like shufflers. According to IndustryGamers, Castle’s move was purely for personal reasons, just months after joining the social game giant.
“The Zynga gig was clearly a 5 day a week, 24/7 requirement,” Castle told IndustryGamers. “[I have] twins in senior year of high school and [Shuffle Master's] a local job. Life’s too short, so I couldn’t resist.” Quite the noble move, eh? Well, Castle had already served on Shuffle Master’s board of directors for six years before becoming the company’s CSO, or chief strategy officer. Castle opted to resign from his position on the board as Chairman of the Audit Committee before taking on the job.
Castle is best known for his contributions in creating the famed strategy game series, Command & Conquer, as co-founder of Westwood Studios. The former Zynga executive most recently joins Treasure Isle GM Jeremy Verba in leaving the company. Verba also entered a completely different industry, becoming the CEO of famous (or infamous?) online dating website eHarmony.
These recent departures from Zynga aren’t to other game companies, but away from the games industry entirely. Whether Zynga proves to be the video game swan song for industry veterans has to be seen. But the San Francisco-based social games maker presses on, with almost too many games announced recently.
Why do you think folks are leaving Zynga, but for companies in completely different industries? Is this the start of a trend of the social game maker? Sound off in the comments. Add Comment.
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Source: http://blog.games.com/2011/10/25/zynga-studio-vp-lou-castle-leaves/
Filed under: FarmVille, CityVille, News
Wait a second, that’s not possible. Zynga games are for casual players, aren’t they? Well, maybe not as much as previously though. A report issued by Raptr, the social network for gamers, reveals that the 265 million fans of games like CityVille and FarmVille are playing those games almost as much as Halo players, VentureBeat reports. More importantly, Raptr users are playing said games more than “core” game franchises like Grand Theft Auto, Assassin’s Creed and Gears of War.
Raptr’s report breaks down the top game franchises on the social network by time spent playing, as the service tracks whenever users enter a game and for how long they play. Zynga’s stable of games tails top hardcore franchises like Call of Duty’s massive 43 percent time share and Halo’s 14 percent with 13 percent. The remaining 12 percent is reserved for other hardcore games.
According to the report, big time hardcore games like CoD and WoW are played for longer sessions at a time, but Zynga Facebook games such as Empires & Allies or Pioneer Trail are played more frequently. In fact, Raptr goes on to say that about 12 to 20 percent of CityVille players are also deep into games like StarCraft 2 and Call of Duty Black Ops. And the percentage of Xbox 360 owners that have played a Zynga game increased by 50 percent to a total of 30 percent, the report claims.
The data goes on to show that Zynga controls 60 percent of the market in social games, at least judging from Raptr’s 10 million users. And before The Sims Social came along, the massive company’s top games racked up three times as many hours as the rest of the top 10 Facebook games combined. Not to mention that Zynga fans are loyal: 90 percent of FrontierVille, Treasure Isle, CityVille, and Empires & Allies players were pulled from existing Zynga games.
While it almost goes without saying, Zynga is still killing it. More importantly for the company, however, is that reports like this will help instill confidence in its upcoming $1 billion initial public offering. With recent news that the company’s profits plummeted 90 percent–and that The Sims Social has gobbled up most of its top games–made those prospects shaky.
[Image Credit: VentureBeat]
Do you happen to be a “hardcore gamer” that dabbles in Zynga games? Are you surprised at all by Raptr’s findings? Sound off in the comments. Add Comment.
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Source: http://blog.games.com/2011/09/27/zynga-ville-games-halo-raptr-report/
Filed under: Other Games
Chocked full of adorable mini-games, cute critters, soothing music, and positive vibes all-around, Sharkius’ Games family-friendly Me to You: My Place finally has its own website, which is open to players of all ages.
This was a smart move by the game’s publisher, Carte Blanche Greetings, because regardless of a game’s content, Facebook and federal policies impose an age limit that only allows those 13 years-old and up to join.
On top of that, Me to You: My Place has had very limited success on Facebook, since its launch last December, though player reviews have been overwhelmingly positive. Due to its collection of mini-games, Me to You: My Place is heavily reminiscent of zSlide’s Treasure Madness (which preceded Zynga‘s Treasure Isle).
Basically, you play Tatty Teddy (the star of Carte Blanche Greetings’ huge stuffed animals franchise, Me to You Bears) as he rescues his Blue Nosed Friends in a fantasy world. You do this by clicking on tiles to find said friends and to hunt for treasure. Doing so, puts you face-to-face with a random mini-game.
The ones I’ve encountered are Dilly’s Dash (a simple platform jumping game à la Robot Unicorn Attack), Snowdrop’s Bubble Hop (which is definitely inspired by Winterbells), Sky Writing (a speed typing game), Maths Magic (a basic arithmetic game), and Fruits Fusion (think Wooga’s Diamond Dash). The best thing about these mini-games is there are actually high score boards in each one, so you can compare how well you’re doing with other players.
The rest of the game involves caring for the animal friends you’ve rescued until they become your eternal BFFs, which will make them part of your friend collection. This includes fulfilling point-and-click activities and growing crops to feed them with.
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Click here to play Me to You: My Place on Facebook >>
[Hat-tip: Shiny Shiny]
What do you folks think of the Tatty Teddy spiel? Do you think it’ll find more success outside of Facebook? Sound off in the comments. Add Comment.
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Source: http://blog.games.com/2011/08/17/tatty-teddy-me-to-you-my-place-sharkius/
Filed under: FarmVille, News
In the first quarter of this year ending March 2011, Zynga generated about $235 million in revenue. Compared to last year’s 89 million players, FarmVille has half the monthly players at 39 million. So, how did the game end up making more money than ever with half of its player base? According to VentureBeat, it’s all about the content, baby.
Zynga released more content to FarmVille this year than ever before, with a full-blown expansion in English Countryside and more updates than you can shake a strawberry at. It’s said that only 1 to 3 percent of social gamers pay, so either FarmVille’s coveted 1 to 3 percent has been there all along, or the company has raked in new paying players with flashy content.
Considering the back lashing we read on the forums daily, we’ll go with the latter. And this 1 to 3 percent of FarmVille players doesn’t even need to pay that much for Zynga to make some serious dough.
According to VentureBeat’s math, players only need to put up $10.67 to $31.66 USD to have filled Zynga’s immense pockets. In comparison, over 11 million nerds fork up about $15 every month to play World of Warcraft. That says nothing else about Zynga’s 1 percent other than it is massive in comparison to the competition.
For Zynga, the best way to generate increased revenue is simple: introduce more free and paid content, and fast. And not every game makes money. Treasure Isle, for instance, is reported to make little money by Zynga in its IPO paperwork. And according to VentureBeat, paying gamers stick around for 10 to 25 months. So, if Zynga hopes to keep making more dough, perhaps we can expect the next big FarmVille expansion to launch before next January.
Are you a paying FarmVille player? How do you think Zynga entices players to pay, and have you ever considered paying up for virtual goods? Share with us in the comments. Add Comment.
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Source: http://blog.games.com/2011/07/05/farmville-makes-more-money-half-players/
Arookoo is a “social fitness platform” in three parts: mobile, web, and social. Reader’s Digest Association and Vivity Labs’ big idea is to turn walking into a real-life game. To do this, they released a free iPhone app that takes advantage of the iPhone’s Accelerometer and GPS functions, created a website to help users track fitness progress, and finally, a Facebook game that players can earn boosts for, while around walking with their iPhones in the real world.Of the three, the Facebook idea is the most novel. But letting players use their pedometers to power up game items isn’t entirely a new one. (Nintendo did it with the Pokéwalker for Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver on the DS.) As it stands, “World Explorers” is a polished looking title that may be too tied into the Arookoo app to stand as a solid Facebook game. On top of that, the game launched today with plenty of bugs (I completed the Africa maps but the game wiped my progress upon refreshing without letting me redo those maps) and doesn’t give anyone much to do at the moment.On the surface, “World Explorers” resembles other Facebook treasure-hunting games, like Zynga’s Treasure Isle (inspired by zSlide’s “Treasure Madness”), but in actuality, it’s so horribly underdeveloped that there’s no room for comparison. Regardless, if you want to keep your eye on this game, then follow the game’s official Facebook page here.
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Source: http://blog.games.com/2011/06/07/arookoo-world-explorers-steps-up-social-gaming-but-stumbles-on/
Filed under: Farmville, Cafe World, Mafia Wars, PetVille, Treasure Isle, FrontierVille, Other Games, CityVille
“Let’s Play with Gaga” is the slogan for Zynga’s new section in RewardVille (their user rewards program), and it’s officially launched this evening. For each of RewardVille’s supported games (which include all the big names like FarmVille, FrontierVille and CityVille), you’ll be able to use your zCoins to “purchase” one exclusive item (with the exception of Vampire Wars, which received two). To be especially clear, while GagaVille may be the main attraction in FarmVille, these items aren’t specific to the farming game.
The items range from statues, sparkling gems and skull heads to shining thrones, avatar clothing and even a dancing monkey! You can find the full list of rewards, along with pictures and prices, behind the break.
Here’s a full look at all of the prizes available:
CityVille: Lady Gaga Gyrosphere (bonus 6% payout) – 72 zCoins
FarmVille: Ruby Gaga Gem – 68 zCoins
Zynga Poker: Ponytail Skeleton – 56 zCoins
FrontierVille: Paws Up Statue – 64 zCoins
Mafia Wars: Lipstick Gun (115 Attack and 68 Defense) – 98 zCoins
Cafe World: Skull Faced Waitress – 66 zCoins
Treasure Isle: Fame Monkey – 56 zCoins
YoVille: Crystal Car – 88 zCoins
PetVille: Crystal Throne (color-changing) – 68 zCoins
Vampire Wars: LG Avatar Set Female or Male – 74 zCoins each
While you may already have enough zCoins stocked up to purchase any of the items you’d like across all of the RewardVille games, if you don’t, you’ll need to play games fast and often as these items won’t be available forever. To be specific, they’ll only be available through the end of the month, May 31.
As with other RewardVille items, once you redeem your zCoins, you’ll be asked if you want to share a reward with friends via a post on your news feed. You can also purchase more than one of these Lady Gaga items if you wish, so long as you have enough zCoins to fund the purchase. Once you buy an item, just log into your game of choice and you should find the item waiting for you in that game’s inventory system (whether it be the Gift Box in FarmVille, the backpack in Treasure Isle or elsewhere).
This is just the first of many pieces of GagaVille related content we’ll be bringing you, so be prepared to go gaga for Lady Gaga!
Which of these prizes will you purchase first? Will you purchase items in games that you don’t regularly play just because they’re so exclusive or Lady Gaga themed? Sound off in the comments!
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Source: http://blog.games.com/2011/05/17/lady-gaga-prizes-now-available-via-zyngas-rewardville/
Filed under: Other Games
This summer, it’ll be OK to have your head in the clouds. LootDrop, John Romero and Brenda Brathwaite’s brand new social game studio, and publisher RockYou will launch CloudForest Expedition this summer. This is a story-driven exploration game on Facebook that will let you become the next great explorer. Unfortunately, no other details have been revealed at this time, but we can imagine the game will be as goofy and charming as Romero’s first social game, LOLapps‘ Ravenwood Fair.
And LootDrop has already hit the drawing board on their second game, as RockYou has signed a second publishing deal with the studio. As you can see in the image above, all parties appear very happy, and we’ve boiled that down to two reasons. First, Romero and Brathwaite (far left and far right, respectively) are probably just plain excited to have not one, but two brand new projects in the cards for them. Second, there are likely lots of zeros somewhere on that contract. Hey, if you scored a budget for something you found fun, you’d be saying “cheese” too.
“They really zeroed in on the exploration, adventure genre with a clearing and discovery mechanic at its core, and they’re just layering innovation on top of that,” RockYou SVP Jonathan Knight told us. “That’s what we can expect from this title and the second one.” Knight went on to mention that Loot Drop’s second game is still in the concept phase, and that the company signed the papers based on both that concept and that it has been “blown away” by Cloudforest Expedition. So, are we looking at an improved adaptation of games like Zynga’s Treasure Isle? The game entered alpha testing last week, so we’ll have to wait and see this summer.
Are you excited to see what Romero, Brathwaite and crew think up next? Given his experience with LOLapps, how do you think CloudForest Expedition might do against the competition? Sound off in the comments. Add Comment.
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Source: http://blog.games.com/2011/04/27/lootdrops-social-game-cloudforest-expedition/
Filed under: Farmville, Cafe World, Mafia Wars, PetVille, Treasure Isle, FrontierVille, CityVille
While accepting my RewardVille gifts from Facebook just moments ago, I came across the RewardVille home page, where an interesting new development has launched in the form of RewardVille Bingo. When logging in, you’ll see a miniaturized Bingo card of sorts at the top of the screen, where some of the participating Zynga games have been given their own squares. The point is to play a certain set of games within a 24 hour period to create a three-in-a-row pattern on your board, with the default RewardVille square acting as your “free space.”
In the image above, I would need to play games like CityVille and Zynga Poker to create a vertical line, or play PetVille and FarmVille for a horizontal line. I suppose in that way, the game really resembles tic-tac-toe, rather than Bingo, but I digress. Once you earn a three-in-a-row line, you’ll be rewarded with free zPoints. The first day, you’ll earn 30 zPoints, the second day 40 and so on, until the end of the counter. Playing all five days in a row grants you a “Super Bingo Bonus” of 100 zPoints, making playing all of those days in a row definitely worth it.
To be clear, you won’t have to login to RewardVille each time you play a new game, and for most players, you won’t even need to try and complete a line on your card, as you might play enough games on your own to finish it automatically. In those cases, you can simply go about your business each day, and then add one last step of logging into RewardVille before signing off for the night. Your board updates with everything you’ve done that day and voila! Free zPoints are likely coming your way.
We’ll make sure to keep an eye on this Bingo system, to ensure that other (non zPoint) prizes aren’t added in the future.
In the meantime though, let us know what you think of this new setup in the comments. Will the thought of earning extra zPoints have you playing Zynga games that you otherwise wouldn’t?
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Source: http://blog.games.com/2011/04/22/zynga-launches-bingo-on-rewardville-play-games-for-extra-zpoint/