Well, not to toot our own horn, but beep-beep. As it turns out, we did pretty darn well, thank you very much. At the start of 2011, the Games.com team sounded off on what we thought would be the top trends of the year. It's been a crazy year of ups and downs, bringing about the most impressive social games to date.
Almost more importantly, 2011 also brought the most interesting developments. And we pretty much called the lot of them. Some might call it back patting, but we call it ... a retrospective. Here's how we did in our predictions for 2011:
The Mobile Explosion
Our list devoted entirely to the best mobile social games of 2011 pretty much sums this one up. Social games broke out on mobile phones in a big way this year, so much so that some traditional companies have either focused huge portions of development to the genre or simply reorganized entirely to that end. Zynga released eight mobile social games this year alone. Boom.
3D is Gonna Take Off
Hey, we never said social gamers were going to dig it. Numerous 3D games came out on Facebook this year ... and none of them did as well as we might have hoped. However, the push for 3D games on social networks hasn't slowed down. Flash Player--what almost all social games are made in--now supports 3D. Better yet, the hardcore games creation tool Unreal Engine now supports Flash, as does the Unity Player. Next year will be different, we promi--wait, never mind.
CityVille
CityVille Shall Fall
Alright, so this one didn't happen at all. But we came pretty damn close, right? We know, horseshoes and hand grenades, but at least The Sims Social threatened Zynga's stranglehold on the social game market. While EA and Playfish's social masterpiece has been on the decline for some time, it still has disrupted much of its competitor's top games.
Interactive Billboards?
We're sad to say this prediction was 100 percent on the money. Unfortunately, branding in Facebook games has only become more popular. Just look at the number of celebrities featured this year in Zynga's top games. At least we've seen some gems that make sense, like Indiana Jones's takeover of Adventure World. Farmers Insurance in FarmVille was clever, too, but an ad is an ad.
Zynga zTag Project Z
The Zynga Network
While it wasn't exactly what any of us expected, Zynga announced Zynga Direct, popularly referred to as Project Z. We figured this would be The Big Z's move to escape Facebook, but the social network appears to be baked right in. This leaves us wondering just what value zTags, similar to Xbox Live's gamertags, will add for its fans much less Zynga.
The Advent of the Advergame
Another sad-but-true prediction, advergames, or branded games as some like to call them, exploded in 2011. Almost every TV series you can think of--from Weeds to The Vampire Diaries--has launched a companion social game. In fact, Game of Thrones will soon get its second tie-in Facebook game. At least that Dexter Facebook game was pretty neat-o.
Order & Chaos Online Facebook
Facebook MMOs Go Big Time
Not quite. We've certainly seen more MMOs come to Facebook in 2011, though none of which were any good nor successful. The combination simply makes sense on paper, but perhaps it's just not a good fit for the more casually-minded social gamer. Now, if you count Facebook-connected MMOs, we were right without a doubt.
The Fat Cats Get Fatter
Zynga acquired some 17 companies since 2010. How's that for fat cats? Hell, EA bought the biggest name in casual gaming for a whopping $1 billion. Looking at the disparity between even the top two Facebook game makers and the rest of the market, according to AppData, we'd say this estimation was about accurate, wouldn't you?
Facebook Gets Friendly Again
While social game makers will never see the viral success they did in early 2010 ever again, Facebook has made strides to support its game creator community. Sure, Zynga has quite the deal with the social network, but the company has made numerous changes to how games are presented on the network for all developers. Although to the dismay of many, Facebook even championed the top games on the platform with the rest of us.
By our math, that's seven out of 10. Not too shabby, huh?
What do you think of our predictions for 2011 compared to what actually went down this year? How did your own predictions pan out?
Hiển thị các bài đăng có nhãn Facebook games. Hiển thị tất cả bài đăng
Hiển thị các bài đăng có nhãn Facebook games. Hiển thị tất cả bài đăng
Thứ Ba, 3 tháng 1, 2012
The Top Five Tools for the Facebook Gamer
Look, we both know that you played the hell out of your favorite Facebook games this holiday. (And you lucky bastards that have off all week are probably playing right now.) So, tell us if this is you: You can crack your wrist at will, and it hurts to lift much of anything that isn't, well, a mouse. Also, you've developed quite the hunch and your laptop feels like it's about to blow any minute.
What's that? You scored a ton of gift cards to Best Buy or Amazon because your extended family didn't opt to actually spend brain cells on thinking of a more suitable Christmas present? By golly, you're in luck, because we know of five tools you can spend that not-so-hard-earned plastic on that could help boost your (Facebook) game on the cheap:
A Solid Clicker
If Mr. Ian Bogost has taught us anything, you absolutely need a computer mouse that not only A. can keep up with you, but B. feels comfy underneath your hand, too. And there are plenty of options that won't break the bank. We personally recommend the Microsoft Arc Mouse or the Apple Magic Mouse, as they're most compatible with tools featured later. But more economic options include the Microsoft Wireless Mobile Mouse 3500 or the Logitech Wireless Mouse M305.
Cool It, Will Ya?
We don't know about you, but most Facebook games drive our laptops into dangerous temperature territories. This is because either our machines don't have fancy graphics or that most social games wouldn't take advantage of them anyway. At any rate, a trusty laptop cooler would do the trick to keep your precious FarmVille machine from overheating. We recommend the Targus Lap Chill Mat or the Xpad Laptop Desk, both of which are affordable options.
IMAK SmartGlove
Protect Your Greatest Weapon
Anyone who works with a computer all day can tell you: Carpal tunnel is downright terrifying. So, to fend off that dastardly, seemingly irreversible damage to your wrist, consider picking up a wrist brace. There are several varieties to the modern day gauntlet, but we highly recommend those that include both a splint and some type of padding underneath. In that case, try looking for the IMAK SmartGlove--it's only 15 bucks.
Homedics Massage Chair PadTake a Load Off
Sitting in front of the computer for hours can be not only excruciating on your wrist, but on your back, too. There isn't much to help with that hunch you might have developed without without training yourself to practice good posture. To that end, you can at least make sitting back a little more enticing. How about a lovely, robotic massage every time you sit back? If you're looking to save the most money possible on this buy, look out for the Homedics Massage Chair Pad.
Seriously, Protect That Wrist
Look, we may have been cute or cheeky before, but carpal tunnel is no joke. Seriously, double up on protection and preventative measures if you want to be able to keep at The Sims Social for much longer. Luckily, there isn't much price or guess work to wrist rest-equipped mouse pads. This writer personally prefers the Fellowes Microban mouse pad, but just make sure whatever you buy has a gel wrist rest with an indent for your wrist to, well, rest on.
[Image Credits: Microsoft, Homedics, Edova Innovations]
Are there any tools that you recommend for social gamers that we failed to list? What's your favorite gadget that helps with your social gaming habits?
What's that? You scored a ton of gift cards to Best Buy or Amazon because your extended family didn't opt to actually spend brain cells on thinking of a more suitable Christmas present? By golly, you're in luck, because we know of five tools you can spend that not-so-hard-earned plastic on that could help boost your (Facebook) game on the cheap:
A Solid Clicker
If Mr. Ian Bogost has taught us anything, you absolutely need a computer mouse that not only A. can keep up with you, but B. feels comfy underneath your hand, too. And there are plenty of options that won't break the bank. We personally recommend the Microsoft Arc Mouse or the Apple Magic Mouse, as they're most compatible with tools featured later. But more economic options include the Microsoft Wireless Mobile Mouse 3500 or the Logitech Wireless Mouse M305.
Cool It, Will Ya?
We don't know about you, but most Facebook games drive our laptops into dangerous temperature territories. This is because either our machines don't have fancy graphics or that most social games wouldn't take advantage of them anyway. At any rate, a trusty laptop cooler would do the trick to keep your precious FarmVille machine from overheating. We recommend the Targus Lap Chill Mat or the Xpad Laptop Desk, both of which are affordable options.
IMAK SmartGlove
Protect Your Greatest Weapon
Anyone who works with a computer all day can tell you: Carpal tunnel is downright terrifying. So, to fend off that dastardly, seemingly irreversible damage to your wrist, consider picking up a wrist brace. There are several varieties to the modern day gauntlet, but we highly recommend those that include both a splint and some type of padding underneath. In that case, try looking for the IMAK SmartGlove--it's only 15 bucks.
Homedics Massage Chair PadTake a Load Off
Sitting in front of the computer for hours can be not only excruciating on your wrist, but on your back, too. There isn't much to help with that hunch you might have developed without without training yourself to practice good posture. To that end, you can at least make sitting back a little more enticing. How about a lovely, robotic massage every time you sit back? If you're looking to save the most money possible on this buy, look out for the Homedics Massage Chair Pad.
Seriously, Protect That Wrist
Look, we may have been cute or cheeky before, but carpal tunnel is no joke. Seriously, double up on protection and preventative measures if you want to be able to keep at The Sims Social for much longer. Luckily, there isn't much price or guess work to wrist rest-equipped mouse pads. This writer personally prefers the Fellowes Microban mouse pad, but just make sure whatever you buy has a gel wrist rest with an indent for your wrist to, well, rest on.
[Image Credits: Microsoft, Homedics, Edova Innovations]
Are there any tools that you recommend for social gamers that we failed to list? What's your favorite gadget that helps with your social gaming habits?
LA Times gets its game on with Mahjongg and more from Arkadium
Is it about time we trade in the paper's (literally) two-dimensional crossword puzzles for the depth of Mahjongg? The Los Angeles Times seems to be headed in that direction, as the news outlet announced a partnership with New York-based social game maker Arkadium. As a result, Arkadium has already thrown the lot of its hit games on the "Games" section of the LA Times website.
The Arkadium games available on the LA Times Games page include several of its varieties of Mahjongg (including Mahjongg Dimensions), Sparks, Monkey Gems and more. All of Arkadium's games on the LA Times are packed with Facebook and Twitter integration throughout, and the deal was made in hopes of increasing advertising revenue, according to the news organization.
"Given the ever-rising popularity of casual games, adding Arkadium's titles allows us to further engage latimes.com's users and entice previously untapped gaming enthusiasts to visit our site throughout the day," LA Times' VP for Digital Revenue Products Jennifer Collins said in a statement. "We are also creating a previously unavailable opportunity for our advertisers to reach Southern California's casual gaming audience and in the process establish another digital monetization platform."
It's interesting for a social games company to make such a move, and perhaps a terribly smart one. (This is the second of such deals Arkadium has made with a news organization; the first was CNN.) When you think about it, the majority of Arkadium's games cater to the same audience that enjoys crossword puzzles and the like. However, we'll see whether those "casual" gamers will be keen on making the leap from word searches to, say, Monkey Gems.
[Via Reuters]
Do you think Arkadium's deal with LA Times will prove successful? Which of the developer's games is your favorite?
The Arkadium games available on the LA Times Games page include several of its varieties of Mahjongg (including Mahjongg Dimensions), Sparks, Monkey Gems and more. All of Arkadium's games on the LA Times are packed with Facebook and Twitter integration throughout, and the deal was made in hopes of increasing advertising revenue, according to the news organization.
"Given the ever-rising popularity of casual games, adding Arkadium's titles allows us to further engage latimes.com's users and entice previously untapped gaming enthusiasts to visit our site throughout the day," LA Times' VP for Digital Revenue Products Jennifer Collins said in a statement. "We are also creating a previously unavailable opportunity for our advertisers to reach Southern California's casual gaming audience and in the process establish another digital monetization platform."
It's interesting for a social games company to make such a move, and perhaps a terribly smart one. (This is the second of such deals Arkadium has made with a news organization; the first was CNN.) When you think about it, the majority of Arkadium's games cater to the same audience that enjoys crossword puzzles and the like. However, we'll see whether those "casual" gamers will be keen on making the leap from word searches to, say, Monkey Gems.
[Via Reuters]
Do you think Arkadium's deal with LA Times will prove successful? Which of the developer's games is your favorite?
Thứ Hai, 26 tháng 12, 2011
Are Pokemon and FarmVille one and the same?
Pokemon isn't stale, it's simply perfecting what works. That generally seems to be how Gamasutra's Leigh Alexander feels about the ubiquitous franchise. Since the game's debut in 1998, not many changes to the game have shaken its foundations, if any at all. Rather, Nintendo and Game Freak choose to tweak the game's mechanics and introduce features that layer upon the existing exploration and battle systems that have become iconic in their own right. Wait a second, that sounds a lot like Facebook games, does it not?
Just look at FarmVille: Every change and update introduced to the game has either streamlined an existing feature or built upon one of them. The core gameplay of harvesting crops to a timer has not changed in almost two years, and Zynga likes it that way. Not to mention that 44 million monthly players seem to like it that way too. Could it be that, if Pokemon did decide to innovate--and oft-overused term in the industry, as Alexander points out--that it would alienate its core audience? And what then; is the franchise left to rot because it tried something different, something innovative? If you were in Nintendo's shoes, you would probably hate to risk that too.
But while both are unarguably successful franchises, their numbers just aren't the same. FarmVille's decline is more visible, as the game has lost over 40 million monthly players since it peaked at 87 million this time last year. Pokemon, however, still sells nearly as well as before, but would you still consider Pikachu a household name? Regardless, it's clear that Zynga might have picked up a few tricks from the Pokemon house, and they're still working for both parties. So, don't worry, neither Squirtle nor your collection of Sheep are going away anytime soon.
Do you think Pokemon and FarmVille are similar in their design? Would either games' fan bases crumble if drastic changes were made to their foundations?
Just look at FarmVille: Every change and update introduced to the game has either streamlined an existing feature or built upon one of them. The core gameplay of harvesting crops to a timer has not changed in almost two years, and Zynga likes it that way. Not to mention that 44 million monthly players seem to like it that way too. Could it be that, if Pokemon did decide to innovate--and oft-overused term in the industry, as Alexander points out--that it would alienate its core audience? And what then; is the franchise left to rot because it tried something different, something innovative? If you were in Nintendo's shoes, you would probably hate to risk that too.
But while both are unarguably successful franchises, their numbers just aren't the same. FarmVille's decline is more visible, as the game has lost over 40 million monthly players since it peaked at 87 million this time last year. Pokemon, however, still sells nearly as well as before, but would you still consider Pikachu a household name? Regardless, it's clear that Zynga might have picked up a few tricks from the Pokemon house, and they're still working for both parties. So, don't worry, neither Squirtle nor your collection of Sheep are going away anytime soon.
Do you think Pokemon and FarmVille are similar in their design? Would either games' fan bases crumble if drastic changes were made to their foundations?
Thứ Tư, 14 tháng 12, 2011
If Zynga's next big 'Ville is 'ForestVille', how will it be any different?
Don't CastleVille and FrontierVille--sorry, Pioneer Trail--already take place in forests? That's about the only question we have, as Fusible discovered recently that Zynga has registered numerous domain names for "ForestVille". The social games giant has registered everything from "Forestville.com" onwards (the real deal belongs to a school district), to "Forestvillegame.com".
According to Fusbile, all of the domain names were registered through Internet brand protection company MarkMonitor, which Zynga regularly uses to acquire domain names. And Fusible points out that Zynga's own "Zynga.com" along with hundreds of other domains representing the company's properties are registered with MarkMonitor. So yeah, this is definitely Zynga.
Zynga has yet to make any announcement regarding such a game, so the company could purely be covering its bases in preparation for a game that doesn't even make it to Facebook. (Ahem, Kingdoms & Quests.) But again, two of Zynga's 'Ville games already revolve around creating communities in the woods, at least indirectly. We can't wait to see how the developer pushes a game centered around just that.
According to Fusbile, all of the domain names were registered through Internet brand protection company MarkMonitor, which Zynga regularly uses to acquire domain names. And Fusible points out that Zynga's own "Zynga.com" along with hundreds of other domains representing the company's properties are registered with MarkMonitor. So yeah, this is definitely Zynga.
Zynga has yet to make any announcement regarding such a game, so the company could purely be covering its bases in preparation for a game that doesn't even make it to Facebook. (Ahem, Kingdoms & Quests.) But again, two of Zynga's 'Ville games already revolve around creating communities in the woods, at least indirectly. We can't wait to see how the developer pushes a game centered around just that.
GreenSpace on Facebook wants you to make the (distant) future tidy
Green Space on Facebook
With the way waste management around the globe is going, the Earth probably won't look so hot in a few decades. Canadian social game maker RocketOwl Inc. asks gamers to fast forward a couple hundred years in its new Facebook game GreenSpace. In that time--assuming we've yet to destroy ourselves--our planet will likely be inhabitable if we maintain this track, and it's up to you to reclaim a previously colonized and, of course, dirtied up planet one piece of litter at a time.
GreenSpace has officially exited its open beta period today, and is now available for all to play hopefully bug-free. The game tasks players with managing a colony as they transform it from a heap of trash into a lush, green mountain valley. While GreenSpace's presentation doesn't seem terribly different from games like CityVille, RocketOwl touts the game's animations, artwork and addictive cleaning actions. Fast-paced mini games are also said to play a role in GreenSpace.
GreenSpace in action
"We've been working with players over the past few months to fine-tune the game,"RocketOwl CEO Graeme Barlow said in a statement. "Now that GreenSpace is coming out of beta, the entire team is really excited to see the public reception of the launch. We could not be happier with the final product and hope that you enjoy playing it as much as we've enjoyed putting it together."
GreenSpace strikes us as quite similar to a recent green-themed Facebook game, Guerillapps's Trash Tycoon. Both games revolve around reclaiming a territory from the clutches of clutter, though the latter is attached to real-life organizations looking to do the same in the world around us. Based on the looks of GreenSpace, RocketOwl seems to be dedicated to at least raising awareness of the same issues, but make that call for yourself.
Click here to play GreenSpace on Facebook Now >
Do you think Facebook games are a good place to raise awareness of issues of waste and other "green" concerns? Do you think GreenSpace could do or does a good job of this?
With the way waste management around the globe is going, the Earth probably won't look so hot in a few decades. Canadian social game maker RocketOwl Inc. asks gamers to fast forward a couple hundred years in its new Facebook game GreenSpace. In that time--assuming we've yet to destroy ourselves--our planet will likely be inhabitable if we maintain this track, and it's up to you to reclaim a previously colonized and, of course, dirtied up planet one piece of litter at a time.
GreenSpace has officially exited its open beta period today, and is now available for all to play hopefully bug-free. The game tasks players with managing a colony as they transform it from a heap of trash into a lush, green mountain valley. While GreenSpace's presentation doesn't seem terribly different from games like CityVille, RocketOwl touts the game's animations, artwork and addictive cleaning actions. Fast-paced mini games are also said to play a role in GreenSpace.
GreenSpace in action
"We've been working with players over the past few months to fine-tune the game,"RocketOwl CEO Graeme Barlow said in a statement. "Now that GreenSpace is coming out of beta, the entire team is really excited to see the public reception of the launch. We could not be happier with the final product and hope that you enjoy playing it as much as we've enjoyed putting it together."
GreenSpace strikes us as quite similar to a recent green-themed Facebook game, Guerillapps's Trash Tycoon. Both games revolve around reclaiming a territory from the clutches of clutter, though the latter is attached to real-life organizations looking to do the same in the world around us. Based on the looks of GreenSpace, RocketOwl seems to be dedicated to at least raising awareness of the same issues, but make that call for yourself.
Click here to play GreenSpace on Facebook Now >
Do you think Facebook games are a good place to raise awareness of issues of waste and other "green" concerns? Do you think GreenSpace could do or does a good job of this?
Chủ Nhật, 11 tháng 12, 2011
Row Sham Bow CEO: 'This isn't just a profession' [Interview]
For Phil Holt (pictured), CEO of Orlando-Fla.-based social game start-up Row Sham Bow, social games have been a part of his professional life for far longer than the nearly seven months since he co-founded the studio. During his second, 5-year stint with EA at its Tiburon studio, also in Orlando, Holt has seen the company adapt to social gaming's effects on the industry at large.
Only little more than six months before Row Sham Bow released its first game, Woodland Heroes, Holt realized that social games are the future of the industry. We sat down with Holt recently to find out what specifically drove him to co-found his own studio, what he hopes Row Sham Bow will change about these games and where Woodland Heroes goes from here.
On the company website it seems that the team disappointed with the state of social games. If that's the case, what is it about the space that has drawn you in?
I think it's a fascinating space. I was trying to describe this to somebody the other day: You have zero barrier to entry on an open platform-anybody can develop for it. You don't have to become a licensed developer, nobody is reviewing your content--approving or not approving it. Literally, if you've got the wherewithal to deploy on the platform you can.
It's measured in hundreds of millions of people, and the technology everyone uses is off-the-shelf. It's widely available. That I think is unique in the history of technology: That a marketplace that is that big, is that wide open and has such a low barrier to entry has never happened before. To me it's like, "Holy crap, that's a massive audience." The innovation in the social space is more focused around how data can drive design decisions.
Woodland Heroes concept art
What is it about social games industry specifically that you hope to change with Row Sham Bow?
We hope that we're going to go into this space and learn very rapidly, and use the trail blazed as way of not repeating a lot of the mistakes. With that said, we feel like the games are more--if you talk to people that play a lot of social games, you listen to the way they describe their experience. They're like, 'Yeah, I'm still playing Game X.' They sort of sheepishly admit the fact that they're playing.
You start digging deeper and it's like, 'Well, I can't really tell you why I'm playing.' And they never use the words like, 'I'm having a blast.' It's more like, 'I just can't stand leaving whatever I'm building alone.' It's a compulsive experience. It's more akin to the people you see in a casino late at night still dropping nickels in the slot machine--it's the psychological compulsion that drives people to play these things rather than, 'I'm playing it, because I'm having a blast.' That pure entertainment and pure fun I think is really lacking in the space, and that's the kind of thing we're trying to bring. At the same, we want to learn from the people who came before us.
Do you think that the Facebook platform is capable of merging compulsion and joy of play?
Absolutely. I can't think of anything that would prevent it. I'm a child of the '70s, and I spent a lot of my youth in the arcades. Those games, from a technology standpoint, are so primitive by comparison to any of the games out there today. Yet they got a few simple things right: The games are instantly learnable--you learn how to play and arcade game with one quarter. [They're] instantly accessible and impossible to master. Brilliant game design.
That's a very rewarding experience. Now, arcade games are based on dexterity. The Facebook platform I don't think is going to reward that type of play mechanic, at least I'm not going to do it. The thing that we try to do is that you need to make decisions in the game, and things need to have consequences. At its base terms, I think is the foundation of creating strategy. And that I think creates a compelling experience.
I think that what you do, as a designer, is create an emotional attachment to the experience--you've got some level of commitment to the game. I think that one of the ultimate challenges in the free-to-play space is there is no financial commitment. So, the design has to create the commitment, and one of the ways to do that is you become emotionally invested in the characters or your progress or the purchases you've made. And if you feel like, if the stakes are high enough, that you're going to lose something like that, then you're going to care.
Gallery: Woodland Heroes on Facebook
What are Row Sham Bow's goals as a studio? Do you hope to take the fight to Zynga and EA, so to speak, or carve out a niche for yourself in the space, and what's your battle plan?
Well, you can never out-Zynga Zynga and out-EA EA. That is a losing strategy. No matter how big you are, I think you have the define your way into the world. We certainly feel like there are some under-served parts of the market. I think it has to do with blending more traditional game mechanics with the data-driven design that's prevalent on the platform. What I think the existing players have done so well is ease-of-use, a good first-time user experience and really ramping people up.
The thing I haven't talked about is that the art in our game--I would put it up against any game on the platform. I think it's stellar, and that used to be a huge motivation for people playing. The reason I loved games like Diablo 2 is because you wanted to see the next character, the next level. That sense of discovery through art is a major play motivation, and again most people have glossed over that.
Where did the team come up with the idea for Woodland Heroes?
When we started the company, many of us had experience in the space, and quite a few of us didn't. We wanted to create an environment that would get us up to speed quickly. So literally the first thing we did was release a game. And if you searched for it, you're not going to find it--it was a rock, paper, scissors game. We just wanted to go through the exercise of start-to-finish. And we learned a lot.
The other thing we did was play like literally everything out there in a very guided way. We sort of broke down the competitive titles. We also had a number of concepts that we had come to the company with. I didn't want us to be the kind of company that sat around and talked about ideas, but I wanted us to react to stuff that we could actually play with. So, we prototyped.
We spent about three week wherein anyone in the company could work on any idea and every few days we would get together and review what we had done. We slowly kind of whittled down to two ideas: Woodland Heroes was one of them, but it was called some different at the time. Woodland Heroes initially started as a space conquest type game. Somebody in the studio said, 'If we want this to be a little more broadly accepted, why not animals instead of space?'
The thing that we liked about it was the battle mechanic. We thought it was a great mechanic that we could build from. We started at the center of the game with what was going to be a fun, core loop that players would be involved in, and we built outward from there.
Woodland Heroes characterI haven't seen many social features in the game, so is there anything particularly compelling about them, as opposed to most social games?
Probably not yet, but today is actually our six-month anniversary. I'm just damn proud of the fact that in six months we were able to start a company, and hire a team. We opened our code editors and literally the first line of code was written six months ago. From zero to game launch in six months I think is pretty cool. So, we've got lots of ideas about what we want to do with social features, visitation and interactions with friends.
Again, we think there's more than just 'go visit your buddy's farm.' We want meaningful interactions that take place between friends, and whether that's cooperative or head-to-head, we've got plenty of ideas. We're going to try some stuff and see how the audience reacts. This is the fun part: Now really a key partner at the table is the audience, so we're going to build a game that the audience is reacting to. Ultimately, the audience is going to determine what the game becomes.
Does the game's strategy gameplay and setting set a precedent for Row Sham Bow, or will the studio pursue different genres and themes in the future?
I think one of the things that really is appealing to all of us is just how much creative freedom we have. Being a start-up, being in a space where you can build a game in six months you can just take a lot more creative risks. I don't think we're going to be bound by any set of genres, settings, character styles or art types. So, we're just going to use the same process that we used to create this game.
Woodland Heroes environment
Can you talk about any future plans for Woodland Heroes, or future Row Sham Bow games?
Right now, we're on a weekly cadence of major content updates. We're trying to push new things to the game every Tuesday. So, we're going to be on that cadence for awhile, continuing to add to the game and responding to the major issues that we see. There's some stuff we want to do around the world map where I think that usability is a little on the low side.
Ultimately, it's going to be where the audience is playing, what the data tells us about the audience and how we think we can best engage them. From the get-go, our focus has been on, 'How do we build a game that we've always wanted to play ourselves?' It's not that we've sat for years thinking, 'Man, it would be great to be a raccoon and fight some bears,' but just make a really fun experience. We're gamers ourselves--this isn't just a profession.
Thanks for taking to time to talk with us, Phil.
[Home Page Image Credit: Orlando Business Journal]
Have you tried Woodland Heroes on Facebook yet? What do you think of Row Sham Bow's strategy and goals, and can the company carve out a niche for itself amongst the mob of social game makers?
Only little more than six months before Row Sham Bow released its first game, Woodland Heroes, Holt realized that social games are the future of the industry. We sat down with Holt recently to find out what specifically drove him to co-found his own studio, what he hopes Row Sham Bow will change about these games and where Woodland Heroes goes from here.
On the company website it seems that the team disappointed with the state of social games. If that's the case, what is it about the space that has drawn you in?
I think it's a fascinating space. I was trying to describe this to somebody the other day: You have zero barrier to entry on an open platform-anybody can develop for it. You don't have to become a licensed developer, nobody is reviewing your content--approving or not approving it. Literally, if you've got the wherewithal to deploy on the platform you can.
It's measured in hundreds of millions of people, and the technology everyone uses is off-the-shelf. It's widely available. That I think is unique in the history of technology: That a marketplace that is that big, is that wide open and has such a low barrier to entry has never happened before. To me it's like, "Holy crap, that's a massive audience." The innovation in the social space is more focused around how data can drive design decisions.
Woodland Heroes concept art
What is it about social games industry specifically that you hope to change with Row Sham Bow?
We hope that we're going to go into this space and learn very rapidly, and use the trail blazed as way of not repeating a lot of the mistakes. With that said, we feel like the games are more--if you talk to people that play a lot of social games, you listen to the way they describe their experience. They're like, 'Yeah, I'm still playing Game X.' They sort of sheepishly admit the fact that they're playing.
You start digging deeper and it's like, 'Well, I can't really tell you why I'm playing.' And they never use the words like, 'I'm having a blast.' It's more like, 'I just can't stand leaving whatever I'm building alone.' It's a compulsive experience. It's more akin to the people you see in a casino late at night still dropping nickels in the slot machine--it's the psychological compulsion that drives people to play these things rather than, 'I'm playing it, because I'm having a blast.' That pure entertainment and pure fun I think is really lacking in the space, and that's the kind of thing we're trying to bring. At the same, we want to learn from the people who came before us.
Do you think that the Facebook platform is capable of merging compulsion and joy of play?
Absolutely. I can't think of anything that would prevent it. I'm a child of the '70s, and I spent a lot of my youth in the arcades. Those games, from a technology standpoint, are so primitive by comparison to any of the games out there today. Yet they got a few simple things right: The games are instantly learnable--you learn how to play and arcade game with one quarter. [They're] instantly accessible and impossible to master. Brilliant game design.
That's a very rewarding experience. Now, arcade games are based on dexterity. The Facebook platform I don't think is going to reward that type of play mechanic, at least I'm not going to do it. The thing that we try to do is that you need to make decisions in the game, and things need to have consequences. At its base terms, I think is the foundation of creating strategy. And that I think creates a compelling experience.
I think that what you do, as a designer, is create an emotional attachment to the experience--you've got some level of commitment to the game. I think that one of the ultimate challenges in the free-to-play space is there is no financial commitment. So, the design has to create the commitment, and one of the ways to do that is you become emotionally invested in the characters or your progress or the purchases you've made. And if you feel like, if the stakes are high enough, that you're going to lose something like that, then you're going to care.
Gallery: Woodland Heroes on Facebook
What are Row Sham Bow's goals as a studio? Do you hope to take the fight to Zynga and EA, so to speak, or carve out a niche for yourself in the space, and what's your battle plan?
Well, you can never out-Zynga Zynga and out-EA EA. That is a losing strategy. No matter how big you are, I think you have the define your way into the world. We certainly feel like there are some under-served parts of the market. I think it has to do with blending more traditional game mechanics with the data-driven design that's prevalent on the platform. What I think the existing players have done so well is ease-of-use, a good first-time user experience and really ramping people up.
The thing I haven't talked about is that the art in our game--I would put it up against any game on the platform. I think it's stellar, and that used to be a huge motivation for people playing. The reason I loved games like Diablo 2 is because you wanted to see the next character, the next level. That sense of discovery through art is a major play motivation, and again most people have glossed over that.
Where did the team come up with the idea for Woodland Heroes?
When we started the company, many of us had experience in the space, and quite a few of us didn't. We wanted to create an environment that would get us up to speed quickly. So literally the first thing we did was release a game. And if you searched for it, you're not going to find it--it was a rock, paper, scissors game. We just wanted to go through the exercise of start-to-finish. And we learned a lot.
The other thing we did was play like literally everything out there in a very guided way. We sort of broke down the competitive titles. We also had a number of concepts that we had come to the company with. I didn't want us to be the kind of company that sat around and talked about ideas, but I wanted us to react to stuff that we could actually play with. So, we prototyped.
We spent about three week wherein anyone in the company could work on any idea and every few days we would get together and review what we had done. We slowly kind of whittled down to two ideas: Woodland Heroes was one of them, but it was called some different at the time. Woodland Heroes initially started as a space conquest type game. Somebody in the studio said, 'If we want this to be a little more broadly accepted, why not animals instead of space?'
The thing that we liked about it was the battle mechanic. We thought it was a great mechanic that we could build from. We started at the center of the game with what was going to be a fun, core loop that players would be involved in, and we built outward from there.
Woodland Heroes characterI haven't seen many social features in the game, so is there anything particularly compelling about them, as opposed to most social games?
Probably not yet, but today is actually our six-month anniversary. I'm just damn proud of the fact that in six months we were able to start a company, and hire a team. We opened our code editors and literally the first line of code was written six months ago. From zero to game launch in six months I think is pretty cool. So, we've got lots of ideas about what we want to do with social features, visitation and interactions with friends.
Again, we think there's more than just 'go visit your buddy's farm.' We want meaningful interactions that take place between friends, and whether that's cooperative or head-to-head, we've got plenty of ideas. We're going to try some stuff and see how the audience reacts. This is the fun part: Now really a key partner at the table is the audience, so we're going to build a game that the audience is reacting to. Ultimately, the audience is going to determine what the game becomes.
Does the game's strategy gameplay and setting set a precedent for Row Sham Bow, or will the studio pursue different genres and themes in the future?
I think one of the things that really is appealing to all of us is just how much creative freedom we have. Being a start-up, being in a space where you can build a game in six months you can just take a lot more creative risks. I don't think we're going to be bound by any set of genres, settings, character styles or art types. So, we're just going to use the same process that we used to create this game.
Woodland Heroes environment
Can you talk about any future plans for Woodland Heroes, or future Row Sham Bow games?
Right now, we're on a weekly cadence of major content updates. We're trying to push new things to the game every Tuesday. So, we're going to be on that cadence for awhile, continuing to add to the game and responding to the major issues that we see. There's some stuff we want to do around the world map where I think that usability is a little on the low side.
Ultimately, it's going to be where the audience is playing, what the data tells us about the audience and how we think we can best engage them. From the get-go, our focus has been on, 'How do we build a game that we've always wanted to play ourselves?' It's not that we've sat for years thinking, 'Man, it would be great to be a raccoon and fight some bears,' but just make a really fun experience. We're gamers ourselves--this isn't just a profession.
Thanks for taking to time to talk with us, Phil.
[Home Page Image Credit: Orlando Business Journal]
Have you tried Woodland Heroes on Facebook yet? What do you think of Row Sham Bow's strategy and goals, and can the company carve out a niche for itself amongst the mob of social game makers?
Thứ Năm, 29 tháng 9, 2011
Microsoft Research releases Facebook game for 'research'
Sure you are, guys--we're onto you. The Research division at Microsoft has released its first Facebook games, Project Waterloo, in order to find out how people interact and negotiate with one another across social networks. The game is a turn-based combat simulator in which players allocate 100 generic troops across five locations. In a way, Project Waterloo works a lot like Zynga's Words With Friends.
Of course, we're referring to the one-on-one, turn-based gameplay, not the words. Players challenge friends with allocations of 100 troops either using a slider or directly entering a number in each location on the battlefield. Said friends can then respond with their own strategic positioning using 100 troops, and if they don't currently play the game, they will be invited prior to responding.
So, it might help to think of Project Waterloo as a cross between games like Words With Friends and the classic board game Battleship. Players can also start games with random players, regardless of whether they're Facebook friends. Project Waterloo, according to a post on the Microsoft Research website, is the start of the "Facebook Game Theory Lab." This will serve as a platform through which Microsoft Research explores concepts of strategic human interaction within "resource allocation and negotiation games." The team of four researchers wrote:
The goal of the project is to test the behaviour of real people in game theoretic interactions, and especially those that take place in social networks. Some example questions are: how do people negotiate with one another? How does such negotiation take place in social networks? How can we aggregate opinions of individuals to arrive at high quality decisions? In what ways do people reciprocate other people's actions?
Project Waterloo in action
While it doesn't appear that Project Waterloo will be a source of revenue for Microsoft Research's parent company, the team does use words like "viral marketing" to explain how it will reach new players. Ultimately, we don't see a game like this taking off commercially, but it is another step in that direction, as Microsoft has already expressed interest in entering the space. Just recently, the company began to offer support to developers through its Windows Azure service. Perhaps Project Waterloo and the Facebook Game Theory Lab represent Microsoft further testing the waters.
Click here to play Project Waterloo on Facebook Now >
[Via ZDNet]
What do you think of Microsoft's very scientific foray into Facebook games? Do you think the company would ever dive into the industry like Google or Facebook has? Sound off in the comments. 2 Comments
Of course, we're referring to the one-on-one, turn-based gameplay, not the words. Players challenge friends with allocations of 100 troops either using a slider or directly entering a number in each location on the battlefield. Said friends can then respond with their own strategic positioning using 100 troops, and if they don't currently play the game, they will be invited prior to responding.
So, it might help to think of Project Waterloo as a cross between games like Words With Friends and the classic board game Battleship. Players can also start games with random players, regardless of whether they're Facebook friends. Project Waterloo, according to a post on the Microsoft Research website, is the start of the "Facebook Game Theory Lab." This will serve as a platform through which Microsoft Research explores concepts of strategic human interaction within "resource allocation and negotiation games." The team of four researchers wrote:
The goal of the project is to test the behaviour of real people in game theoretic interactions, and especially those that take place in social networks. Some example questions are: how do people negotiate with one another? How does such negotiation take place in social networks? How can we aggregate opinions of individuals to arrive at high quality decisions? In what ways do people reciprocate other people's actions?
Project Waterloo in action
While it doesn't appear that Project Waterloo will be a source of revenue for Microsoft Research's parent company, the team does use words like "viral marketing" to explain how it will reach new players. Ultimately, we don't see a game like this taking off commercially, but it is another step in that direction, as Microsoft has already expressed interest in entering the space. Just recently, the company began to offer support to developers through its Windows Azure service. Perhaps Project Waterloo and the Facebook Game Theory Lab represent Microsoft further testing the waters.
Click here to play Project Waterloo on Facebook Now >
[Via ZDNet]
What do you think of Microsoft's very scientific foray into Facebook games? Do you think the company would ever dive into the industry like Google or Facebook has? Sound off in the comments. 2 Comments
Thứ Năm, 22 tháng 9, 2011
Get your booze on in Malibu Rum's Beach Club on Facebook
If developers can make Facebook games in which you grow and sell a certain controversial plant and not hear "boo," I guess a game revolving around the firewater can slide. Because the sales of Malibu Rum tend to dip ... a lot in the colder months, Pernod Ricard, the company behind Malibu Rum, created a Facebook game to promote the awareness of its brand.
The game, which launched today, is known simply as Beach Club, and frankly, it's a pretty impressive branded Facebook game. (Look, more and more companies are going to be up to this in the future, and the games are only becoming more detailed, elaborate and visually impressive.) The game, which has Malibu Rum branding aplenty, tasks players with running their very own beach island.
Beach Club, developed by Aegis Media Group's Isobar, is said to block underage Facebook users from playing by relying on both the birth dates in their profiles and an age verification immediately after installing the app. They're not exactly airtight methods of keeping the kiddies out, but do more to keep the game in front of 21 to 35-year-olds than other Facebook games surrounding questionable topics.
According to AdAge, Malibu made a conscious effort to keep the game geared toward adults through more than just age verification. The game makes liberal use of more mature-looking artwork than other games aimed at the same crowd. "In our game the drawing of the avatars are more mature, they are clearly adults walking around this beach," Malibu senior brand manager AnnaMarie Battiloro told AdAge.
Beach Club overview
Oddly enough, the game isn't governed by an energy system or much of anything that limits your play time, unlike most games. While the game is available globally on Facebook, U.S. players earn points that go toward a vacation to Barbados, the rum's birthplace, that Malibu is giving away through Beach Club.
You'll earn these valuable points by keeping the guests of your resort happy through landscaping and adding new attractions to your tropical getaway. The most notable of which is a beach-side bar. Guests will approach the bar, and clicking on it unveils a mini game of sorts in which players have to bartend a series of Malibu Rum-themed drinks. You'll take guests' orders and have to fill them accordingly and quickly by clicking and dragging various ingredients.
Beach Club bartending
And it's all done to the sound of a 30-minute long club soundtrack with some of this past summer's most popular original tracks. Battiloro told AdAge that Malibu doesn't want Beach Club to be "overtly tied to the brand." "We actually are not trying to earn fans from this at all, Battiloro said. "We are trying to earn more brand loyalty, recognition and association."
But when a beach comber drives past our beach resort, leaving the Malibu Rum logo in its wake, we seriously doubt that. But you know what, this is one of the more full-featured, smoothly-animated branded games we've seen in awhile on Facebook. And if this is the direction brands will go when making games on Facebook, I'm not sure I mind that much.
Click here to play Beach Club on Facebook Now >
After hopping into the game, what do you think of Beach Club so far? What do you think of branded games on Facebook? Could they ever reach the quality of original Facebook games? Sound off in the comments. Add Comment
The game, which launched today, is known simply as Beach Club, and frankly, it's a pretty impressive branded Facebook game. (Look, more and more companies are going to be up to this in the future, and the games are only becoming more detailed, elaborate and visually impressive.) The game, which has Malibu Rum branding aplenty, tasks players with running their very own beach island.
Beach Club, developed by Aegis Media Group's Isobar, is said to block underage Facebook users from playing by relying on both the birth dates in their profiles and an age verification immediately after installing the app. They're not exactly airtight methods of keeping the kiddies out, but do more to keep the game in front of 21 to 35-year-olds than other Facebook games surrounding questionable topics.
According to AdAge, Malibu made a conscious effort to keep the game geared toward adults through more than just age verification. The game makes liberal use of more mature-looking artwork than other games aimed at the same crowd. "In our game the drawing of the avatars are more mature, they are clearly adults walking around this beach," Malibu senior brand manager AnnaMarie Battiloro told AdAge.
Beach Club overview
Oddly enough, the game isn't governed by an energy system or much of anything that limits your play time, unlike most games. While the game is available globally on Facebook, U.S. players earn points that go toward a vacation to Barbados, the rum's birthplace, that Malibu is giving away through Beach Club.
You'll earn these valuable points by keeping the guests of your resort happy through landscaping and adding new attractions to your tropical getaway. The most notable of which is a beach-side bar. Guests will approach the bar, and clicking on it unveils a mini game of sorts in which players have to bartend a series of Malibu Rum-themed drinks. You'll take guests' orders and have to fill them accordingly and quickly by clicking and dragging various ingredients.
Beach Club bartending
And it's all done to the sound of a 30-minute long club soundtrack with some of this past summer's most popular original tracks. Battiloro told AdAge that Malibu doesn't want Beach Club to be "overtly tied to the brand." "We actually are not trying to earn fans from this at all, Battiloro said. "We are trying to earn more brand loyalty, recognition and association."
But when a beach comber drives past our beach resort, leaving the Malibu Rum logo in its wake, we seriously doubt that. But you know what, this is one of the more full-featured, smoothly-animated branded games we've seen in awhile on Facebook. And if this is the direction brands will go when making games on Facebook, I'm not sure I mind that much.
Click here to play Beach Club on Facebook Now >
After hopping into the game, what do you think of Beach Club so far? What do you think of branded games on Facebook? Could they ever reach the quality of original Facebook games? Sound off in the comments. Add Comment
Thứ Tư, 21 tháng 9, 2011
BringIt puts games in your Facebook games, so you can ... gamble?
If you're the type who enjoys wasting their money gambling, have we got some news for you. In select Facebook games by CrowdStar, East Side Games, Sometrics and Mall World, you can wager your hard-earned, paid game currency with your friends in custom mini games by BringIt. A real-time transactional platform for social games, BringIt announced that its head-to-head competitions for virtual currency are now available in games from these developers.
According to BringIt, 8 million players have participated in these mini games within their favorite social games, and the asynchronous, head-to-head competitions will increase their number of daily players to 2.1 million. Players can wager any amount of virtual currency they choose, and post challenges to multiple friends at once. These challenges are sent to players who then can respond with their own wagers and post their scores in said games--the winner takes all.
For instance, Happy Aquarium fans can now challenge each other in a game of match-three, Aqua Blast, which is strikingly similar to Bejeweled. Using speed and various power ups, players must score as many points as possible in 60 seconds after wagering so many Pearls (the game's paid currency). Then, players can post that score to whomever's News Feed that they challenged.
If a friend responds with a wager of Pearls and a score that beats the challenger's score, they win whatever the challenger wagered. If the friend happens to score less than what the challenger did, then whoever posted the challenge wins whatever amount of Pearls that the loser wagered.
Payments are said to be posted automatically, but as of Sept. 11, there have been issues with the speed of payment, though BringIt is cataloging all payments to ensure that all winnings are met with payments. (At least this applies to Happy Aquarium.) Other BringIt partners like East Side Games, have different BringIt-powered mini games such as Gold Rush in Pot Farm.
Developers like East Side Games hope to make lots of dough from this form of in-game gambling. BringIt claims that the novelty of wagering paid currency could turn more freeloading social gamers into ones that pay up to play. And we guess it's all kosher, because the money at stake isn't "real" money. Though, if you paid for it with real cash originally, it kind of is, no?
Would you ever gamble wager your hard-earned Pearls or other paid currency in these mini games by BringIt? What are your thoughts on online wagering, generally speaking? Sound off in the comments. 2 Comments
According to BringIt, 8 million players have participated in these mini games within their favorite social games, and the asynchronous, head-to-head competitions will increase their number of daily players to 2.1 million. Players can wager any amount of virtual currency they choose, and post challenges to multiple friends at once. These challenges are sent to players who then can respond with their own wagers and post their scores in said games--the winner takes all.
For instance, Happy Aquarium fans can now challenge each other in a game of match-three, Aqua Blast, which is strikingly similar to Bejeweled. Using speed and various power ups, players must score as many points as possible in 60 seconds after wagering so many Pearls (the game's paid currency). Then, players can post that score to whomever's News Feed that they challenged.
If a friend responds with a wager of Pearls and a score that beats the challenger's score, they win whatever the challenger wagered. If the friend happens to score less than what the challenger did, then whoever posted the challenge wins whatever amount of Pearls that the loser wagered.
Payments are said to be posted automatically, but as of Sept. 11, there have been issues with the speed of payment, though BringIt is cataloging all payments to ensure that all winnings are met with payments. (At least this applies to Happy Aquarium.) Other BringIt partners like East Side Games, have different BringIt-powered mini games such as Gold Rush in Pot Farm.
Developers like East Side Games hope to make lots of dough from this form of in-game gambling. BringIt claims that the novelty of wagering paid currency could turn more freeloading social gamers into ones that pay up to play. And we guess it's all kosher, because the money at stake isn't "real" money. Though, if you paid for it with real cash originally, it kind of is, no?
Would you ever gamble wager your hard-earned Pearls or other paid currency in these mini games by BringIt? What are your thoughts on online wagering, generally speaking? Sound off in the comments. 2 Comments
Đăng ký:
Bài đăng (Atom)