Just as with their launch of CityVille, Zynga is taking to Empires & Allies with a fine-toothed comb, working out some initial bugs and glitches, and changing a few gameplay elements to make them easier on players. They've announced their first major changes on the game's forums, and compiled the ones that might affect you here:
There is now a profile picture on the right side of the screen allowing you to see which of your friends played recently and only send that group of friends free gifts. In this way, you avoid "spamming" your non-playing friends with gifts they'd likely never accept anyway.
You can now earn 20 energy per 24 hour period from visiting friends. Even if you visit more neighbors in a day, you will not receive any free energy after the first 20 points. The original limit was five energy, so this is a step in the right direction.
The exploit allowing players to invade their neighbors more than once in a row has been fixed.
Each neighbor on your neighbor bar now has an image displaying which type of Ore they can mine, meaning you can help out at their mines and potentially earn this Ore for yourself.
When building Military units, the buildings now show the most powerful units (of those currently unlocked to you) first.
The minimum level requirements for some Government Buildings have been reduced.
Missing quest icons should now appear as normal.
Less pop-ups!
I personally haven't noticed a lessening of the pop-ups appearing in my game, but perhaps I'm just not participating in the specific areas of gameplay from which they were removed. Either way, it's nice to see Zynga taking a firm stance on bugs this early in the game's life (and asking for fan feedback every step of the way), and we can only assume that more changes and bug patches will be released in the future. If they change the way we play the game, you can be sure we'll let you know about them, so keep checking back.
What do you think of this set of changes and updates? Have you noticed less pop-ups in your game? Would you prefer bonus energy from friends to be unlimited, or can you see where Zynga is coming from with the limit? What other items should they work on next?
Sunday, December 25, 2011
Rumor: EA to buy PopCap for over $1 billion
Now, this is a last ditch effort if we've ever seen one. TechCrunch reports that, following up with yesterday's news that PopCap may sell for over $1 billion, EA may very well be the company at the checkout counter. The website cites two anonymous sources that point to the nearly 30-year-old games company as the buyer. And no, the asking price has not changed--it's still insane.
But EA, which has enjoyed a distant second to Zynga in the social space, just might be crazy enough to bid what TechCrunch reports is 13 percent of their $7 billion plus market cap. This could truly be the company's Hail Mary Pass to win the social and mobile race once and for all, especially considering how long it could take EA to make all that money back.
We thought it was crazy when EA bought Playfish in 2009 for a whopping $400 million, but this clearly blows that out of the water. Unfortunately, neither company has enjoyed the runaway success both likely had hoped for. (You don't spend $400 million, much less $1 billion for second place.) So we can only hope that, if this buyout goes down, EA doesn't repeat history with PopCap.
If this purchase happens, the Bejeweled creator will obviously put its imminent IPO (initial public offering) on hold. As of this writing, a source close to the matter tells us there's currently no internal information on the sale. We've contacted both for comment.
[Image Credit: Gamespy]
Do you really think PopCap will sell to EA? What could this mean for both company's futures?
But EA, which has enjoyed a distant second to Zynga in the social space, just might be crazy enough to bid what TechCrunch reports is 13 percent of their $7 billion plus market cap. This could truly be the company's Hail Mary Pass to win the social and mobile race once and for all, especially considering how long it could take EA to make all that money back.
We thought it was crazy when EA bought Playfish in 2009 for a whopping $400 million, but this clearly blows that out of the water. Unfortunately, neither company has enjoyed the runaway success both likely had hoped for. (You don't spend $400 million, much less $1 billion for second place.) So we can only hope that, if this buyout goes down, EA doesn't repeat history with PopCap.
If this purchase happens, the Bejeweled creator will obviously put its imminent IPO (initial public offering) on hold. As of this writing, a source close to the matter tells us there's currently no internal information on the sale. We've contacted both for comment.
[Image Credit: Gamespy]
Do you really think PopCap will sell to EA? What could this mean for both company's futures?
Game of the Day: Word Drop 2
word drop
The Game of the Day wants you to get your spelling cap on and play for high scores. Word Drop 2 is here. Click the tiles to create words and go for the high score. When you can't think of another word, submit your score. Form words by clicking the tiles. As words are eliminated remaining tiles fall into a new order, forming different words! Eliminate rows to get score multiples and win big!
Click --> Play Word Drop 2
Important side note: Just by playing The Game of the Day you will be entered into a monthly drawing to win a FlipCam HD. You don't need to do anything else, just play! The more you play, the more chances you have to win. For more information on the Game of Day check out the official Game of the Day hub.
The Game of the Day wants you to get your spelling cap on and play for high scores. Word Drop 2 is here. Click the tiles to create words and go for the high score. When you can't think of another word, submit your score. Form words by clicking the tiles. As words are eliminated remaining tiles fall into a new order, forming different words! Eliminate rows to get score multiples and win big!
Click --> Play Word Drop 2
Important side note: Just by playing The Game of the Day you will be entered into a monthly drawing to win a FlipCam HD. You don't need to do anything else, just play! The more you play, the more chances you have to win. For more information on the Game of Day check out the official Game of the Day hub.
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Building the CityVille Go Karts Attraction: Everything you need to know
Anyone who tells you that they went on summer vacation, and go karts weren't involved, didn't really go on vacation. Zynga has released Attractions to CityVille, a feature within a feature of sorts.
These unique businesses benefit the most when operating just after you release Hotel guests or welcome Cruise Ships. The first of what we expect to be a series of attractions are the Go Karts.
Check the Build menu under the Businesses tab to find the Go Karts which cost a whopping 25 thousand Coins. Once you scrounge up enough cash for it, build the foundation using a few Energy, and then click on the building to finish it. The Go Karts, like many businesses and community buildings, requires special materials found through friends to complete.
CityVille Go Karts build menu
Go Kart Wrench IconWhen the Go Karts are ready for business, it's up to you to decide when it is ready for customers. However, attractions also require repairs in between the times they're open for business. Here's a breakdown of how the Go Karts--and all attractions, really--operate:
Release Hotel Resort guests and Cruise Ship Tourists
Click on the Go Karts in order to open it to customers. (Go Karts are only open for three minutes at a time.)
Hover over the Go Karts to see how much time is left and how many customers have visited.
When the money bag icon appears, click it to collect your earnings. (Go Karts earn between 800 and 3,000.)
After collecting, click on the wrench icon to begin the repairs process.
Rinse and repeat until filthy rich.
Maintenance Go Karts
Like we said, attractions need regular maintenance. Players can simply wait for the timer, which in this case is a whopping 24 hours, before reopening the gates. However, you can also ask your friends for Wrenches, which will allow your attraction to reopen instantly when three are collected--at least in the Go Karts' case--and increase your payouts next time. We hope this is the first of many attractions, as they add a much-welcomed albeit thin layer of strategy to making money in-game.
[Source and Image Credit: Zynga]
Check out the rest of our CityVille Cheats & Tips right here.
Have you started your Go Karts yet in CityVille? What do you think of these new types of businesses in the game?
These unique businesses benefit the most when operating just after you release Hotel guests or welcome Cruise Ships. The first of what we expect to be a series of attractions are the Go Karts.
Check the Build menu under the Businesses tab to find the Go Karts which cost a whopping 25 thousand Coins. Once you scrounge up enough cash for it, build the foundation using a few Energy, and then click on the building to finish it. The Go Karts, like many businesses and community buildings, requires special materials found through friends to complete.
CityVille Go Karts build menu
Go Kart Wrench IconWhen the Go Karts are ready for business, it's up to you to decide when it is ready for customers. However, attractions also require repairs in between the times they're open for business. Here's a breakdown of how the Go Karts--and all attractions, really--operate:
Release Hotel Resort guests and Cruise Ship Tourists
Click on the Go Karts in order to open it to customers. (Go Karts are only open for three minutes at a time.)
Hover over the Go Karts to see how much time is left and how many customers have visited.
When the money bag icon appears, click it to collect your earnings. (Go Karts earn between 800 and 3,000.)
After collecting, click on the wrench icon to begin the repairs process.
Rinse and repeat until filthy rich.
Maintenance Go Karts
Like we said, attractions need regular maintenance. Players can simply wait for the timer, which in this case is a whopping 24 hours, before reopening the gates. However, you can also ask your friends for Wrenches, which will allow your attraction to reopen instantly when three are collected--at least in the Go Karts' case--and increase your payouts next time. We hope this is the first of many attractions, as they add a much-welcomed albeit thin layer of strategy to making money in-game.
[Source and Image Credit: Zynga]
Check out the rest of our CityVille Cheats & Tips right here.
Have you started your Go Karts yet in CityVille? What do you think of these new types of businesses in the game?
Penny Arcade: When free games aren't really free
Popular video game-centric comic Penny Arcade exposes the dark underbelly of 'free-to-play' games, such as League of Legends and FarmVille. Yup, this pretty much says it all.
How much money have you spent in 'free' games?
How much money have you spent in 'free' games?
CityVille Havering Manor: Add citizens to your town the expensive way
While I would like to tell you that CityVille's newest limited edition home is affordable, I unfortunately can't. No, the Havering Manor costs a whopping 70 City Cash, and that's just for a single building! Granted, this estate is quite large, taking up a lot of space on your land, but isn't that also another negative? With expansions and land space going for high costs now, is it worth building this large of a structure, especially when it costs this much to do?
Perhaps I'm reading too much into this. Either way, if you're interested in purchasing the Havering Manor, you'll receive a starting population of 1750 citizens, which can be expanded to a huge number - 4,500 citizens - over time (by randomly receiving population boosts when you or your friends collect the Manor's rent).
To add a bit of a complication to the Havering Manor, even if the price tag isn't too high for you, but you do need to save up some City Cash, you unfortunately don't have that luxury. The Havering Manor will only be available in the store for the next day, and whether it will ever be re-released after this initial launch is anyone's guess. Who knows? It may come back, but at an even higher price (don't put it past Zynga). Ultimately, purchasing one will be up to you, but I wouldn't blame you for turning your nose up at the idea and moving on.
Will you / have you purchase(d) the Havering Manor before it expires in CityVille? Do you think 70 City Cash is an acceptable price, considering the large boost in population this one provides?
Perhaps I'm reading too much into this. Either way, if you're interested in purchasing the Havering Manor, you'll receive a starting population of 1750 citizens, which can be expanded to a huge number - 4,500 citizens - over time (by randomly receiving population boosts when you or your friends collect the Manor's rent).
To add a bit of a complication to the Havering Manor, even if the price tag isn't too high for you, but you do need to save up some City Cash, you unfortunately don't have that luxury. The Havering Manor will only be available in the store for the next day, and whether it will ever be re-released after this initial launch is anyone's guess. Who knows? It may come back, but at an even higher price (don't put it past Zynga). Ultimately, purchasing one will be up to you, but I wouldn't blame you for turning your nose up at the idea and moving on.
Will you / have you purchase(d) the Havering Manor before it expires in CityVille? Do you think 70 City Cash is an acceptable price, considering the large boost in population this one provides?
Puppy lovers unite as OMGPop pulls in $20k daily from Puppy World
That's a heck of a lot of doggy biscuits... Released in late July, OMGPop's Puppy World on iPhone / iPod Touch has been downloaded over one million times, and currently sits at #54 on the iTunes Top Free Apps chart. While not one of the most social-heavy games on the App Store (although the app claims you can share puppies with your Facebook friends), that doesn't mean it's not a profitable setup. In fact, players are apparently so in love with puppies that they're paying $20,000 per day on the game's virtual goods.
As reported by TechCrunch, OMGPop's CEO Dan Porter has offered some stats about the game's progress so far (unfortunately, there's no infographic to go with them - we love infographics). Of the game's 1 million downloads, a quarter of those have resulted in daily active users returning to the game. What's more, when taking all users into account, each user spends an average of eight cents per day on virtual goods that are available within the Puppy World app (players can purchase premium decorations, or can even buy their way out of quests with premium currency). While it wasn't revealed in exact detail, Puppy World has many players that spend sometimes more than $50 on premium currency packages, with all spending adding up to over $20,000 a day.
To bring in those users, Porter claims that 20 percent of users are downloading the game based on adds they've seen on OMGPop's website and on Facebook app pages, while viral sharing and exposure on the iTunes app charts accounts for a larger portion: 60%. The final 20% is comprised of users that responded to paid advertising. Do the math, and Porter states that "For every user we pay to acquire we are seeing 6 more users for free." That's pretty impressive, all things considered.
Of course, many would argue that in the world of social and mobile games, success is found over the course of a marathon, and not a sprint. Sure, OMGPop may have a hit on their hands now, but how long will it last? Porter admits that the game isn't without flaws, especially when playing on older iPhones. "If we had to do it all over again, we would have only supported iPhone 4," he says. He attributes many of the app's one-star reviews to the app crashing on older phones.
With such simplistic gameplay as waiting for puppies to grow before giving them over to happy children, mixed with some light animal care-taking tasks, could Puppy World even have enough content to sustain a port to Facebook? I know I'd be interested in these adorable puppies making the switch, and with profits like these just on the iPhone, we're excited to learn if that becomes OMGPop's next logical step. We'll make sure to let you know if it is.
Have you tried Puppy World on iPhone? Would you like to see Puppy World make the switch to Facebook, or do you think the gameplay is more suited to a mobile experience / audience? Have you spent any money in free-to-play mobile games?
As reported by TechCrunch, OMGPop's CEO Dan Porter has offered some stats about the game's progress so far (unfortunately, there's no infographic to go with them - we love infographics). Of the game's 1 million downloads, a quarter of those have resulted in daily active users returning to the game. What's more, when taking all users into account, each user spends an average of eight cents per day on virtual goods that are available within the Puppy World app (players can purchase premium decorations, or can even buy their way out of quests with premium currency). While it wasn't revealed in exact detail, Puppy World has many players that spend sometimes more than $50 on premium currency packages, with all spending adding up to over $20,000 a day.
To bring in those users, Porter claims that 20 percent of users are downloading the game based on adds they've seen on OMGPop's website and on Facebook app pages, while viral sharing and exposure on the iTunes app charts accounts for a larger portion: 60%. The final 20% is comprised of users that responded to paid advertising. Do the math, and Porter states that "For every user we pay to acquire we are seeing 6 more users for free." That's pretty impressive, all things considered.
Of course, many would argue that in the world of social and mobile games, success is found over the course of a marathon, and not a sprint. Sure, OMGPop may have a hit on their hands now, but how long will it last? Porter admits that the game isn't without flaws, especially when playing on older iPhones. "If we had to do it all over again, we would have only supported iPhone 4," he says. He attributes many of the app's one-star reviews to the app crashing on older phones.
With such simplistic gameplay as waiting for puppies to grow before giving them over to happy children, mixed with some light animal care-taking tasks, could Puppy World even have enough content to sustain a port to Facebook? I know I'd be interested in these adorable puppies making the switch, and with profits like these just on the iPhone, we're excited to learn if that becomes OMGPop's next logical step. We'll make sure to let you know if it is.
Have you tried Puppy World on iPhone? Would you like to see Puppy World make the switch to Facebook, or do you think the gameplay is more suited to a mobile experience / audience? Have you spent any money in free-to-play mobile games?
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