Social Gaming

Soccer is one of the world’s most popular sports, so it shouldn’t surprise anyone that a mobile title based on the game has established a large dedicated fan base. Today, developer Nordeus is celebrating the three-year anniversary of its soccer-management title Top Eleven. The game puts players in control of a major soccer club on Facebook, Android, and iOS. As manager, players will make all the decisions that lead to a winning team. “I think the ability for the users to take the game wherever they are — on smartphones or on Facebook and have continuous gameplay — that is driving a lot of our success,” Nordeus head of strategic partnerships Assaf Vaknin told GamesBeat. “We know how to use Facebook and the social graph — I don’t want to say we’re aggressive — but we know how to put [Top Eleven] out there in a visible way for users to connect with their friends.” That strategy is paying off. Top Eleven has over 40 million registered users. It’s retained over a quarter of those for 11 million monthly active users. More than that, Vaknin pointed out that the title is one of the top-five highest-grossing apps in over 53 countries on both iOS and Android. For Vaknin, he believes it’s the games focus on authenticity that is helping it stick with gamers. “We try our best to keep it as real as possible,” said Vaknin. “We work hard to come up with crazy cool features that will get the players engaged and that has shown in terms of our overall numbers — in terms of retention, and a 40 percent DAU-to-MAU ratio.” Nordeus also landed a huge celebrity endorsement deal in March when it tapped Real Madrid head coach José Mourinho to act as the face of Top Eleven. Additionally, the studio worked with Real Mardrid, Liverpool, Arsenal, AC Milan, and more to bring in authentically licensed items for players to purchase and customize their teams. Top Eleven is available for free on Android, iOS, and Facebook. Filed under: Games GamesBeat 2013 is our fifth annual conference on disruption in the video game market. You'll get 360-degree perspectives from top gaming executives, developers, and analysts on what’s to come in the industry. Our theme this year is “The Battle Royal.” Check out full event details here, and grab your early-bird tickets here! .blurb-cat-games hr { margin: 10px 0 10px 0; }

Bonus Coins Make sure to look for the hidden bonus coins. They can help you to find difficult objects and can give you some more time or even some bonus points. Save your hint and fast forward coins for when you really need them (the objects are harder to find as the rounds progress). If you don't use them immediately, they are saved for use in future rounds. You can use the time bonus coins just before you finish to get a higher time bonus, even if you aren't running short of time. Game Play If you like a more relaxed pace of game, try turning on Relaxed mode and you will no longer run out of time. Try and find objects quickly to earn a quick find bonus. Match the groups mini-game Try and create large groups of the same object in order to earn more bonus objects and to get a bigger score. This mini-game can become hard in the later rounds if you don't plan ahead. The key is to use the bonus objects (the blue or red ones with the arrow shapes) to destroy entire rows of wooden blocks. So plan your moves so that you can create groups of 5 or more objects (that is how you earn bonus objects). Then when you click on these larger groups, make sure you click on one of the objects in the group that is on the row you wish to clear. The bonus will appear on the object you clicked on. If you follow this strategy, you should be able to get through these rounds - but it may still take a few tries. For the Entire Big City Adventure: San Francisco Walkthrough, Visit CasualGameGuides.com! Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

In the fall of 2012 I released a game for the iPad called Finger Tied. Finger Tied is a puzzle game where you have to move your fingers to fill in shapes on the screen while keeping up to four fingers touching the screen at all times. It's kind of like Twister for your fingers.

FarmVille Unreleased Vineyard Animals: FarmVille Super Costume Unicorn FarmVille Bacchus Pegacorn FarmVille Friendship Unicorn FarmVille Vineyard Bloodhound Puppy FarmVille Sugar Glider FarmVille Post Office Echidna FarmVille Winery Cooper FarmVille Unreleased Vineyard Trees: FarmVille Rainbow Eucalyptus Tree FarmVille Upside Down Pineapple Tree FarmVille Brussel Sprout Tree FarmVille Grape Vine Tree FarmVille Flower CLuster Tree FarmVille Wooden Wind Chime Tree FarmVille Unreleased Vineyard Decorations: FarmVille Cleaning Gnome FarmVille Drop Bear Statue

The new video game consoles are coming, and so are some brand-new big budget video games. One of them is Dying Light, the night-day zombie game that Dead Island developer Techland is making for Warner Bros. It’s a scary title where you prey on slow-moving zombies by day and then flee the fast-moving ones as they hunt you down at night. Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment recently showed a preview that scared the heck out of me. Gorgeous isn’t a word I would use to describe an extremely violent zombie-killing game. But the graphics look amazing, and it will look quite pretty on next-generation game consoles when it debuts either late this year or next year. One thing is clear from the preview we saw. Techland is ready for the triple-A stage for video games. Its work is first-rate, and I’ll be interested to play this when it comes out. We caught up with Blazej Krakowiak, international brand manager at Techland, for an interview after the preview presentation. Here’s an edited transcript of our conversation. Check out the video at the end as well. Techland will be showing off the game at the upcoming E3 game trade show in Los Angeles in June. GamesBeat: What background do you guys have? What have you done before? Blazej Krakowiak: As a company, we were founded 21 years ago. We were the developers behind Dead Island and the Call of Juarez series. Some people might remember our science fiction shooter Chrome. That’s one of the games that started at all. We have a lot of faithful fans, but we’re always anxious when we bring out something this big. Dying Light is our most ambitious project to date. GamesBeat: How recently did you move on to this? What were you finishing just as you started? Krakowiak: Development on Dying Light started early in 2012 when the core team finished Dead Island. That sold very well – it was one of the milestones for our company – but it wasn’t enough. We wanted to take the zombie experience to another level. We started working on more advanced features for the next iteration of our Chrome engine technology. This will be the first engine powered by Chrome engine 6. It’s built for the next console generation and DirectX 11. We also started looking for a business partner that could do the game justice. We’re very happy to be working with Warner Bros. on that. GamesBeat: What’s going to distinguish the visuals of this game? What’s the next step as far as what you can do now? Krakowiak: For a long time we’ve been talking about needing more power to get the proper number of characters on screen, the right texture resolution, things like that. We wanted a more powerful PC, plus consoles that could keep up or ideally surpass that. We all know that we’re finally getting that power. This game is developed for the next generation and basically ported down to the current generation, although we’re still confident we’ll be able to deliver a good experience there. As far as upgrades, obviously lighting will be key to the game, because of the day-night cycle. We want to introduce advanced animations for the free running. We want to have a lot of zombies and a lot of other characters on the screen without sacrificing performance. That’s especially important in co-op, which we’ll have for up to four players. We’ll also support a range of console features that we can’t discuss in detail at the moment. At E3 we’ll probably be able to tell you more about that. We’ll have some important dates behind us by then. GamesBeat: You mentioned at the close of the demo that you’ll spend your day preparing for what happens at night. Can you explain that a little bit more? Krakowiak: To start off, the game is quest-driven. You’ll complete missions – some of them mandatory, some optional. You’ll have specific objectives. But this is also an open-world game, even more so than any of our other games before it. It allows for exploration and roaming and finding new things to do. As far as preparation, that can inc

Big Fish Games is expanding its casual cloud-gaming service across four major platforms today. The Big Fish Instant Games app is now available on smartphones, tablets, TVs, and the PC. In doing so, the company is taking cloud gaming to the masses in a way that its rivals Gaikai and OnLive haven’t done. Seattle-based Big Fish Games bills itself as the world’s largest producer of casual games. Its roots are as a maker of downloadable games on websites that primarily target older female gamers, who embrace titles that don’t involve guns and violence. It has published more than 3,000 games produced by its own developers and third-party gamemakers. The company has been adapting to the growth of mobile gaming by launching a series of mobile titles, adapted from its casual web fare. But last year, the company also made a bold move by launching a cloud-based service, where games are stored and executed on web-connected data centers rather than on a player’s computer. The games are streamed to a user’s machine, which doesn’t have to process or store the game data. That allows those games to be played on any device, and Big Fish Games is reaping the rewards of that investment today by launching its cloud service across all four major screens: PCs, smart TVs, tablets, and mobile phones. Big Fish Games is making the app for its cloud service available on the Google Play store today, and it is also releasing it on the Roku 3 set-top box, which will take the content to the television screen. Customers can instantly play the entire Big Fish Instant Games catalog of more than 200 games. The idea is to give users maximum flexibility in where and how people want to play. The Big Fish Instant Games platform will come to more platforms throughout the year. Game progress is stored in the cloud, allowing players to play on one device and then log into the same game from another device. Big Fish Games launched the service on the iPad last year. Since that launch, users have logged more than 200 years of gameplay from over 5 million game sessions. “Adding Android smartphones and Roku to our supported devices has substantially increased the audience of users who can instantly play and enjoy games from Big Fish,” said Jina Heverley, the vice president and general manager of PC, Mac, and Cloud for Big Fish. ”Now you can start a Big Fish game on your TV at home and pick it up later on the go on your smartphone without having to wait for the game to download.” Big Fish charges $7.99 a month for subscriptions to the service. Big Fish also allows free access to a rotating catalog of games via an ad-supported service. Filed under: Business, Games GamesBeat 2013 is our fifth annual conference on disruption in the video game market. You'll get 360-degree perspectives from top gaming executives, developers, and analysts on what’s to come in the industry. Our theme this year is “The Battle Royal.” Check out full event details here, and grab your early-bird tickets here! .blurb-cat-games hr { margin: 10px 0 10px 0; }

While everyone is talking about Tumblr’s acquisition as a one-man show at $1.1 billion, Yahoo! paid $3.5 billion for Geocities back in 1999 with only 19 million uniques compared to Tumblr’s 300 million uniques, so, in some sense, Tumblr is a good deal.  While this latest acquisition seems like a big one, it’s also symbolic of what internet traffic is worth now in scale and shows that social blogging networks are not just traffic platforms, but strategic internet real estate.  Tumblr, where anyone can blog and share others’ blogs, has also become mainstream, so is everyone blogging now? Is that the future of consumerism? Besides obvious social sharing, this week’s theme in Social Commerce is sharing both content and legal liability, and here’s why: everything can be shared now, from a picture memory to car rides to assistants. Where are all the new rules for this landscape? ZipCar, CarShare, and GetAround are just a few examples of car sharing, but then there’s “ride sharing” services like Lyft, Uber, RelayRides, SideCar, etc., and when you don’t even have time to borrow a car, there’s always Zirtual, TaskRabbit, Exec and other programs to help you find someone to do an errand for you. As for birthdays, now you don’t even need to borrow a car or an assistant — a virtual gift can be sent via Facebook gifts, which has been steadily growing as the program builds around holidays like Mother’s Day and suggestions (remember Facebook Credits?) Sharing the costs of bills in groups is easier now too with Paypal and Square and other apps for splitting costs. Some are even arguing that Bitcoin is the ultimate collective currency. So what’s going to happen to all the existing rules and legal liabilities that are in place, especially when everything is shared? How will responsibility be shared when a virtual assistant makes a mistake or a car accident happens during a car share experience? And what about sharing incorrect information that could easily be re-blogged and retweeted in real time? Traffic is Cheap Geocities sold to Yahoo! in 1999 with a fraction of the users as Tumblr. Sharing is more important, but cheaper than ever, so it seems that true consumerism is actually shifting to be more efficient and trade-based to maximize products and time. Maybe the biggest trend here is actually that consumers are consuming less and becoming producers more, so in the end, who really is the buyer? All of us? Is the future in collective social purchasing? No matter how social, the future of how things are “consumed” is starting to look more like communism, but instead of a nation state in control, we might be looking at platforms as the state. Sharing is Caring In true consumerism, the means of production and demand are on the individual level within a “free market,” whereas communism is more regulated and part of a planned economy, but when social commerce and sharing go sour, it’s the state that will have to step in to remedy the situation. So if all our apps keep helping the hyper-sharing that social commerce has to offer, we may be looking at the worst of both worlds, or a new method of consumerism all together. Digital socialism? Socialized consumerism? With Google, Facebook and Yahoo! on huge acquisition sprees, there’s no doubt that the future lies somewhere between the landgrab of platforms and trends of how people are sharing with one another. Let’s see if Bitcoin really becomes the medium. That could be interesting for online commerce. Anyone remember the debate around Facebook as the new government? Image by america365. New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Click here to receive the Morning Social Media Newsfeed via email. Twitter Rolls Out Two-Factor Account Authentication (SocialTimes) Twitter Wednesday launched a feature that will allow users to opt into two-factor account authentication on the service. Users who turn on the feature will receive an access code on their smartphone by SMS text message each time they attempt to log in to Twitter. They will be required to enter that code each time they seek to access their accounts. Mashable The move comes after a number of hacks of high-profile Twitter accounts, including The Onion, the Associated Press and E! Online. Jim O’Leary from Twitter’s product security team announced the new feature via a blog post, saying it is in response to accounts “occasionally” being compromised by phishing schemes or password breaches on other sites. The New York Times/Bits Blog Two-step authentication is by no means foolproof. Twitter accounts for larger brands and news outlets are often managed by several employees, but only one employee would receive the log-in code. In those cases, other employees would only be able to access the account from their usual devices, or would need to get the one-time code from the administrator — a hassle that may discourage brands from using the security feature altogether. Forbes Typing in a code sent to your phone may seem like a bit of extra work every time you want to log into your Twitter account. But the extra step only occurs when logging in from a new machine — in most cases users will never notice the new setting. And it’s a small price to pay to prevent embarrassing or false information to be broadcast to your followers. VentureBeat You can turn two-factor authentication on by going to your account settings in Twitter and selecting “require a verification code.” You’ll then have to enter a phone number. After two-factor is set up, you will have to enter the code every time you log in to Twitter. Google Trends Now Ranks Most Searched People, Places and Things in 40+ Categories, Releases Visual Trending Product (The Next Web) Google has released a new and improved version of Google Trends with new charts, updated monthly, of the most-searched people, places and things in more than 40 categories with the ability to filter by 11 countries. PR companies and their customers now have another metric to be highly aware of. Facebook Users Can Now Schedule Gifts (AllFacebook) Facebook added the ability for users to schedule Gifts up to two weeks in advance, enabling them to choose Gifts, fill out the cards and pay in advance. Sister blog Inside Facebook reported on the new feature, saying that previously recipients of Gifts would receive notifications immediately. LinkedIn Has Definitely Acqui-Hired Maybe, Omar Hamoui’s Polling Startup, Minus Hamoui Himself (TechCrunch) Fresh from closing its purchase of newsreading app Pulse, LinkedIn has made another acquisition to dive deeper into the mobile space. TechCrunch has found out, and confirmed, that the social network has aqui-hired Maybe, the social polling startup founded by Omar Hamoui — the man who set up, ran and then sold mobile ad company AdMob to Google for $750 million. This Memorial Day, Put Your Military Hero in the Spotlight with Hashtags4Heroes (AllTwitter) Celebrities and other Twitterati can reign supreme every other day, but if you have a loved one who has served (or is serving now) in the military, Hashtags4Heroes wants to help your special someone take center stage this Memorial Day. Syrian Activists’ Facebook Pages Said to be Shuttered (CNET) Just as Syria recovers from last week’s countrywide Internet outage, a number of government opposition groups are reportedly saying that their Facebook pages have been shuttered, according to Al Arabiya. One of the pages that is no longer available is the profile page of the former brigadier general of the Syrian Republican Guard, Manaf Tlass, who d

It’s that time of year again- FarmVille’s birthday! This year, FarmVille is celebrating it’s fourth birthday with a special 30 Days of prizes which will reward players with a free prize every day.  The 30 Day of prizes will begin on May 20th, 2013 and will run until June 19th, 2013. Today is officially day three of the 30 days of prizes. If you missed day one’s free prize due to technical difficulties (not being able to find the new feature) no worries, simply find day one’s prize, the Cupcake Cow, in your FarmVille Gift Box! Simply login to your FarmVille farm to claim your free prize. For future notice, the FarmVille Birthday 30 Days of Prizes, has its own quick button with a “4″ birthday candle icon that can be found on the right side of your in-game play area. FarmVille 4th Birthday Notice FarmVille Birthday Day 3: 10 Fuel Refills FarmVille 30 Days of Prizes Day 3 Daily Prize: 10 Fuel Refills FarmVille Daily Fun Fact: In the last year, 400 billion crops have been planted in Farmville! Sneak Peek of all the Birthday Prizes after the jump! FarmVille 4th Birthday Prizes: FarmVille Birthday Day 1: 4th Birthday Cupcake Cow FarmVille Birthday Day 2: 4th Birthday Candle Tree FarmVille Birthday Day 3: 10 Fuel Refills FarmVille Birthday Day 4: Atlantis Buildable Part Package FarmVille Birthday Day 5: Fertilize All Package FarmVille Birthday Day 6: 4th Birthday Bush FarmVille Birthday Day 7: 2 Mystery Game Darts FarmVille Birthday Day 8: 4th Birthday Party Tree FarmVille Birthday Day 9: 20 Watering Cans FarmVille Birthday Day 10: 3 Unwithers FarmVille Birthday Day 11: 4th Birthday Chicken FarmVille Birthday Day 12: 3 Pack of Turbo Chargers FarmVille Birthday Day 13: Sunlight & Mushroom Package FarmVille Birthday Day 14: 10 Farmhands FarmVille Birthday Day 15: 4th Birthday Mare FarmVille Birthday Day 16: 4th Birthday Sheep FarmVille Birthday Day 17: 4th Birthday Bouncy House FarmVille Birthday Day 18: 3-Pack of Instagrows FarmVille Birthday Day 19: 4th Birthday Bedazzled Horse FarmVille Birthday Day 20: 10 Arborists FarmVille Birthday Day 21: Atlantis Treasure Parts Package FarmVille Birthday Day 22: Book of XP FarmVille Birthday Day 23: 4th Birthday Cake Pop Tree FarmVille Birthday Day 24: 20 Fuel Refills FarmVille Birthday Day 25: 4th Birthday Gnome FarmVille Birthday Day 26: 4th Birthday Party Horse FarmVille Birthday Day 27: Australian Vineyard Package FarmVille Birthday Day 28: 4th Birthday Cotton Candy Tree FarmVille Birthday Day 29: 4th Birthday Unicorn FarmVille Birthday Day 25: 4th Birthday Pegacorn

Hewlett-Packard is moving into the innovative new category of tabletop computing today with the announcement of its HP Envy Rove 20 all-in-one computer. The touchscreen device has a 20-inch screen that you can fix at a variety of angles. You can even lay it flat as a tabletop computer. The machine is part of a growing category of tabletop computers coming from major computer makers. Sony launched its Sony Tap 20 computer last fall, while Lenovo is coming out soon with a 27-inch tabletop computer that you can play Air Hockey on. These models are pricier, as computer makers hope to entice PC buyers to upgrade to the more versatile machines. The device also comes with a built-in battery that can last for three hours while unplugged. In that sense, you can use it as a giant touchscreen tablet. You can carry it around the house or play games on it on the kitchen table. The machine uses Intel integrated graphics and Haswell processors. It has an in-plane switching (IPS) panel with wide viewing angles and 10-finger multitouch. It has Beats Audio and comes per-installed with software including EA Monopoly, Fingertapps Jigsaw Wars Puzzle, Fingertapps Musical Instruments, and Disney Fairies. It will debut in July for an undisclosed price. Filed under: Business, Gadgets, Games