Look, if you've never played Apples to Apples before, just go out to Walmart or something and fork up the 20 bucks. Play the game with a few friends, come back to read this news and you'll understand why we're excited. (Just trust us on this one, OK?) THQ and Mattel have announced that they're working to bring the awesome board game to Facebook and mobile this winter.
Better yet, like Zynga's Words With Friends, the game will be playable across platforms. This means players can challenge their friends in games of goofy comparisons from either Facebook or their mobile device (likely iOS and Android), and their friends can respond from either device. The game is quite simple: One player chooses a card from a deck with an adjective, while the other players choose one card from their hand with a person, place or thing of note. The former then chooses which card they think fits bests, generally based on whether it's funny ... which is almost always the case.
On Facebook and mobile, players will be able to create their own games with their friends or jump into existing games with random players. Through playing Apples to Apples, you'll earn Apple Coins, Apple Cash and Apple Achievements to unlock additional avatars, playing cards and themed backgrounds, according to a release.
THQ and Mattel are also releasing the game for Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network for $10, but we imagine the Facebook and mobile versions will be free. We also imagine that Apples to Apples will create awkward situations when players inexplicably laugh to themselves in public.
Have you ever played the original Apples to Apples card game? Will a game like this become a worthy competitor for the mighty Words With Friends?
Chủ Nhật, 11 tháng 12, 2011
Thứ Sáu, 9 tháng 12, 2011
Empires & Allies Strike Teams: Eliminate Invaders with a single click
If you've ever felt uneasy about the possibility of other players, or even NPCs attacking and invading your island(s) in Empires & Allies, you now have the supplies necessary to strike back with more than adequate force via a new feature that is now rolling out to players: Strike Teams. Strike Teams come in three flavors (more on that later) but all serve a similar purpose: to immediately clear an Invasion (or all Invasions, depending on the team) from your island, rewarding you in the process.
First things first, you'll need to build a Strike Team HQ in your empire to access this feature. From the inside of this building, you can select one of three kinds of Strike Teams. You're only allowed to send out "Ambush" teams at first, with those teams removing a single Invasion from your land. Once this is done five times, you'll unlock Mind Control Strike Teams. Deploy ten total Strike Teams and you'll unlock the final version - Total Ambush. Here are the specifics of each:
Ambush - Removes a single enemy Invasion. Rewards you with 3x the payout that the invader received when they attacked you.
Mind Control - Removes a single enemy Invasion. Rewards you with 3x the payout that the invader received, and the same units that they used to invade you will now counter-invade their own land.
Total Ambush - Removes all enemy Invasions on your entire map. Rewards you with 4x the payout your invader received when they attacked you. You'll receive this 4x payout bonus for each individual invasion you clear in this way.
Before you can launch a Strike Team, you'll need to ask for your friends' help in assembling them. Unfortunately, this seems to negate the usefulness of the feature a bit (as it slows down the entire process), unless your invader was so overpowered that you have no way of defeating them yourself.
There's the possibility of a fourth Strike Team (and beyond) being launched in the game, as we can see from the in-game menu above. Just how much more deadly those teams will become (or how much more profitable they will be for you) remains to be seen, but we'll make sure to let you know when they launch in the future.
[Via and Image Credit: Zynga]
What do you think of this Strike Team feature in Empires & Allies? Will you continue to do battle with Invaders, or will you take the time to build these Strike Teams to eliminate them with a single click?
First things first, you'll need to build a Strike Team HQ in your empire to access this feature. From the inside of this building, you can select one of three kinds of Strike Teams. You're only allowed to send out "Ambush" teams at first, with those teams removing a single Invasion from your land. Once this is done five times, you'll unlock Mind Control Strike Teams. Deploy ten total Strike Teams and you'll unlock the final version - Total Ambush. Here are the specifics of each:
Ambush - Removes a single enemy Invasion. Rewards you with 3x the payout that the invader received when they attacked you.
Mind Control - Removes a single enemy Invasion. Rewards you with 3x the payout that the invader received, and the same units that they used to invade you will now counter-invade their own land.
Total Ambush - Removes all enemy Invasions on your entire map. Rewards you with 4x the payout your invader received when they attacked you. You'll receive this 4x payout bonus for each individual invasion you clear in this way.
Before you can launch a Strike Team, you'll need to ask for your friends' help in assembling them. Unfortunately, this seems to negate the usefulness of the feature a bit (as it slows down the entire process), unless your invader was so overpowered that you have no way of defeating them yourself.
There's the possibility of a fourth Strike Team (and beyond) being launched in the game, as we can see from the in-game menu above. Just how much more deadly those teams will become (or how much more profitable they will be for you) remains to be seen, but we'll make sure to let you know when they launch in the future.
[Via and Image Credit: Zynga]
What do you think of this Strike Team feature in Empires & Allies? Will you continue to do battle with Invaders, or will you take the time to build these Strike Teams to eliminate them with a single click?
FarmVille: Free rides to Winter Wonderland available now!
If you're ready to take a trip to FarmVille's Winter Wonderland in anticipation of the holiday season, but don't want to spend 55 Farm Cash to do so, you'll be thrilled to learn that tonight marks the launch of free train rides to this newest farm within the game! That's right, the wait is over, as every user now has access to the farm, that is, as soon as this actually rolls out to you. This entire process should see you being invited to Winter Wonderland sometime this evening, if not incredibly early tomorrow morning.
If you don't see an in-game pop-up inviting you to visit, you'll need to look at the left side of your farm, outside of your farm's boundaries, for a billboard advertising the farm [pictured]. There, you'll see a button saying "Let's Go" that will trigger your trip to the Winter Wonderland farm, where you can begin planting new crops, upgrading your Polar Train Station, building a Winter Animal Pen and more!
Of course, we'll make sure to bring you continued coverage surrounding all things Winter Wonderland as the farm continues to grow, but for now, just jump in and have fun!
Check out the rest of our Holiday 2011 coverage right here.
Have you received your free trip to Winter Wonderland yet, or are you still waiting for the train to come by and pick you up? What do you think of this fourth farm so far?
If you don't see an in-game pop-up inviting you to visit, you'll need to look at the left side of your farm, outside of your farm's boundaries, for a billboard advertising the farm [pictured]. There, you'll see a button saying "Let's Go" that will trigger your trip to the Winter Wonderland farm, where you can begin planting new crops, upgrading your Polar Train Station, building a Winter Animal Pen and more!
Of course, we'll make sure to bring you continued coverage surrounding all things Winter Wonderland as the farm continues to grow, but for now, just jump in and have fun!
Check out the rest of our Holiday 2011 coverage right here.
Have you received your free trip to Winter Wonderland yet, or are you still waiting for the train to come by and pick you up? What do you think of this fourth farm so far?
FarmVille: Discover Cashback Bonus Castle available now
As promised, we're here with another update on the Discover cross-promotion that's taking place in FarmVille this month, and have some great news! The final free item - the Cashback Bonus Castle - is now available in the game. All you have to do to claim this large building is login to the game and visit Winter Wonderland.
If you've already visited the Discover Farm to receive your free Discover Yeti, you might not even have to visit the Discover Farm a second time. Just make sure to head into your Gift Box both before and after visiting the Discover Farm and search for the Cashback Bonus Castle (yes, that's its real name) to see if it's there. This Castle is themed appropriately for Winter Wonderland, as it's made entirely of ice, save for the orange flags that fly from its towers and the snow that covers its hard edges.
This Castle will only be available in the game through December 14, so while that gives you plenty of time to make sure you claim one for yourself, it also gives you plenty of time to forget it exists! Make sure you claim it sooner, rather than later so that you don't miss out on this exclusive themed item!
Have you already claimed your free Discover Cashback Bonus Castle? Which of the items in this Discover cross promotion has been your favorite?
If you've already visited the Discover Farm to receive your free Discover Yeti, you might not even have to visit the Discover Farm a second time. Just make sure to head into your Gift Box both before and after visiting the Discover Farm and search for the Cashback Bonus Castle (yes, that's its real name) to see if it's there. This Castle is themed appropriately for Winter Wonderland, as it's made entirely of ice, save for the orange flags that fly from its towers and the snow that covers its hard edges.
This Castle will only be available in the game through December 14, so while that gives you plenty of time to make sure you claim one for yourself, it also gives you plenty of time to forget it exists! Make sure you claim it sooner, rather than later so that you don't miss out on this exclusive themed item!
Have you already claimed your free Discover Cashback Bonus Castle? Which of the items in this Discover cross promotion has been your favorite?
The dust finally settles on Zynga, MegaCity maker Vostu's legal battle
This year's proverbial title bout of social game legal disputes has finally come to a close. And walking away from the dust as it settles is Zynga, as Vostu unfortunately limps away in the opposite direction. Hyperbole aside, the two social game makers have settled their multiple disputes in both US and Brazil courts, and sounds like Vostu ended up having to pay. Here's the statement provided to us by both companies:
Zynga and Vostu have settled the copyright lawsuits and counterclaims against each other in the United States and Brazil. As part of the settlement, Vostu made a monetary payment to Zynga and made some changes to four of its games. The parties are pleased to have settled their disputes and to now put these matters behind them.
Unfortunately, it sounds as if Vostu lost out on this one. As for exactly what changes are to be made to four of Vostu's games, neither company could comment. Our guess is that changes will be made to four of the games involved in Zynga's initial lawsuit (filed way back in June of this year)--MegaCity, PetMania, CafeMania, and Mini Fazenda--to reduce their similarities to their Zynga-made counterparts.
CityVille vs MegaCity
Vostu Poker was also part of Zynga's lawsuit, but it's our guess that this game will be left unchanged, because, well, it's poker. While Zynga seems to have won this war, the company is no stranger to copyright disputes. Just recently, the developer opted to thwart Night Owl Games's attempts at creating either a game or game level called DungeonVille based on use of the 'Ville suffix. But that isn't to say the FarmVille maker hasn't had some issues of its own.
What changes do you think will need to made to Vostu's games in order to honor the settlement? Who do you think should have won this dispute?
Zynga and Vostu have settled the copyright lawsuits and counterclaims against each other in the United States and Brazil. As part of the settlement, Vostu made a monetary payment to Zynga and made some changes to four of its games. The parties are pleased to have settled their disputes and to now put these matters behind them.
Unfortunately, it sounds as if Vostu lost out on this one. As for exactly what changes are to be made to four of Vostu's games, neither company could comment. Our guess is that changes will be made to four of the games involved in Zynga's initial lawsuit (filed way back in June of this year)--MegaCity, PetMania, CafeMania, and Mini Fazenda--to reduce their similarities to their Zynga-made counterparts.
CityVille vs MegaCity
Vostu Poker was also part of Zynga's lawsuit, but it's our guess that this game will be left unchanged, because, well, it's poker. While Zynga seems to have won this war, the company is no stranger to copyright disputes. Just recently, the developer opted to thwart Night Owl Games's attempts at creating either a game or game level called DungeonVille based on use of the 'Ville suffix. But that isn't to say the FarmVille maker hasn't had some issues of its own.
What changes do you think will need to made to Vostu's games in order to honor the settlement? Who do you think should have won this dispute?
An Angry Birds 'social' game (and three others) is in the works for 2012
So, we're just going to assume that by "social", Rovio game designer Jaako Iisalo means "Facebook". During the Social Games and Virtual Goods World conference in London, England, the Angry Birds designer told Pocket Gamer that four new Angry Birds games will launch next year. More specifically, one of them will be a "social" game.
And, will you look at that, Angry Birds is already on Google+. Granted, there are versions of the iconic everywhere mobile game on Facebook, but none of which seem legitimate. (One even seems to stream the Google Chrome version of Angry Birds through to Facebook.) While this could just as easily mean an Angry Birds game on a mobile platform with heavier social features, the developer has said in the past that the franchise will hit Facebook.
Honestly, how Angry Birds is available on the Intel AppUp store and in retail stores across Europe before officially on Facebook is beyond us. At any rate, we can likely expect these other three Angry Birds games to tap into new genres, since Rovio has expressed interest in exploring new types of games for its irate avian creatures. And just when you started to grow bored of it.
Would you play Angry Birds on Facebook more than elsewhere? What other genres would you like to see the Angry Birds characters take a part in?
And, will you look at that, Angry Birds is already on Google+. Granted, there are versions of the iconic everywhere mobile game on Facebook, but none of which seem legitimate. (One even seems to stream the Google Chrome version of Angry Birds through to Facebook.) While this could just as easily mean an Angry Birds game on a mobile platform with heavier social features, the developer has said in the past that the franchise will hit Facebook.
Honestly, how Angry Birds is available on the Intel AppUp store and in retail stores across Europe before officially on Facebook is beyond us. At any rate, we can likely expect these other three Angry Birds games to tap into new genres, since Rovio has expressed interest in exploring new types of games for its irate avian creatures. And just when you started to grow bored of it.
Would you play Angry Birds on Facebook more than elsewhere? What other genres would you like to see the Angry Birds characters take a part in?
Thứ Tư, 26 tháng 10, 2011
LEGO Gears Of War Is As Amazing As It Sounds
Animation team Kooberz Studios figured, you know, all LEGO ever cover is kid’s franchises. There’s never anything with real gore in it. So they whipped up their own LEGO Gears of War video.
And it’s pretty great.
Clocking in at just under two minutes, the Locust could have been better, but Marcus and the way they incorporate game effects like the patented “Roadie Run” more than make up for that.
If you like what you see, you can check out a making-of video here.
And it’s pretty great.
Clocking in at just under two minutes, the Locust could have been better, but Marcus and the way they incorporate game effects like the patented “Roadie Run” more than make up for that.
If you like what you see, you can check out a making-of video here.
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