Facebook Launches New Games Center—But Where’s Zynga?
Thursday, 28th March 2013Posted in Industry
Tags: 3rd party, content, Facebook, Farmville, Farmville 2, game, games, gdc, players, Sean Ryan, zynga
Written by: Jeff Nau
Follow @jeffnau
Remember how utterly inseparable ‘ol Zynga and Facebook seemed a couple years back? It was like you couldn’t even glance at your FB login page without viewing half a dozen Farmville-related ads or notifications.
Now, it appears, the two companies couldn’t be further apart. Part of this is due to Facebook is no longer in any sort of long-term contract with Zynga; another is that so many other third-party games that are doing so well for Zuckerberg and co: According to the San Francisco Gate, new releases like King.com‘s Candy Crush Saga has more players than the much-anticipated Farmville 2. Continue reading “Facebook Launches New Games Center—But Where’s Zynga?” »
Zynga Officially Shuts Down Production on 13 Games (Farmville Isn’t One Of Them)
Wednesday, 2nd January 2013Posted in Industry
Tags: cancel, Farmville, Mafia Wars 2, Petvile, shut down, users, Vampire Wars, zynga
Written by: Jeff Nau
Zynga has reported that it will officially shut down production on 13 titles, confirming earlier reports that the company was having a difficult year and planning to cancel certain underperforming games.
Among those titles: Petville, Mafia Wars 2, and Vampire Wars. Continue reading “Zynga Officially Shuts Down Production on 13 Games (Farmville Isn’t One Of Them)” »
Zynga Games Faces Layoffs and Financial Difficulties, Shuts Down Production on 13 Games
Wednesday, 24th October 2012Posted in Industry
Tags: Facebook, gams, Indiana Jones, production, studios, trouble, zynga
Written by: Jeff Nau
Follow @jeffnau
Is Zynga headed down the same path as 38 Studios? The most recent gaming company to be hit by hard economic times, Zynga is being forced to lay off approximately 5% of its 3,000 employees — 150 in total, but some experts suggest it’s possible the number will grow.
According to The Los Angeles Times, the makers of Farmville and Mafia Wars are also closing down production of 13 games, casting clouds over hopes over the company’s exclusive game-making clause with Facebook, Continue reading “Zynga Games Faces Layoffs and Financial Difficulties, Shuts Down Production on 13 Games” »
New Zynga Platform Hits Open Beta
Wednesday, 7th March 2012Posted in Blog Archive, Gaming
Tags: platform, social gaming, zynga
Written by: Craig Hunter
Follow @jordankahn
It was just some days ago when it was announced by Marc Pincus (via Joystiq) that Zynga would break free from the Facebook platform. Zynga has adopted its own proprietary platform, a portal for all the company’s social games like Castleville and Words with Friends.
As of right now at Zynga.com the open beta of its gaming portal is up and running. As of a couple hours ago there were already nearly 2 million users taking part. Although not all the sites mechanics and functionality is running just yet, seasoned Zynga gamers will find all of their stats and data waiting for them pending making an account on the new gaming portal. Continue reading “New Zynga Platform Hits Open Beta” »
At $1 Billion, How Does Modern Warfare 3 Compare To The World’s Richest Businesses?
Tuesday, 13th December 2011Posted in Blog Archive, Gaming, Keeping it Real
Tags: billion dollars, business, Coca-Cola, Facebook, industry, Modern Warfare 3, zynga
Written by: Paul Nyhart
Activision officially announced that Modern Warfare 3 grossed over one billion dollars in its first 16 days, quite the feat for the game that was promoted alongside the Jeep Cherokee, Xbox console, Mountain Dew, and last but not least, Gunnar sunglasses.
Love it, hate it, or ignore-it-because-it’s-not-Skyrim, Modern Warfare 3 has shattered video game sales records, but how does it compare to other franchieses and enterprises in modern culture?
In other words, how is the gaming industry sizing up to some of the most profitable Continue reading “At $1 Billion, How Does Modern Warfare 3 Compare To The World’s Richest Businesses?” »
Former EA, Activision Execs to Bring Console Quality Games to Facebook
Friday, 2nd December 2011Posted in Blog Archive, Gaming
Tags: console, Facebook, gameplay, Greg Richardson, iOS, mobile gaming, Rumble, zynga
Written by: Craig Hunter
Are you frustrated with the thousands of Farmville clones trying to pass themselves off as video games…on platforms like Facebook, Android, and iOS?
What about their micro-transaction models that create a “spend-to-progress” sense of urgency rather than focusing on engaging gameplay?
NYT points us to former EA and Activision execs who have formed startup Rumble Entertainment to develop and publish hardcore games specifically aimed at the platforms where social, casual gaming companies like Zynga dominate. Continue reading “Former EA, Activision Execs to Bring Console Quality Games to Facebook” »
Throw Yourself on this Pitchfork: It’s Farmville The Movie!
Monday, 10th October 2011Posted in Gaming, Offbeat, Pop Culture
Tags: battleship, Farmville, Farmville movie, Monopoly, movie, toy story, zynga
Written by: Jeff Nau
Before you panic, it might be best to take such news in stride as something that could POSSIBLY happen. Yes, the brains behind Toy Story, as well as Cheaper By the Dozen, Daddy Day Care, and Evan Almighty are supposedly collaborating on a movie (likely CGI) that will presumably follow the adventures of uh, rival farmers, vying for rural domination…
Says writer Joel Cohen (not the Lebowski guy): “We will continue writing movies. We are also working on several new and very exciting opportunities. We’re in conversations with (Farmville creator) Zynga to do something with one of their brands. Can’t really say too much on that front yet, but ‘Old MacDonald’ didn’t have a factory, if you get our drift.” Continue reading “Throw Yourself on this Pitchfork: It’s Farmville The Movie!” »
Gaming on Google Plus: The Monster Rises…
Friday, 12th August 2011Posted in Blog Archive, Gaming
Tags: angry birds, games, google, google games, sudoku, zynga
Written by: R Bryant Francis
The roaring, lumbering machine of Google trembled mightily once again, raising its great maw into the air and belching for a hot breath of Angry Birds, Bejeweled Blitz, Zynga Poker and Sudoku.
-From the Legend of Google, recovered by scientists after a time traveler crashed into the San Francisco Bay–this is one of the few pages they’ve allowed to be published.
In modern news, Google announced today it would be adding a host of “social” games to Google Plus”–as the “transcription” lists above, the first of these games includes the just-about-damned-everywhere Angry Birds, the popular-with-moms Bejeweled Blitz, and the I-don’t-have-any-witty-things-to-say-about-them Zynga Poker and Sudoku.
From the start Google Plus seemed to have a future with Social gaming, what with the possibility of the existence of Google Games–and now we’re beginning to see that tree bear fruit. Zynga, who are practically sitting on a throne of jewels thanks to their massive profits off of Farmville and Cityville have joined Google Plus, and could no doubt help bring some of the yet-to-join Facebookers with them if they were to introduce the right games. (Farmville and any other ville will NOT be joining, unfortunately.)
What kind of social games would you like to see on Google Plus–and you can’t say “ones that don’t steal my private info,” ’cause guess what—THEY ALREADY DON’T!
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