Author: Unknown
•4:50 PM
By Joyce Loto


The most popular game of Facebook made its debut in 2009. FarmVille, a member of the genre of "social games", seemed to achieve success almost over night. The popularity of this game and others just like it will only continue to grow as social networking sites boom.

The concept of the game is fairly simple. Users are given their own farm to manage and have the ability to gain farm coins and experience points. In order to grow their farm and become successful, users plant crops. As they grow, they can be cultivated, earning more coins and points. As these increase, so do the number of crops available in the "market". The ultimate objective of the game is to manage a successful farm while earning as much currency as possible.

By establishing one's farm, a user also introduces himself into an intricate network of players. A single plot can turn into a web of neighbors and friends. Users add these neighbors from their list of Facebook friends, levying the power of social media sites. Yet, they can also add players whom they do not know. Once added, players can visit one another's farms and perform actions on it, earning coins and leaving gifts.

Harvest Moon, a role playing game introduced in 1996 is said to have been the jumping off point for FarmVille. This RPG created the concept of virtual farming to the Super Nintendo platform, although it was not wildly popular. Its successor, Happy Farm, was far more widely known, especially in China. This is the game that truly set the stage for the virtual social farming concept. It appeared on the web just one year before the Facebook game.

Zynga is the well-known developer of FarmVille. In recent years, it has designed a large portion of social networking games on Facebook, meeting success time and time again. The favorite model is to include the option for free game-play with available in-game purchases using "Facebook credits". In fact, the company has made dozens of these RPGS across a number of platforms from stand alone to social media. Its success has been so enviable that a German company, not so cleverly disguised as Plinga, has even attempted to copy its business model.

The social game industry brings in more than a billion dollars a year in revenue and, as such, has become an advertising gold mine. In any given game, sponsors have many options. Banners are the most obvious choice, visible when players log in and throughout the games. However, certain ones even afford the opportunity for product placement directly into game-play. Such games also increase traffic to a website, as a large portion of users return day after day to continue play.

FarmVille 2 was released a few years ago, hoping to replicate the career of its predecessor, which holds the spot for the seventh most popular game on Facebook. Although, it once held the top position. The developer, Zynga, has not slowed down in pumping out replicas of the wildly popular FarmVille, however.

FarmVille was almost destined to be a hit, considering it was launched on one of the most widely visited sites in the world. Facebook has the power to define a brand. The game definitely set a precedent for sequels and for others like it.




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