Lord of the Rings arrives on Facebook with Aragorn's Quest advergame

Lord of the Rings advergame
Before making the journey to various consoles and handheld gaming systems, Aragorn will take his quest to Facebook in a social adventure... of sorts. To help create some buzz of his next adventure in The Lord of the Rings: Aragorn's Quest, Warner Bros. have created a small (alright, it's minuscule) Facebook game for fans to enter. Players can take four of their friends along for the ride, filling the roles of The Wizard, The Hobbit, The Dwarf and The Elf. (If you can't figure out who they represent, then you must be new to this.)

After choosing a friend for each role, well, that's it really. The only purpose this serves is to enter you and your friends into the various contests that will take place on the game's fan page. Though, you can make alternate teams with more of your friends to increase your chances of winning the grand prize, a massive prize pack including an HDTV, a Sony Playstation 3 with MOVE motion controller starter pack and a copy of The Lord of The Rings: Aragorn's Quest.

All in all, it's a pretty big let down and a horribly missed opportunity at crafting what could have been an epic Facebok adventure. What's even worse is this sweepstakes is only open to our friends across the pond in the U.K., but at least Lord of the Rings fans across the globe can play the advergame and mark their friends as either Gandalf, Samwise, Legolas or Gimli in weekly quests. (Though, it seems somewhat wasteful at that point, really.) Act quickly, our British friends, as your journey for the grand prize will end on Jan. 14.

CityVille blasts past FrontierVille with 47.9 million players, could outgrow FarmVille in days

CityVille, for all intents and purposes, is the new ish on Facebook. It's been reported by AppData and VentureBeat that the game, after grabbing a massive 47.9 million monthly players in just 18 days, could easily soar high above FarmVille in days. Think about it: the game made mincemeat of FrontierVille's 30.9 million with ease. With the farming sim sitting at 56.3 million players after a significant drop from its peak of over 80 million players earlier this year, Zynga is apparently in competition with itself. Now that FarmVille is frighteningly close to being finally dethroned, we ask, "Could anyone else have done it but Zynga?"

Probably not.

While we've already explored what might have contributed to the insanely rapid growth of the city-growing sim, it's about time we ask another question: What could this mean for FrontierVille and FarmVille? First off, they won't be going anywhere soon. But they could very well become less profitable over time, with fewer items asking for paid currency and inversely more items that cost City Cash popping up in CityVille. We doubt Zynga's focus would shift too dramatically from game to game--heck, the company is still trying to get Warstorm off the ground--but anything is possible. Here's one last question: Can CityVille return Zynga to its former glory of raking in over 80 million souls players in a single game? Stay tuned to see if CityVille trumps the farm in time for Christmas.

FarmVille Silly Bandz Sponsored Link offers 25 Farm Cash

You could call the two mirrors, FarmVille and SillyBandz. One is a money-sucking phenomenon in the real world while the other serves that exact purpose in the digital world. So, it's only fitting that Zynga puts out a Sponsored Link to help merge the two wallet-incinerating hobbies. Though, this promotion goes one interesting step further.

Clicking on this Sponsored Link below your FarmVille game will take you to a purchase link to the SillyBandz website. Clicking on "Place Order Now" will redirect you to where you can buy FarmVille-inspired SillyBandz. However, to get the 25 Farm Cash you'll have to spend $8 on the mysterious wrist bands that somehow maintain their shape. In the special FarmVille pack of SillyBandz for $5.95, you'll find cows, tractors and even everyone's favorite sheep. While it's not free Farm Cash, at least you're getting it for less than paying directly and something tangible along with the 25 smackers to boot. And remember: only trust FarmVille Sponsored Links for ways to get free or discounted Farm Cash.

Game of the Day: Aloha Solitaire

Bringing back the game of the day is always a good thing. Today's game is Aloha Solitaire. Take a peaceful trip to the gorgeous Hawaiian Islands and play solitaire on your way across the archipelago. Relaxing screens and unlimited Mai Tai's await on your Hawaiian game expedition.

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.

Play Aloha Solitaire Now >

Bejeweled 2, Angry Birds for iPhone violate your privacy, WSJ reports

Zynga and LOLapps may not be the only ones after your personal information for an extra buck. In a report published by the Wall Street Journal today, complete with flashy infographic breaking it down for reader, reporters found that games like Bejeweled 2 and Angry Birds for the iPhone and Android phones may be sending your private data such as contacts, your phone's unique ID number and even your phone number to third party marketing and advertising firms.

The report encompassed 101 of the most popular apps and games on both platforms and, more specifically, found that Rovio, the developer of Angry Birds, knows your phone's unique ID number, contacts and location thanks to you playing the game. Worse off, WSJ suspects that the company is sending that information to third parties. In a reaction statement made today by the developer, Rovio denied all allegations that it is sending this information to anyone other than Crystal, the social network that supports its games, and uses Flurry, an analytical software.

"Crystal does not store any personal information, as insinuated by the WSJ article, nor does it utilize any data without the user's explicit knowledge," a Rovio spokesperson told gaming news site Develop. "Flurry collects analytical data to display numerical data such as numbers of users per different countries based on Phone ID and general location. This information is only displayed as aggregate statistics - Flurry never stores or displays any data pertaining to an individual."

As for Bejeweled 2, WSJ found in its research that PopCap, the game's developer and publisher, knows your user names, passwords and phone number. And yes, it too is sending that information to third parties, according to the Journal report. PopCap has yet to make a statement confirming or denying the claims made by WSJ.

And don't think these are the only games and apps that could be making some coin off your private information. The chart and infographic go on to mention that Doodle Jump, Ninjump, Paper Toss, Foursquare and even Tweet Deck are having their way with a least a sliver of your personal data. While the report does point a few fingers, its true purpose is to raise awareness to the fact that our personal data may not be safe even on our smartphones.

The report ends with a poll asking whether readers feel that games and apps should notify them of when they're accessing their information. A whopping 66 percent seem to feel that it should be done every time. And if the Journal's findings turn out to be true, well, I'd have to agree.

Facebook games move to Requests 2.0, or one-click requests, next year

The FarmVille fans are just gonna' love this one. Facebook announced that Requests 2.0, a feature that will allow users to opt into one-click requests in their favorite Facebook games with specific friends, will become the standard starting Jan. 1, 2012. The upcoming change was announced on the Facebook Developers Blog, but don't fret just yet, privacy watchdogs.

Actually, this feature already exists on Facebook in games like EA and Playfish's The Sims Social. We're all familiar with the pop-ups that require us to click "Share" in order to send direct requests to our friends, but you may have noticed some with a checked box and a message that reads, "Don't ask again before sending requests to Joe Shmoe from this app." While perhaps the box shouldn't already be checked, removing the check will force Facebook to continue requesting for your permission.

Honestly, after Facebooks' Mark Zuckerberg revealed at the annual f8 Conference that games will automatically post certain data to the new universal Ticker, it's hard not to wonder why players would be scared of a feature like this. This change is much different than Zynga's approach, which essentially makes all sharing automatic and barred players from choosing who to send what items. Requests 2.0 gives players to option to activate automatic sharing with whomever they want on an individual basis.

Facebook Games Platform developer Derek Brandao then revealed how this new change--that will remove support for the old requests model come Jan. 1, 2012--could make Facebook game requests much faster for players. Brandao then starts speaking developer, to which many of your eyes (including mine) will begin to glaze over.

This change doesn't seem to affect public game shares like "I need 17 pickles in FarmVille," but could make sharing between friends much smoother. Giving players the choice to opt out of the feature protects Facebook somewhat from anti-privacy claims, but there's still something about Facebook reporting on every game we play that's just a tiny bit disconcerting.

Kevin James visits the critters of Zoo World 2 in Zoo Keeper promotion

After watching Kevin James bumble around as a firefighter feigning a domestic partnership and later as a blundering mall cop, I wasn't so keen on watching him play a clumsy zoo keeper. But hey, maybe it'll make for a fun Facebook game event, and RockYou seems to agree, as it announced that Zoo World 2 will honor James's comedic, klutzy exploits in Zoo Keeper.

Zoo Keeper has come and gone in theaters, but picking up the Blu-ray or DVD release of James's summer comedy will score Zoo World fans 12,500 Zoo Bucks (normally $10) to blow in Zoo World 2. Of course, digital zoo keepers will be joined by characters from the movie including Griffin (Kevin James's character), Bernie the Gorilla, Joe the Lion, Mollie the Giraffe and Barry the Elephant.

Zoo World 2 will feature several goals involving the cast of the film, and players will net extra rewards when taking care of the critters from the movie. Leveling up during this promotion will produce customizable, Zoo Keeper-inspired notifications that players can share with each other. The original game gets some love, too, with four Zoo Keeper-themed animals.
Gallery: Zoo World 2 Zoo Keeper Promotion
RockYou has finally caught wind that, hey, branding is where it's at right now in Facebook games. (And perhaps a big name will give the game's 370,000 daily players a boost.) Not only has Enrique Iglesias landed in Zynga's CityVille, but studios like Ecko|Code have launched full-blown branded games like Dexter Slice of Life. And, if big time social game execs have anything to say about it, this trend isn't going anywhere. Let's just not make an entire game surrounding a Kevin James flick, kay?

Scott Steinberg: Facebook could be in music games' future [Interview]

"It was too many games in too short a time, playing to too niche of an audience at too high a price--in the middle of the worst recession possible." According to technology analyst and public speaker Scott Steinberg, this was what essentially killed the enormous music gaming franchises, Guitar Hero and Rock Band. The age of sitting around your living room with three friends, plucking and fiddling with plastic instruments to Rush's Tom Sawyer is all but over ... for now.

Well, at least those exorbitant pieces of plastic are through. Steinberg details the rise, fall, and imminent resurrection of music-based video games in his new novel, "Music Games Rock: Rhythm Gaming's Greatest Hits of All Time," which you can read for free right here. (If you're so inclined to support the guy, it's also available on iBooks, Kindle and in paperback.)

According to Steinberg, music games inspired by Guitar Hero and Rock Band's wild success will get their second shot in the limelight on Facebook and in your smartphones. We recently sat down with Steinberg to hear his thoughts on just how Facebook games can take advantage of this golden opportunity, why it hasn't happened just yet and what the killer Facebook music game might be like.

What advantages would you say social games have to capitalize on the downfall of music games?

There's a number of advantages, right? Free-to-play and incredibly low barriers to entry. You certainly don't have high-end system requirements, and you don't have to buy pricey plastic peripherals. They can tap into your existing music collection or stream it live, and you have millions of players connected to a platform that's uniform.

You don't have to worry, for the most part, about bugs or errors, because everybody is playing the same thing at the same time. So, what you have is a ready made audience, say, on Facebook alone of 800 million people who are incredibly connected. [They] used to playing with one another and are taking part in a platform that's uniquely tailor-made to take advantage of digital music--and oh, by the way, it's completely free to play.

When you take it in this context, coupled with the fact that every human being on this planet is hardwired to enjoy music, that really is the common unifier. Social games really are uniquely poised to take the genre to the next level.

Music Games RockIn your book, you mention that the music genre has enjoyed a revival on social networks through Facebook games like Nightclub City and Dirty Dancing--largely simulator games. But what about games that more closely resemble the now-defunct rhythm games like Pump It? Which of the two do you think has a better chance at thriving on Facebook?

Actually, I would argue that some of the better ones that have a chance of surviving may not even be traditional games at all. Look at a service like Turntable.fm: Wouldn't consider it a game per se, except it's powered completely by gamification elements. You're creating custom play lists, you're interacting with other players in a social environment and ultimately you're competing for the approval of other users by liking the songs.

Or, if you look at other games like YooStar Playground or apps like VidRhythm--these are the titles that are to do particularly well. That said, simulation titles [have a] strong audience for them and proven capability, and certainly because that's where so many games got their roots [on Facebook]. There's likely to be a lot of people interested. I've even seen a number of unreleased games that are in prototype that essentially allow you to take on the role of managing or performing in a rock band--I think they're uniquely well-suited.

I think what's not going to translate over well is simply the standard tap in time with the on-screen indicator type games. Though, these can continue to succeed on mobile platforms, because in the mobile context you're typically looking to play maybe with one hand in a span of five or six minutes. Whereas social games may only be a 15-minute spurt, you're sitting down in front of a PC and you're typically more engaged.

There are some music creation social games on the fringe already, like BreakOutBand, that rely on players to share content to succeed. How important would that be in a social game centered around music?

I think user-created content, as it relates to social games, is massively important, because at the end of the day the developers can only take a game so far. And it's the players' ability to interact with and reshape that music or related content that really creates a sense of community, and allows a title to constantly keep feeling fresh and people coming back for more.

It's essentially a win-win, because for the developer it's a very affordable way to keep adding content to the game and keep people talking about it, and coming back after weeks and weeks. Players aren't constrained by office politics, licensing issues, and--to be frank--everybody loves to mix and mash creations.

But how much of that is going to be super-high quality, or chart-topping hits shall we say, versus underground little diddies? This is social interaction at its core, right? So, if you don't have that level of user interactivity, at the end of the day what you have is essentially a game with a bunch of canned content. And not much reason--unless it's saying you need to recruit other players to earn money for your band or unlock new stuff--there's not much incentive to pass it along.

A good amount of music games already exist on Facebook, but none are taking off like music games did before the turn of the decade. What do you think it would take for a music-based social game to enjoy success and notoriety like Guitar Hero?

You need to have a concept with extremely wide appeal that allows players to enjoy rock star wish fulfillment in a matter of minutes without the painful side effects. What also is important is to have recognizable band scenarios, you know, licensed music. But also the ability for players to put their own spin on it and a reason for them to engage with one another.

The problem is, to succeed on social networks where you literally have thousands of titles competing, dozens of them coming out every single week--all of which are completely free to play versus Guitar Hero, which was completely brand new. To have that success on Facebook or another social network, I almost think what you're going to see is a title that's going to have to align itself with Spotify or another one of these streaming services to tap into a massive database of real-world artists and then finds new ways for you to interact with that music.
Dirty Dancing Facebook game
Back to the branded music games like Dirty Dancing (pictured). As you know, they're reaching critical mass, so what do you think is the likelihood of a monster brand like Guitar Hero or Rock Band appearing on Facebook?

Oh, it's a certainty. It's not a question of 'if,' but just a question of 'when.' I think a lot of that is because the game makers aren't unawares. Activision, Harmonix, Mad Catz: They understand the power of social networks as a platform. The problem is that their business has been thus far founded in either selling peripherals--good mark up on those plastic guitars--or selling software for 60 bucks a pop.

They haven't had as much incentive to scurry and think, 'How do we make a free-to-play platform where we're probably going to make a lot less money in the immediate?' But slowly and surely, as so many game players are migrating to these platforms, convenience is winning. It's almost as if they're being forced to acknowledge it. It's a completely new approach to game design--Wal-Mart's not going to order a million units. They'll embrace it; it's just a question of 'when.'

Try to describe your dream music-based Facebook game to me. In other words, what do you think would be the ultimate approach to a music game on Facebook?

The ultimate Facebook music game would not only be able to tap into your full library of digital music, but also stream millions of songs on demand. [It would] allow you to set up on stage custom concerts for your friends, featuring this music or original music you created. [You would] style your avatars, build your own bands, create your own followings, sell your own virtual merchandise and connect over shared love of music with millions of players across the world.

It would effectively recreate the rock and recording industry experience, only in a virtual setting. What I mean is a combo listening service, social network, slash simulation game that effectively allows you to build a rock band and recording industry career from the ground up. I don't see any reason why you couldn't create avatars for your band--it's own look, logo, virtual stickers, t-shirts. You could buy branded gear like Gibson's or Marshall's, earn cash from touring, build your own virtual labels. I don't see any reason why a platform wouldn't be able to break new artists.

Will Elvis Presley become 'The King' of Facebook gaming, too?

Who knows, but it looks like Pennsylvania-based Entertainment Games will everything it can to make that happen. (Screaming happily and bouncing at this news might be totally appropriate.) The social game creator and casual games portal announced that it has reached a licensing agreement with Elvis Presley Enterprises (EPE). The King himself will be featured as a main character in an upcoming game for Facebook, Google+ , mobile devices and open web.

Entertainment Games has yet to announce a release date, but did say that many celebrities along with Presley will be featured in the "soon-to-be launched, story-driven online game" in a release. The developer's Heyday platform will be the basis for the game's creation, and photographs from the archives at Graceland will be featured in the Facebook game. And, of course, Entertainment Games will include a copious amount of Elvis-themed virtual goods for purchase.

"Entertainment Games' mission is to create a totally unique social game experience in which players engage in rich, interactive stories and games that evoke the spirit of past decades and are brought to life by authentic photos and nostalgic celebrity imagery," Entertainment Games CCO F.J. Lennon said in a release.

The news follows the hire of soap opera guru Michael Fairman, and before that a deal that Entertainment Games struck with intellectual rights firm CMG Worldwide to use pictures of celebrities for a "retro-based social game for Facebook, Google+, mobile devices and the open web." Sound familiar? We thought so. Based on these recent reports it looks as if Entertainment Games is building one giant nostalgia bomb for Facebook gamers, and we can't wait to see it explode.

DeNA gobbles up Chilean Little Cave Hero maker Atakama Labs

The Little Cave Hero just moved on to a much bigger cave. VentureBeat reports that DeNA has acquired Chilean social game developer Atakama Labs for an undisclosed amount, though the website recalls that the price might be around $6 million. Atakama Labs is best known for quirky Facebook games like Little Cave Hero and artsy iPhone games like Today I Die Again.

It appears that this acquisition was made with specific interest in Atakama, founded by Esteban Sosnik and Tiburcio de la Carcova after fleeing to Santiago, Chile in search of political and economic stability, helping DeNA's mobile efforts. Namely, Atakama Labs will work with DeNA-owned Ngmoco to support the Mobage mobile social game network.

The mobile scene will likely be the next major battlefield for social game creators, especially as social game developers and publishers focus more and more resources on creating the next top 10 app. Most recently, Zynga revealed that it's working on another mobile version of Mafia Wars after shuttering its existing HTML5 endeavor. This question remains, however: Will it be quality games or robust networks that will decide who wins the mobile social gaming wars?

Chess Attack on Facebook: Refreshing, but rushed approach to a classic

Chess Attack
Classic board games are so easy to create on Facebook. I can't imagine how many renditions of tic-tac-toe, checkers and Mahjong there are on the website much less chess. That's why developer Sweet Robot and publisher Funcom decided to mix things up a bit with Chess Attack on Facebook. By shrinking the playing field from an 8x8 to a 6x6 grid, Sweet Robot has made for a much faster-paced version of the iconic board game. However, games tend to feel too rushed for such a thinker as chess--games will automatically end in a draw if a checkmate isn't reached in enough time.

Find out of Chess Attack makes the right moves after the break.

Aside from the change to the game board, Chess Attack is essentially chess on Facebook, so there's no need to get into all of the rules. Admittedly, it must be tough to make a game of chess interesting in a social game format, but Sweet Robot pulls it off with smooth animations and a slew of cosmetic features. Note the word "cosmetic." Thankfully, the developer didn't get too crazy with paid transactions and limited them to new chess sets and game boards.

Chess Attack gameplay
While players can practice with the AI opponent set to "Easy" "Standard" and "Difficult," the core of Chess Attack is competing with other players in real time. Unfortunately, the game launched today, so it's going to be a rough time finding opponents for a little while. (As of this writing, the game has just over 600 users.) From playing both against the AI and real players, you will advance in level and earn coins for every move made on the board. Your level doesn't serve much of a purpose aside from making proper matchmaking simple. The coins, of course, will be used to buy new items in the shop. There is also a list of achievements, or "Medals," to considering when playing Chess Attack, which also unlock new items in the shop.

Chess Master for Facebook is one fine social game. Thanks to real time gameplay and a 6x6 game board, this game is an interesting take on what could have been a yawn-inducing, standard chess game. However, the game tends to rush players through in respect of time, which is not good new for amateurs like myself. Not to mention that finding real people to play with at the moment is a challenge given the fact that Chess Attack just launched. If you want to see an inventive take on chess take off on Facebook, spread the word and give that AI opponent a whipping for me in the meantime. Seriously, it beats me every time.

FarmVille Sneak Peek: RewardVille items unearthed from the farm

RewardVille Rewards FarmVille
It looks like RewardVille is slowly being made available to players (finally), because FarmVille Freak has uncovered a long list of rewards that FarmVille players can enjoy by increasing their zLevel through the new RewardVille program. Some of the items are brand new, others revisit previous themes and some are just plain useful. The items below are mostly decoration, but the Lychee Tree makes a return for those who missed out before.

    Mt. Duckmore: 72 zCoins
    Blue Birdhouse: 58 zCoins
    Lychee Tree: 48 zCoins
    Matterhorn: 96 zCoins
    Stagecoach: 80 zCoins
    Adobe Cottage: 77 zCoins
    Horse Post: 80 zCoins
    Porch Home: 120



FarmVille RewardVille rewards

This second set of items contains several more buildings, but also a set of 50 Fuel Tanks is available to get some better use from your zCoins.

    Bamboo Bridge: 100 zCoins
    Fire Station: 110 zCoins
    Large Fuel: 130 zCoins
    Covered Bridge: 120 zCoins
    Lighthouse: 120 zCoins
    Curiosity Shop: 140 zCoins
    Coastal Hideaway: 150 zCoins
    Tree Mansion: 200 zCoins


As you might be able to tell in these screen shots, there will be at least a zLevel cap of 70 to start. It's unsure when the RewardVille program will be available to all farmers, but as soon as we get access you'll be the first to know.

FarmVille Sneak Peek: Valentine's Day items in the market

Recently, we started bring you a few Sneak Peeks of items that we think will be coming to FarmVille in the near future, as part of the game's upcoming Valentine's Day theme. Turns out that most of our assumptions were correct, as today FarmVille Pro has stumbled upon some Market Screenshots of these unreleased items, as they will appear in the market, including suspected prices and experience point rewards for purchasing them.

There are items of all kinds being shown off here, including animals, buildings, decorations, and even a couple of trees and a limited edition crop. It appears that there will also be something available for every budget, to make sure there will be plenty of "love" to go around in the game.

Meet us behind the break for a look at these new items.

The items are as follows, and they will apparently be released either on January 24, or before then:

Valentine Cow - 24 Farm Cash
Valentine Duck - 16 Farm Cash
Valentine House - 20 Farm Cash
Cupid Gnome - 18 Farm Cash
Heart Fence - 10,000 coins per single piece of fencing
Love Arch - 22,000 coins
Rose Bush - 1,200 coins
Swan Fountain - 20 Farm Cash
Giant bubblegum (tree?)- 30 Farm Cash
Pink Bubblegum Tree - 5 Farm Cash
Fire and Ice Roses (Crop) - 100 coins to plant / sells for 190 coins in 8 hours

We know that this won't be the entire selection of Valentine's Day items in the game, since the recent Valentine's Day Showcase video included at least a Gazebo and Sheep that haven't been included in this leaked market preview. These items may never be released in the store, however, and may launch instead through an updated Mystery Game, or even as free gifts. Hopefully, there are at least twice as many items as those listed here - and that hope comes from me - I just love all things pink!

Remember, these are preview images only and the prices and other statistics for these items may change before they are released in full.

FrontierVille Fanny's on the Prowl Missions: Everything you need to know

In honor of the upcoming Valentine's Day holiday, Zynga has launched a new series of missions in FrontierVille surrounding the school teacher, Ms. Fanny Wildcat and her search for love out on the great frontier. This mission series contains three new quests to complete, and is called "Fanny's on the Prowl." For some time now, we've been wondering whether or not Fanny would make her feelings for Hank (revealed during the New Years Party even) known, and boy howdy, it looks like she just might.

These missions will have you clearing trees, collecting fire, collecting items with friends, planting crops, and buying decorations, so make sure you've saved up a little bit of everything (wood, coins, food, etc.) before taking them on, to have as little trouble as possible when completing them. As usual, we're here to help you along the way, so meet us behind the break for a full look at these new missions and how to complete them.

The first mission of this three part set is called "A Stinky Situation." Apparently, someone tossed a live skunk onto the school grounds, and you'll need to clear out the smell before things get worse. There are three tasks here, which are fairly easy for those who have a few trees on hand.

Chop Down Five Trees
Have or Get Five Fire
Customize the Schoolhouse

You'll be able to craft Fire in the Covered Wagon for 7 pieces of wood and 5 Cloth each. As for the trees, you can simply chop down saplings that only require a single chop for them to count. Remember, if you need trees, rather than paying for them in the store, go into your Collections menu and turn in the Pine Tree or Oak Tree Collections - each rewards you with a free sapling.

The rewards for finishing Part 1 are 1,000 XP, a Basketball Hoop Decoration and 500 coins. You'll be able to share free fire with your friends as a bonus.

Part II of III is called "Get the Lady a Drink" and it asks you to help Ms. Fanny Wildcat kill some time while waiting for the Skunk smell to disperse from the previous mission. You'll have to collect some items, and harvest some corn in order to do this.

Collect 10 Birch Barks
Harvest 20 Corn
Have One Stove

The stove is a collectible item from the Cabin Collection, and the corn can be harvested after eight hours. Remember though, you can also ask four of your friends to come over to your Homestead and water your 20 planted Corn - simply come back to your own Homestead and accept their tending to your crops and this will count as harvests, even though the crops are still growing (it may take a bit of coordination on the part of yourself and your neighbors, but it can help you save some time all the same). Finally, the Birch Barks are received by posting a general wall post to your news feed asking your friends for help.

The rewards for Part II are 1,000 XP, a Birch Beer Barrel decorative item and 500 coins.

Finally, Part III of this set asks you to decorate your land for a bit of an impromptu party.

Place 5 Hay Decorations
Collect 10 Jig Music's
Collect 1 Schoolhouse Bonus

After finishing this final mission, you'll receive 1,000 XP, a Banjo (formerly a Horseshoe only item costing 48 Horseshoes) and 500 coins.

And there you have it! Three missions will apparently help Miss Fanny Wildcat get one step closer to finding love out on the prairie. Do you think these missions are too difficult - the reward too little?

FrontierVille Mystery Animal Crate reveals Seals, Swans, and Frogs, oh my!

It's been a while since the FrontierVille market has been updated with anything other than new buildings, but luckily, we have a new item to purchase (if you're willing to shell out some Horseshoes to do so). The new item is a new round of the Mystery Animal Crate, with this crate offering you a chance at winning one of nine animals; three each of Seals, Swans, and Frogs.

Each animal is available in three colors - here's the rundown:

Seals: Brown, White, and Gray
Swans: White, Black, and Pink
Frog: Marigold (yellow), Lilac, and Green

Each individual crate can be purchased from the store for 35 Horseshoes. As usual, it is entirely random as to which animal you'll receive from purchasing a single crate, and if you're hoping to receive more than one of these animals, keep in mind that you may end up with duplicates, before you receive a new animal. I hope you have a lot of Horseshoes to go around!

This Mystery Crate will be available in the store for the next 10 days. Good luck if you try to collect them all!

Which of these three animals are you hoping to receive from the Mystery Crate? And in which colors?

Husband of 20 years is 'Fed Up with a FarmVille Fanatic'

Social games can get pretty romantic, help you find true love, and embolden people into forming relationships. Moreover, our partner site FarmVilleFreak.com, is run by the lovely couple Angela & Michael Morales. But one man (who's probably had a terrible Valentine's Day) is learning what's it like to be married to a FarmVille addict. Yesterday, 'Fed Up with a Farmville Fanatic' sought advice from the Annie's Mailbox advice column for help with his wife's ceaseless FarmVille gaming.

His letter started off innocently enough, where his wife would choose to go online instead spending her usual evenings with him or the television. Later on, it gets worse, where 'Fed Up' claims that their "house is a disaster", his wife is too distracted to help out with chores, and he has taken matters into his own hands to get the game to stop working on his wife's computer. But instead of using the downtime as an excuse to stop playing, his wife used every means to get the game running again. The one line that indicates that his wife may have a problem is that "In a single day, she spent eight hours on this site. I've caught her online at 3 a.m."

I have to wonder if 'Fed Up' has ever considered playing FarmVille with his wife. Or jokingly ask him if she's demanded an Unwither Ring yet. He seems to be dealing with this problem rather passive-aggressively, and frankly, his wife just sounds bored of their routine. On top of that, Fed Up's secret sabotage attempts to "monitor, limit or block access" on her computer comes off as creepily excessive, when you consider the fact that she's an adult. There seems to be a lot more going on here than what we can see. After two decades of marriage, you'd think that he can talk something out. But we're also aware of how real addiction can be, and it's not just a problem with social games either, as Annie helpfully responds:

    Dear Fed Up: These online games encourage constant participation, and many provide virtual social communities. Your wife fears that if she stops playing for an extended period, she will lose out. She doesn't realize that she is already losing out - with you. Like any addiction, your wife may need professional help to stop. In the meantime, insist that she shut off the computer at a specified time each day. Plan dates that will interest her enough to get out of the house. She needs to get back into the real world.

So what do you guys think is going on here? Did the husband cross the line with his admittedly "clandestine" monitoring? Is the wife addicted, or for the more imaginative of you out there, do you think she's using her addiction as an excuse to do other things online?

FrontierVille Buildin' a Snow Fort Timed Goal now available

A week ago, we gave you the heads-up that a new timed mission would be coming to FrontierVille in the form of the "Buildin' a Snow Fort" Timed Goal. If you used our guide to stock up on Adult Sheep, save some debris or even stock up on extra FrontierVille neighbors, you'll be happy that you did, as the mission has officially been launched in the game today.

As a reminder of the three tasks required:

Clear 25 Debris from Your Homestead
Sell 20 Adult Sheep
Get 5 Snowballs from Your Friends

The Snowballs are earned via a general wall post, that is set up as a "give one, get one" scenario - your friends will receive a free Snowball for their own game when helping you, so we think you'll have no problem gathering the help of friends on this one.

For the complete details on this mission, make sure to check out our guide. Note that the Snowball requirement has been changed from needing ten Snowballs to just five, making this step even easier.

Do you think you'll be able to finish this mission in time required?

Take on the T.O.O.L. with Gun Bros on Facebook

Hit Point Studios and Glu Games' have officially launched Gun Bros on Facebook. For those that are unfamiliar, the Gun Bros are a pair of soliders with super powers and attitudes, and their outing on iOS has been viewed pretty favorably by both critics and with the general public). With this Facebook version, you'll get to jump into the established game world, where you'll need to combat the evil "Tyrannical Opressors of Life," or T.O.O.L. for short (clever, that).

The Facebook game drops you onto a mission map in outer space, where there is currently only one planet to explore (more will be added in the future; in fact, there are already place-holders for at least four more planets). This first planet is Cerberus Prime, a T.O.O.L. stronghold. You'll need to start a revolution on the planet, with each individual revolution being comprised of different levels or waves.

Once you start a level, you'll find that this isn't any ordinary Facebook game, as it's as action-oriented as they come. You'll have two control configurations to choose from, either moving your Gun Bros with the arrow keys or the WASD keys, as in many popular PC games. The mouse is used to fire your gun, and you can even use the Space Bar to auto-aim your weapon, if you're not used to this type of potentially hectic gameplay.

You'll be able to walk freely around the map, either shooting all manner of enemies directly, or shooting explosive canisters, causing large blasts that take out (or at least highly damage) anything in the surrounding area. Each kill earns you experience points and an element called "Xplodium," which is converted into coins after each level. As you level up, your Gun Bros will become stronger, receiving health boosts, and you'll also be able to unlock new items in the store.

For each wave, there will only be a certain number of enemies to defeat on the map. You might have to walk around the entire map to find them, though, as their spawn locations appear to be random. You'll earn more coins the longer you stay alive, via the Xplodium multiplier. Again, Xplodium is converted to coins, so you want as much as you can get. You can increase your rate of coin production even further at the actual Xplodium conversion screen, as you can either trade all Xplodium for the mineral's exact value in coins, or you can purchase better conversion pods, giving you, say, 120% of 150% in coins.

Items in the store include health refills, new guns, armor and power-ups (shields, instant damage items, etc.). Guns have damage ratings, while different pieces of armor (helmets, pants, vests and so on), each come with different defense stats, and can also have an affect on your attack and speed stats, either raising or lowering them. It's in finding the right balance of different stats that you'll have the best chance of surviving. Unfortunately, however, there seems to be a heavy reliance on Facebook Credits as a premium currency, as many of the most worthwhile armor items and guns cost real-world money to purchase.

In terms of social features, you can track your progress against your friends via the provided leaderboard, which shows off your overall level, and which wave you've reached in which particular Revolution. As of right now, there doesn't appear to be many other ways to interact with friends, other than simply inviting them to play the game altogether, but it will be interesting to see if a sort of co-op mode is added in the future, replacing the AI controlled Bros on screen with a real friend, or at least giving you a boost if you partner is represented by a real friend.

All told, the game's high production values show that Glu is serious about making Gun Bros. a success not only on iOS, but on Facebook as well. If you'd like to help them out, give this one a shot.

Gnome-centric Facebook game Odd Manor coming soon - register for advance access

KingX Studios have announced that they will be bringing a new game to Facebook called Odd Manor. Seemingly inspired by the recent film Gnomio and Juliet (which sees garden gnomes taking on lives of their own, growing gardens, and causing all sorts of mischief), the game is called Odd Manor, and it will see players working their way through (to start) five "magical gardens filled with faeries, charmed plants, and mystical creatures."

According to a company press release, the game will ask players to solve the mystery of a missing uncle (whether this is an Uncle Gnome or a human that owns these Gnomes wasn't made clear) by creating their gardens and becoming masters of something called "botanical alchemy," a process that will apparently involve chemical reactions and imagination to create new plants.
What makes Odd Manor worth looking forward to, according to KingX Studios, is the fact that the game will apparently provide a "console game experience in a social media environment." Does this mean we'll navigate through a fully 3D environment, using the arrow keys to navigate and interact with other gnomes and plants? Or, will the game be more like an MMO, offering more menus than freedom of movement?

If you're looking to learn more about Odd Manor before it launches this Spring (an exact release date is unknown as of this writing), you can do so by heading over to the game's official website, where you can register for updates. This will also grant you access to exclusive items in the game and "other unique benefits."

We'll make sure to give you a full rundown of Odd Manor's final product, when the game launches on Facebook later this year, so keep checking back.

Is Odd Manor something that intrigues you enough to give it a try once it launches later this year? What do you think of a Gnome-themed Facebook game?

FarmVille: Could the English Countryside launch at the beginning of March?

While browsing the FarmVille forums this afternoon, I came across a new post from Community Manager "Stumpgrinder" that caught my attention. The thread is called "FarmVille English Countryside Questions," and it asks users to post any and all questions they may have concerning the upcoming English Countryside in FarmVille to the thread, so that the FarmVille team may answer them.

Via this question and answer (mostly question) session, the FarmVille team will pick the very best questions to answer, with those answers being published the week of February 28. Questions, then, must be received by February 28 for consideration. Is this date purely a coincidence, or does it coincide with the week of the English Countryside's release in the game? After all, what better way to hype your players up for such a large expansion (new crops, a second farm, new NPCs, etc.) than to publish some new tidbits about the expansion via these questions - get players back into playing the game regularly, and then release the expansion to the masses!

Of course, there is a second, darker possibility to this event - that being that Zynga is looking for a way to postpone the release for as long as possible, and are using this Q&A session as a way to keep excitement high, but we're really hoping its the former.

While we can speculate all day, we'd like to know what you think about this new development. Does February 28 mark the week of the English Countryside's release, or do you think we'll have to wait much longer than that?

Zynga will launch FarmVille English Countryside next week

That's right, be excited. All of your Special Delivery stockpiling has come to this. Zynga has just announced that the English Countryside expansion to FarmVille will launch next week. While no specific date and time was mentioned, the company made the announcement on the game's official Facebook page. So, if you're not Level 20 yet, get to it as its required to travel to the EC. Zynga dropped this hint as to how to level up quickly: Strawberries and Aloe Vera are especially great for gaining XP. Not to mention that if you throw down a few Fertilize Alls this weekend, your experience gains will increase as well. If you want to be even more prepared for the release, check out these guides on Traveling to England, Sheep Breeding, Farming the English Countryside and Working with Two Farms. We'll see you on the other side of the pond next week.

[Via FarmVille Feed]

[Image Credit: My Disguises]

Check out the rest of our FarmVille English Countryside coverage right here.

March Madness Facebook Game Showdown: Round 1

Every March, the college basketball season ends with its NCAA Basketball tournament. Sixty-eight college basketball teams qualify for a frenzied rush to be named the best team in the nation. The tournament is a single elimination tournament, one loss and your team goes home. Due to the crazed nature of the games and frenetic pace the tournament has been given the name "March Madness."

At the Games.com - The Blog!, we are just as passionate about Facebook games as some people are about basketball. So -- we thought -- what the heck! Let's make a tournament of Facebook games.

Here's how its going to work:

We chose the top 16 games by daily active users and seeded them by their total number of players as of March 17 (St. Patrick's Day felt like a good day to get the numbers.)

All the first round match-ups have been listed in this post.
Vote which game you think should advance. It's that easy!
Vote early and vote often.

We'll tally all the votes over the weekend and set up out second round match ups based on which games got the most votes. It's win or go home time for you favorite Facebook games! Let the madness begin!


In our first match up we have a real David vs. Goliath. Can the upstart Car Town of Cie Games hang in there verses the hulking behemoth of a game in Zynga's CityVille? Car Town has been on the decline for the last month but has retained its most loyal players. Can it hang with the monster of CityVille?

(1) CityVille vs. (16) Car Town
CityVilleCar Town
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The number two seed is Zynga's (You're going to see Zynga a lot) FarmVille. If this had been last year, FarmVille would have been a clear number one. FarmVille has drawn the Games.com Blog's favorite game, Popcap's Zuma Blitz. This is really a match up of two contrasting styles and has different types of players. There is no way FarmVille can lose is there?

(2) FarmVille vs. (15) Zuma Blitz
FarmVilleZuma Blitz
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Our third match-up brings to wildly different styles to the floor. Zynga's Poker, the granddaddy of all Facebook games is taking on the cute bastion of feminine fashion, CrowdStar's It Girl. The audiences for these two games could not be more different. Could this be our first upset match-up?

(3) Zynga Poker vs. (14) It Girl
Zynga PokerIt Girl
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Zynga's FrontierVille locks horns with LOLApps's RavenWood Fair. Two games so similar could really battle to the very end. FrontierVille has the advantage in age but Ravenwood Fair has the leg up on beauty. Could this be an age before beauty situation? It could be a toss up.

(4) FrontierVille vs. (13) RavenWood Fair
FrontierVilleRavenWood Fair
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Popcap's second entry Bejeweled Blitz is the favorite in the dreaded 5 vs. 12 match-up. Wooga's Monster World has history on it's side. In the NCAA basketball tournament the 5 seed is upset more by the 12 seed than an other seeding in tournament history. Could this be Monster World's chance to shock the world?

(5) Bejeweled Blitz vs. (12) Monster World
Bejeweled BlitzMonster World
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Two older games go head to head next Zynga's Cafe World battles Playfish's Pet Society. Both games harken way back to 2009 when Playfish and Zynga were still vying to supremacy for which company would be the biggest on Facebook. (Wow,things have changed)

(6) Cafe World vs. (11) Pet Society
Cafe WorldPet Society
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Zynga's Treasure Isle attempts to vanquish Playfish's Restaurant City in the next match up. Playfish and Zynga have a long history of going head to head and each had a game in nearly every genre in the early days of the Facebook game market. They both be itching to eliminate the other!

(7) Treasure Isle vs. (10) Restaurant City
Treasure IsleRestaurant City
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The dude match-up of the tournament is Zynga's Mafia Wars verses Digital Chocolate's Millionaire City. Both these games have a bit more of an edge and man-centric feel to them. We'll see if they come out fighting.

(8) Mafia Wars vs. (9) Millionaire City
Mafia WarsMillionaire City
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Cafe World 4x Mega Stove: Everything you need to know

While Cafe World's Super Stoves are great and all, offering you one-click cooking that skips all of the ingredient preparation of past gameplay, they still take up the same amount of room as a normal stove, only saving you time, rather than space. In comes Siggy, Cafe World's inventor, to help alleviate that space issue with the introduction of the 4x Mega Stove to the game.

The 4x Mega Stove is as its name suggests - a single stove that allows you to cook four dishes at once. You'll receive one of these stoves for free the next time you login to the game. It will take up the space of one of your allowed stoves in your stove-count, so if you are already at your maximum, you'll have to drag another stove out of your cafe and replace it with this Mega Stove.

Of course, something this fantastic doesn't really come for free, as there's a bit of a (big) catch. While the 4x Mega Stove does have four burners (one each for four different dishes), you'll need to unlock each burner by completing a series of missions. Meet us behind the break to see what those missions are and how to complete them.
To unlock the first burner, you'll need to finish just a single quest, called "Grate Scott!" You'll be able to access this quest (and all over Mega Stove quests) by clicking on the stove to receive the menu at the top of this post. From there, simply click on the "Unlock" button for the burner you're working on, and you'll be able to see your current missions. Grate Scott! asks you to complete three tasks:

Serve BBQ Chicken 10 times
Serve Macaroni and Cheese 15 Times
Get 6 Grates

You'll be able to earn the Grates by clicking on the "Ask" button and then sending out individual gift requests to your friends to help you. While you're waiting, you can work on serving these 25 dishes - BBQ Chicken cooks in 5 hours, while Macaroni and Cheese takes just 2 hours.

From there, you'll be able to work on unlocking the second burner, which requires two quests to be completed.

Siggy's Chips:

Serve Tony's Classic Pizza (five-hour dish)
Serve Chashu Ramen 15 Times (six-hour dish)
Get 8 Computer Chips

Not Enough Metal:

Spice Neighbors' Stoves 4 Times
Serve Rackasaurus Ribs 15 Times (10 hour dish)
Get 10 Metal Plates

This unlocks the second burner on your 4X Mega Stove. To unlock the final two burners, you'll need to complete the following missions:

More Controls!:

Restock Salad Bar 5 Times
Spice Neighbors' Stoves 7 Times
Get 12 Control Knobs

Instant Ignition:

Earn 500,000 coins
Serve Cappuccino 20 Times
Get 14 Igniters

Science Never Sleeps:

Serve Orange Juice 30 Times
Serve Depth Charge 20 Times
Get 16 Drip Bowls

Powering Up!

Serve Chicken Pot Pie 20 Times (two-day dish)
Serve Lox Bagel 30 Times (three-hour dish)
Get 18 LED Displays

As you can see, while it may seem like you've been given a great blessing in having a single stove that cooks four dishes at once, you will definitely have to put forth a lot of effort on your own to actually make the most of this new item. Luckily, there doesn't seem to be any expiration date for when you can still complete your 4x Mega Stove without penalty, so you should be able to tackle these missions casually, as you also work on other things.

Is the 4x Mega Stove worth it? Will you complete it right away, or wait until you finish other (more pressing) missions first?

CityVille: Premium Goods double in production, maximum capacity raised

If you were unsatisfied with the amount of Premium Goods you could both produce and store in CityVille's relatively new Factory feature, you'll be happy to know that Zynga has changed both of these elements for the better, allowing you to earn more Premium Goods when you gather your friends' help on each job.

Now, Factories now pay out double the amount of Premium Goods per worker (that is, friend) that you have helping on your job. That is, if a job used to pay out a bonus of 55 Premium Goods for each worker you had helping, you'd now receive 110 Premium Goods on that same job, by collecting just a single friend.

To account for the excess Premium Goods you'll now have on hand, Zynga has also doubled the amount of storage you'll have by default for Premium Goods to a total of 2,000 Premium Goods. This is on top of your normal Goods storage, and is not affected by how large that storage bar happens to be - it is an entirely separate meter.

It seems as though Zynga is started to move in the right direction, adding things that help the game rather than hurt it (at least in the eyes of the majority of players). We'll make sure to let you know if this trend continues in the future.

What do you think of these alterations to the Factory system? Have you even built the Factory in your town, or did you think it was too large to care about?

CityVille: New decorations accompany Dance Studio Goals

Yesterday, we brought you a complete guide to CityVille's new quest line surrounding the introduction of a Russian Dance Studio to your city. If you are interested in adding more items to your town in the same Russian theme, you'll be happy to know that a duo of new decorative items are now available in the game's store.

These items are inspired by Russian Stacking Dolls, and in fact, one of these items is one such doll. The Stacking Doll is a decorative item that can be placed near a business to add a 1% boost to its payout. You can purchase a single Stacking Doll from the store for 300 coins.

The other item is the Pigeon Popper, which looks incredibly similar to the Stacking Doll (in terms of the item's shape), but is of course themed after a Pigeon, rather than a Russian woman. It is also much more expensive, being a premium item costing 8 City Cash. The Pigeon Popper adds a 2% bonus to all surrounding buildings.

For a complete look at the other items released in this theme, which include the Dance Studio itself and the Fine Arts Theatre, make sure to check out our guide.

What do you think of these new decorations? Do you like cultural decorations in your game, or would you be happy with a never-ending supply of new flowers, trees, and the like?

Squirtle, Sonic and The Sims Social: Tile Art makes great alliteration

And you know how we writers just love our awesomely addictive alliteration ... we'll stop now. The Sims Social Fansite has found two new pieces of Tile Art in The Sims Social crafted by Pokaymon and TeodorusFN. As with most Tile Art in Playfish's hit Facebook game, these two pieces are loving tributes to two retro gaming characters. The fact that we just called Squirtle "retro" really ages us, doesn't it?

That said, let's start with the little blue turtle from the land of Pokémon. Pokaymon--how fitting--has created a spitting image of Squirtle as he appears in the ubiquitous Game Boy game. However, the artist's only downfall may have been his excessive use of black tiles to outline the turtle's body. But from a distance, we're right back in 1998, throwing Poké Balls to catch 'em all.
Sonic the Hedgehog Tile Art
TeodorusFN has hit our nostalgia bone so hard, that we went and booted up any Sonic game we could get our hands on. (Seriously, Sonic CD is out on the iPhone today, and it looks all sorts of rosy.) Again, these pieces work best with pixelated characters and even better from a distance. Regardless, it looks as if we never left Green Hill Zone.

We have just one, small complaint: Sonic the Hedgehog is a bit of a deeper blue, no? At any rate, both of these pieces of Tile Art hit the inner child hard. Like, run to the nearest game store and pick up a copy--any copy--of Pokémon hard.

What do you think of these two pieces of Tile Art? What's the most impressive creation you've seen in The Sims Social thus far?

The Sims Social gets fancy, classes it up in Victorian Elegance Week

Mmm, yes. I do believe that The Sims Sooocial has finally become ... acceptable enough to be associated with "Victorian Elegance." Playfish's hit social game just got a wee bit pretentious, but don't worry: It'll only last a week, and at least you can get some sweet items out of it. It's Victorian Elegance Week in the game, and that means a slew of fancy decorations and attire have arrived.

Players can deck their Sims' houses out to look like something from the 1800s, complete with fine hardwood floors, canopy beds and phonograph record players. Based on the two screen shots provided by Playfish, players will get to transform their bathrooms into far classier restrooms, complete with gold-legged bathtubs surrounded by curtains and ornate tile. In short, you'll be the classiest dude or dudette in Little Haven with these items. We're getting the sense this was all to channel Charles Dickens's "A Christmas Carol."
The Sims Social Victorian Elegance 2
Playfish is also giving Hanukkah some love this week with four brand new decorations. Soon, players will be able to honor the eight day-long Festival of Lights with a golden menorah, blue and white ornaments, dreidels and a blue and green Hanukkah wreath. We're not really sure how Hanukkah fits in with Victorian design and architecture, but we'll take what we can get. Look out for these items (and likely a brand new quest) sometime this week.

Are you digging where The Sims Social is going with this theme? What other themes would you like to see the game take on?

The Sims Social Ebenezer Smooge Walkthrough: How to finish it fast

This week in The Sims Social, we celebrate how the holidays used to be in the good old days. Playfish has pushed the Victorian Elegance update to its hit Facebook game, and along with a number of of new decorations and outfits, a new quest has arrived. In "Ebenezer Smooge," you must help your Sim help a ghost warm the heart of Ebenezer Smooge, one curmudgeon of a Sim.

To succeed in this quest of six steps, you'll need at least six neighbors, 850 Simoleons, five Fury and eight Goodwill. Not too shabby for a six-part quest. However, you only have one week to complete it, so let's get right into how you can complete "Ebenezer Smooge" as quickly as possible:
Ebenezer Smooge 1
Ebenezer Smooge 1

    Have an item from the Victorian Elegance Theme
    Yell 'Bah Humbug at 2 Sims
    Have 5 Fury


To pick up an item from the Victorian Elegance theme, hit the Shop button and buy anything with the "New" label. Visit two of your friends' houses, click on them and select the "Bah Humbug" option. Fury is most easily found by being mean to friends or playing guitar.
Ebenezer Smooge 2
Ebenezer Smooge 2

    Write 3 Love Letters
    Try to kiss 3 Sims
    Read 3 Rejection Letters


To write three love letters, just choose the option on your Sim's home computer. Then, try and kiss three of your neighbors by visiting them, clicking on their Sims and choosing the option "Try to Kiss." (Protip: The attempts don't have to be successful.) Once you're done trying to kiss friends, check your mailbox for those rejection letters.
Ebenezer Smooge 3
Ebenezer Smooge 3

    Ask friends if they're going to be holding any parties over the holiday period
    Check Email for new invitations
    Go to bed alone


Asking friends if they're going to parties is as simple is clicking the option in the quest window. However, you will have to wait for responses from your friends through the Facebook Wall. To check for new email invitations, just choose the option on your Sim's computer. Going to be alone should be simple enough: Click the bed and choose "Sleep".

Bernard the DogEbenezer Smooge 4

    Check Voice Mail and find if you had no calls
    Repair or Clean 3 items in your home
    Read the Obituaries


To check voice mail, just choose the option on your Sim's phone three times. If you have no broken or dirty appliances in your house, you'll have to keep using them in order to fix them. Finally, to read the obituaries, you must use your Sim's computer and the special option.

Ebenezer Smooge 5

    Become Inspired
    Have one clothe from this week new rang
    Give 5 Sims a festive hug


To become Inspired, your Sim must have the max level in all of its basic needs, including Social. The cheapest clothing item from the new Victorian Elegance theme is the Jinx Turkey Hat for 300 Social Points. In order to give your friends a Festive Hug, you must be wearing the special new piece of clothing.

Ebenezer Smooge 6

    Have 6 Goodwill
    Give 6 Sims a Holiday Gift
    Play holiday songs on instruments 5 times


Goodwill is most easily found by doing helpful or nice things for friends while visiting or by making beds, both yours and friends. The gift giving will become a new option when interacting with friends. To play holiday songs, you must do it on your own instruments at home. With that, you've successfully discovered why Smooge is so grouchy, and turned him around. Your reward for all of this is Bernard the Dog, a toy.

Check out the rest of our Holiday 2011 coverage right here.

[Source: Aude06]

Have you started the Ebenezer Smooge quest yet? What tips do you have for completing it any faster?

The Sims Social Tile Art: Just in case you didn't know that was R2D2

We'd say that looks like the beepin' boopin' droid if it were ever in an 8-bit game, wouldn't you? Well, it's not: It's in The Sims Social, and player SamRi has created R2D2 from the classic film we shouldn't even have to name Star Wars. In case you haven't been following, it's called Tile Art, and all the rage in EA and Playfish's hit Facebook game. Rather than craft a retro video game character from the social simulator's myriad tiles, as so many are wont to do, SamRi opted to pay homage to a retro film character.

In fact, perhaps one of the most cherished retro movie characters of all time. And just in case you might not recognize it, the creator went ahead and labeled his or her creation for you. (Do people that haven't seen Star Wars exist?) What's most amazing about SamRi's creation is that it's both terribly accurate and interpretive at the same time.
Sims Social Tile Art Link
Next up is Link from the Legend of Zelda series, and tile for tile (or pixel for pixel), player Yngven93's rendition is picture perfect. This version of Link looks like it comes from one of the Zelda games released on the original Game Boy, but with some holiday chic. While this piece is brilliantly accurate to the original, it could probably do without the outline of black tiles. Regardless, we're suddenly wishing we had never traded in that old Game Boy to Funcoland. There we go aging ourselves again.

[Via The Sims Social Fansite]

[Image Credits: SamRi, Yngven93]

Are you impressed by these pieces of The Sims Social Tile Art? What's the most incredible piece of player-made artwork you've seen in a Facebook game?

Sims Social Revenge of the Simch walkthrough: How to finish it fast

The Simch is back and grouchier than ever. That's why, in the new Sims Social holiday-themed quest -- The Revenge of the Simch -- has you doing off the wall things like blowing on icy furniture and checking in fellow Sims' fridges for the cranky blue creature.

This quest is comprised of five parts and is one of the easier holiday-themed quests that have appeared in the game so far. The good news: You aren't required to spend oodles of Simoleons buying a bunch of holiday-themed items to complete this quest, but you will have to visit and perform action at quite a few friends' houses. (My advice? Visit your lower level friends who don't have big houses -- they tend to load much faster than those with sprawling estates).

Here's an overview of what you'll need to get the Revenge of the Simch Quest done quickly (and ride your way to fun and relaxation on a brand new Rockadeer).

2 Fury
8 Goodwill
Six Holly Wreaths
At least 5 Sims Social neighbors

Revenge of the Simch: Quest 1

sim social simch goal 1

- Check 3 frozen furniture for anything unusual

-Waft warm air on 3 ice furniture to melt it back

Head straight to Bella's house, which is decked out with all of the new ice furniture. Click on frozen funiture and select 'Waft Warm Air' action three times and the 'Check Anything Unusual' action three times. This takes six energy, but you'll only really use one energy unit from your own bar.

- Have 2 Fury

If you don't have Fury, you can get them by performing mean actions to other Sims. They don't appear every time you perform a mean action, so you might have to be a bigger meanie than you want to be to get them (Note: Your Sim can always apologize and make up for it later).


Revenge of the Simch: Quest 2

sims social simch 2

Ask 3 different Sims where the Simch is
Research Simch homes on computer 5 times
Check 3 different fridges for Simches

Pro tip: When you visit friends to ask them where the Simch is, also be sure to check their fridges for Simches as well. It'll save you some time.


Revenge of the Simch: Quest 3
sims social revenge of the simch

- Be inspired
Fulfill all of your Sim's needs to be inspired (I like to do that in the following order: feed, relieve, shower, sleep + fun, if sleep doesn't also fill your fun meter).

- Thank about nice holiday gifts on 3 different sofas or armchairs
Thinking about nice holiday gifts can be done at home or at friends' homes. Click on sofas or chairs with arms (hence, armchairs) and select the "Think about... " option. Chairs without arms will not give you the option to sit and think, so consider yourself warned.

- Deliver gifts to 5 different fridges
Gifts must be delivered to five different friends' fridges. Visit friends' homes, click on their refrigerator and select the 'Deliver Gifts' action.

Revenge of the Simch: Quest 4

sims social revenge of the simch 4

- Deliver a nice letter to Simch from 5 mailboxes
Visit 5 different friends' mailboxes, click on them and select the 'Delivery Letter to Simch' action.

- Phone the Simch to make him feel wanted
This can be done on your home phone or on friends' phones.

- Have 8 Goodwill
If you don't have enough goodwill, you can earn some by performing 'nice' actions to friends. You won't score Goodwill every time you perform a nice action, so prepare to do lots of nice things to get the job done.

Revenge of the Simch: Quest 5

sims social revenge of the simch 5

Give gifts to 4 different sims
Visit four different friends, click on them and select the 'A gift from the Simch!" action

Spread the Simch's season's greetings to 1 friend
Select the 'Ask Friends' button, which will post a request in your Facebook news feed. Only one person needs click the feed post to help.

Have 6 Holly Wreaths
Holly wreaths can be found by taking pictures of snow rabbits, cardinals and clearing pine cones in your own yard. You can also request them from others via the friend selector.

Revenge of the Simch: Final

sims social revenge of the simch final

Once you're done with the quest, you will be rewarded with a shiny, new Rockadeer -- a reindeer rocking horse
that's worth 3,500 Simoleons and will increase the value of your Sims' home by 2,700 Simoleons.


sims social revenge of the simch rockadeer

Once you place the Rockadeer on your property, you can perform two actions by clicking on it: Reindeer rock, which will increase your Sims' fun meter and Gentle Rock, which will increase your Sims' sleep meter.

sims social revenge of the simch rockadeer in action
Check out the rest of our Holiday 2011 coverage right here.

Got any other tips on how to finish the Revenge of the Simch quest in record time?