As social games become more and more accepted, and the base continues to grow and grow, I decided it was time to start asking some Facebook developers about the platform. This is the first article in a weeklong series that examines multiple angles: the division between social and hardcore, big publisher invasion, the necessity of notifications, and social games’ future.
Like it or not, social Web games are shaping the industry, making it possible for older and younger folks to get involved in a pastime that is often described as difficult or convoluted by those not intimately familiar with it.
It’s all in the Apps. Embeddable, simple, intuitive little pieces of software that have the power of capturing the imagination of those turned off by complicated HUDs and dramatic, battle-worn vistas or sludgy caverns full of monsters.
A monster in its own right is Facebook, a real-time LiveJournal that allows its users to connect and share on the fly, much like how Twitter allows us to talk about what our farts smell like the instant we catch a foul scent in the air.
Facebook is the bleeding edge of the social Web game revolution — one that many “core” gamers aren’t fond of. Chalk it up to the alien feel of Apps and their relative simplicity in comparison to the software being distributed on the Xbox 360 or PlayStation3.
In other words, the cons are the exact opposite of what others have found themselves enjoying about social games.
There is a divide between the two realms. On one end, there’s the social Web game. On the other, there’s the hardcore game. They’re both entertaining, and the beautiful thing is that they both offer unique experiences. The essence of social games for Zynga Games, developer of FarmVille and Mafia Wars, has something to do with the fact that it isn’t confined to the “core” approach.
“Social games are extremely different from hardcore games — so it’s like comparing apples and oranges — they both offer players different experiences and entertainment values,” FarmVille VP and GM Bill Mooney told me via e-mail.
“Facebook game graphics can’t compare to those made for traditional consoles like PlayStation or Xbox, but they will continue to evolve and become more social and engaging. That said, we see users who were never gamers getting ‘sucked’ into core gamer experiences — it’s very cool to hear about a 50-year-old person who clans up in Mafia Wars or min-maxes their crop production in FarmVille.”
PopCap Games, makers of Plants vs. Zombies, share the same idea as Zynga Games — with an added twist that represents how just how the studio has tackled the platform with Bejeweled Blitz.
“The Bejeweled Blitz experience is quite different from a ‘hardcore’ game obviously — it’s intended to be consumed in much smaller sessions (five minutes here, ten minutes there, when your schedule allows) … and for the Facebook audience as a whole, this seems very appropriate,” a PopCap Games duo, John Vechey and Jon ‘JD’ David, told me over e-mail.
“Social games are a different breed from core games, and it’s doubtful that they’ll ever reach the levels of sophistication of core games, for a wide variety of reasons.”
This divide, which separates the gen pop from the hardcore like a prison’s wrought-iron gates and plastic shields, wasn’t made by the “core” crowd. It’s as simple as these two types of games offering their users two different experiences.
But I’ve learned from playing games like Bejeweled Blitz that fun is fun. And fun is universal. Just ask a Mt. Dew-infused teen how he feels about Halo, and then bother a 50-something woman about her thoughts on FarmVille. Beyond the curses from both parties, you’ll hear the same thing: “I like this because it’s fun.” This is the same concept espoused by James Costa, CEO of 3G Studios.
His studio’s upcoming Facebook game, Brave Arms, is set to toe the line of Facebook App and traditional console software. It’s an FPS, and one that may surprise you.
“For years game companies have been convincing us that bigger is better,” Costa told me via e-mail. “It’s like the movie industry ten years ago: everything had to be a blockbuster. In reality, we watch blockbusters a few times a month, TV shows almost daily and YouTube videos several times a day.
“Most of us at 3G are ‘core’ gamers and ‘core’ gamers see ourselves as connoisseurs of ‘great’ games, but that elitist mentality is what’s causing AAA-studios to close down and indie developers to flourish.
” ‘Core’ games are a niche market and at 30-million bucks a pop, studios only get one shot to develop an audience. Is Mass Effect 2 fun? Absolutely! Does a game have to be Mass Effect 2 in order to be fun? No way. The general public gets it.”
