Zynga and the Rise of the New Gamer

[Bongo Bill]

Zynga's success is based on marketing. Automated viral marketing, to be precise. Not on design.

I've always said that marketing is the most important part in determining whether a game is popular, and furthermore that traditional games not published by Nintendo have utterly failed to be marketed due to chasing down an ever-dwindling niche.

The question of whether their popularity has to do with the game's design would lead only to the same conversation that has been going on continuously in the aftermath of GDC, and it would be tiresome and involve flagrant abuse of the term "Skinner box."

 

[tikian12]

Yeah no, next year if they advertise themselves they should get disqualified. Then the people who actually care about the bracket will vote and not those who just care about some extra exp.

 

[Knight Templar]

I wonder what the responce would be if MM was not taking place? Most likely still negitive, most people see Zynga as Evony on Facebook.

 

[Shynobee]

That's why Zynga is less not revolution in "gaming," per se, but is a revolution in targeted marketing.

And you, sir, have hit the nail squarely on the head.

 

[Onyx Oblivion]

They only play it is surgically attached to Facebook.

 

[Fearzone]

The casual vs. hardcore debate. The answer is to not see it as an either/or debate, but recognize a well-designed game can appeal to both the casual gamer and the hardcore. A game does not have to choose between locking out the casual gamer vs. boring the hardcore.

I'm not talking easy/normal/hard modes either--that won't truly appeal to those playing on easy. As someone making a transition from more than 2 decades of PC gaming to PS3 gaming, I must say, wherever there are QTEs that means I automatically switch the game to easy mode. In doing so I get the feeling the game designers did not have players like me in mind when they made the game. I don't wholly feel welcome playing a game set on "easy."

But anyway how hard can it be to design a game where unlocking the content is easy, and then there will be side quests that range in difficulty from moderate to uber, that one can try when they are ready--but it is not like failing to kill a boss locks out of the rest of the game. Reward players for harder challenges but still allow everyone to play. That lets everybody enjoy the content, and then when they are ready, they can step up to some of the stiffer fights.

 

[Eri]

I'm sorry, but the only reason Zynga is even a known name is Facebook. Without Facebook we wouldn't be talking about them right now. Without Facebook they would have 0 votes in March Mayhem. This isn't a case of passionate gamers rising up to vote for their game. This is the case of Zynga spamming all of Facebook for votes. This is NOT "the rise of a new gamer". This is a the rise of people who already spend hours looking at pictures on Facebook who decide to spend some time clicking stuff on a Facebook application. Zynga games are games the same way Reality TV is real.

I'm all for the Wii and companies like PopCap bringing the rise of GOOD casual gaming and introducing games to non gamers, but the last thing we need is to hold up a company to praise who steals peoples ideas, scams their own customers, and their only claim to success is being lucky and riding on the backs of the latest "it" social networking site.

This, oh so very much. My words and thoughts.

 

[Yvl9921]

The article's true and all, as usual, but that doesn't explain why people who are just getting started with this hobby are turning out in such high numbers at a site dedicated to people knee-deep in said hobby.

 

[Kollega]

Don't blame Zynga, because it's not their fault.

I do not blame Zynga (BLEEEEEEERGH! Just who picked that name?!) for being popular. I blame them for scamming their userbase.

I actually do not blame simple games for re-appearing as the force on a market. That's a good thing - they may not be "hardcore", but they'll help create better reputation for games. You can't call something like FAHRMVILLE a "murder simulator", now can you?

 

[Warstratigier]

ahhh Shamus, using the March Warzone as an inspiration for an article, but sheds some new light to take consideration into. It is quite frightening if these developers take these new developments the wrong way buuuut some people are simply not afraid to do so if it means profits.

It seems if the creative masses don't roll in enough dough for them, then they will look the other way and try to appeal more to the uncreative masses which looks like its working very well right now.

 

[Katana314]

My goal someday as a game designer is to make a game that my parents, people who have never even tried games and don't care to, become obsessed with; and without prompting.

This is not news, however; the Wii has already been doing this for quite a while, through accessible areas such as: any medical practitioner who hears it's good exercise.

One thing I think they did get right is the time requirement. People who don't currently play games are usually doing so because they don't have time; they go to work, come home, don't get enough sleep, and repeat. The mistake so many games make is that they want you to be playing it constantly, in order to level up some progress perk.

What could make an actually FUN game work well in this area is to provide unique, customly-designed experiences (similar to a well-made Mario level) and then after a 5-minute play say that the effects of that level will then disperse over the next day with the promise of some rewarding result, after which you can play it again. If effective, it could keep people's interest over a long period of time without them even playing it.

 

[UnusualStranger]

This time, I find your point....lacking.

I always seem to hear of this mysterious "non-gamer" demographic. It is starting to sound like a logic defying trump card whenever something odd happens in the gaming world of business.

I don't like Zynga for two reasons. 1. Incredibly shady practices. I'm no saint, but even I have lines, and nearly ripping off someone, and making tons of cash while doing it publicly is somewhat distasteful to me.
2. Habitual games. This is also the reason I hate WOW and other games like it. You have to be on once every so often, or you fall behind, you will miss things, or things will disappear. Considering myself a "casual" gamer, I find needing to dedicate myself to a game too much for my time, and my wallet.

I have stated my deeper thoughts on Zynga and their presence before, but I feel it unnecessary for the discussion at hand.

The point is, Zynga didn't really seem to break any gaming mold. They brought the addiction of WOW in a small cute package. And that isn't amazing at all to me.

 

[Epitome]

I wouldnt mind what Zynga do except for the many controversies and other devs being jealous of how much they make? Like I played farmville and mafia wars but I couldnt keep it up ot was too dull, but there are people who are addicts and I realise that Zynga games are great for newcomers, my gf started with farmville etc and now owns a ds and plays Zelda etc which is how it should progress. But its not that the learning curve is shallow, its that its a plateau, 15 mins and you know all to playing farmville and many people stop at this stage. It would be great if they would try new things because of their enjoyment of farmville but many wont, Zynga to me represents stagnation for all the new gamers it attracts. They go as farm as farmville but never quit since its ne long giant progress bar of a game with no end in sight. Liek Yahtzee said in his Peggle review devs wont step up from cute and casual games to the epics we play now since the fiscal incentive is with Zynga. We risk losing a great many future devs to Iphone apps and farmville clones.

 

[Curtis]

This isn't a rally of passionate people defending their game. [http://www.facebook.com/FarmVille#!/posted.php?id=102452128776&share_id=111278525564951&comments=1#s111278525564951]

That's pretty sad, and though idiots are common in various gaming communities [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_NITwwUHwy4#t=06m14s], this does seem to be on a different level.

 

[VoyagerI]

Even though there isn't anything specifically untrue in this article, it doesn't really mention that the reason the gameplay isn't innovative isn't because they were trying to make an accessible sim adaptation, but because forcing someone to come back (even in the middle of the night) every few hours to accomplish simple tasks keeps the eyeballs coming back to see all the ads, without scaring them away with difficulty.

The entire purpose of farmville is to keep people coming back at a regular clip to stare at all the ads. It isn't meant to be innovative (of course), but it also isnt meant to be accessible. Accessibility (and lack of difficulty) is merely a side effect of making sure that no one stops looking at the ads because the "game" part is too hard.

That's why Zynga is less not revolution in "gaming," per se, but is a revolution in targeted marketing.

I think this basically needs to be quoted until Shamus apologizes.

 

[blackjaw1]

"If Farmville isn't that fun, why are so many people playing it?"

The same reason people like Justin Bieber, Twilight books and Clash of the Titans?