Showing posts with label cafe world. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cafe world. Show all posts

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Cafe World "No Clean Fairy" now buildable by all

Cafe World fans are no stranger to the "No Clean Fairy", as it has been around for quite some time. We covered the No Clean Fairy back in early July when it was simply a functional special item that had to be purchased outright with Cafe Cash. Now, the fairy has been bumped the forefront, and is now buildable by everyone using the familiar building mechanism that almost every game is using right now. The No Clean Fairy is an item that when placed in your cafe, will make it so that your stoves never need to be cleaned again. A game-changing decoration for sure.

To start building, click on the gold fairy icon on your bottom toolbar, and you will have access to the ingredient screen that shows you what you need to collect in order to get your No Clean Fairy. The fairy won't be easy, it requires 10 each of Pinch of Fairy Dust, Vial of Dewdrops, and Wildflower Essence, and also 20 of Mountain-Fresh Air. These ingredients can be obtained by asking for them from friends, or paying 2 Cafe Cash for each ingredient. For those of you who aren't math whizzes, that comes up to 100 Cafe Cash total to purchase each piece. That's even more expensive than the 95 Cafe Cash that the No Clean Fairy originally cost! Luckily, you don't have to spend money if you don't want to.

This is a major functionality improvement for the game, so it is likely you will be seeing a lot of Cafe World wall posts in the coming weeks as players are striving to collect all of the ingredients for their No Clean Fairy.

Friday, January 13, 2012

CityVille on Facebook reaches 22 million, rivals real world's largest cities

CityVille FrontierVille Promo
When Zynga recently mentioned that CityVille is the company's fastest growing social game it was no joke. According to Inside Social Games, the game has reached 22 million monthly players as of this morning (in less than two weeks), which would make it a faster growing game than not only FrontierVille, but all Zynga games--including FarmVille-- to date. And if this insane growth is possible after Facebook shut down nearly all viral channels for social games, there is only one question to ask: How?

The Zynga Name
Well, let's start from the beginning. Zynga already has an established reputation for social gaming being connected to FarmVille alone, so that certainly helps. In other words, folks were just waiting for CityVille since we first heard word of it back in August. But it takes more than just a reputation to garner this much of a following so quickly.

Let's take this dissection behind the break and see how CityVille became the fastest-growing Zynga game ever.
CityVille in German
Willkommen bei CityVille
That's "Welcome to CityVille" in German (roughly), one of CityVille's five supported languages and most likely key to the game's rapid growth. Translated into Spanish, French and Italian in addition to German and standard English, CityVille is open to a whole new world of players (literally) without the need for intense localization by remote studios. However, this is also because European culture is much more similar to American culture than, say, Chinese or Japanese culture. If the game were to later be translated into those languages, some more intensive localization would have to go down in order to fall in line with cultural customs--which is already underway for FarmVille in Japan and has been done with Zynga Poker in China. At any rate, being open to a more diverse range of players has almost certainly increased Zynga's reach with CityVille.

Hey You, Come Try This Game!Facebook Game Notifications
While cross promotions for CityVille have just recently been popping up in the Zynga Game Bar above each of its games, it's the in-game promotions that are likely grabbing more of us every day. And although this isn't necessarily a new method, it is effective for sure. I don't know about you, but seeing a massive billboard for another game in my farm certainly piques my interest. With results like this already blowing up, I would expect cross promotions for CityVille to stick around for a long time.

"Bobby Sue just sent you Miscellaneous Item #27 in CityVille."
Yes, viral growth has returned. Well, at least a little bit. Facebook game requests have recently started popping in our Notifications on the home page including anything from help requests to gifts. And since you can send gifts to non-players, these Notifications are likely appearing for the social game pure as well. Not to mention that Zynga's infamous "BegVille" techniques have made a not-so-triumphant return in CityVille, which in a way could be helping the game grow through persistence. It's a bit of a stretch, but being constantly reminded about a game could lead to players mentioning in conversation, spreading the news via word of mouth. Multiply that by a few million people and you've got yourself an inadvertent source of growth.

And if CityVille keeps going at this rate, CityVille will soon overtake Cafe World and later FrontierVille in the list of Zynga's top Facebook games. However, is it possible for the game to come close to FarmVille much less thwart it as the developer's number one game? Well, that's up for you, the players, to decide.

Saturday, January 7, 2012

Cafe World Fridge: Everything you need to know

If you've finished the Valentine's Day goals in Cafe World and are looking for something new to spend your time on, why not build a refrigerator for your Cafe? This item isn't just something to pass the time - it's a constructable item that will allow those users that do a lot of cooking to save their meals for later use. That's right - after you build your Fridge for your cafe, you'll be able to use it to store food so that it doesn't Spoil, and then use it at a later time.

While it might not initially seem as though this item is worth building, let me put it to you this way - you could potentially cook a set of different dishes and then save them for later use - perhaps when a quest calls for you to serve that specific dish, saving yourself time later on, if you've been reading our mission guides here on Games.com - The Blog!. Has that little idea sparked your interest? Meet us behind the break for details on how to build a Fridge for your own cafe.
As with most construction projects in Cafe World, you'll receive the base of this Fridge for free, when first starting the game (access it through the pop-up above), or you can choose to build the item later, by placing the base of the Fridge into your cafe from the Special section of the store. From there, you'll have to collect 40 items in total - 10 each of four different items - in order to complete the construction on you Fridge. These items are the Crisper Drawer, Condenser Coil, Door Shelf, and Thermostat Control.

Where most recently released "constructable" items and quests have contained items that require you to do nothing but simply send out individual gift requests to your neighbors to collect parts, this item combines that feature with one from the past - general wall posts that ask all of your friends at once to send you an item. This will likely be looked at as a negative by most users (myself included), as I've personally found it to be a lot harder to collect these types of items, due to the simple fact that your friends might overlook your post. They also don't account for friends that might play games with you, but have hidden you from their news feed. If they've hidden you, they can't see your requests for help, and you'll need to work harder to earn these items.

This is the case for both the Crisper Drawers and the Condenser Coils, while the Door Shelves and Thermostat Controls can be asked for individually from your neighbors.

Once you've completed the construction on your Fridge, you'll be able to start moving food into it to save for later. This is done by clicking on a counter that is currently serving food and selecting the option to move the food into your Fridge. From within your Fridge, you'll be able to remove this food to serve it again, choosing how many servings of each dish to remove and serve. Unfortunately, the Fridge only starts with room for three dishes to be stored, but you can purchase new shelves of food storage (up to three more) for 10 Cafe Cash each. It's unknown as of now whether or not the option for free upgrades will be released in the future. Personally, I wouldn't mind putting forth a little bit of work to upgrade my Fridge, so long as it meant I could earn more space and save my Cafe Cash at the same time.

Check out our Refrigerator Goals Guide and our Refrigerator Gifting Links for more.

What do you think of this new in-game project? Will you build a Fridge and use it to store items, or will you skip it altogether?

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Zynga launches Bingo on RewardVille: Play games for extra zPoints

While accepting my RewardVille gifts from Facebook just moments ago, I came across the RewardVille home page, where an interesting new development has launched in the form of RewardVille Bingo. When logging in, you'll see a miniaturized Bingo card of sorts at the top of the screen, where some of the participating Zynga games have been given their own squares. The point is to play a certain set of games within a 24 hour period to create a three-in-a-row pattern on your board, with the default RewardVille square acting as your "free space."

In the image above, I would need to play games like CityVille and Zynga Poker to create a vertical line, or play PetVille and FarmVille for a horizontal line. I suppose in that way, the game really resembles tic-tac-toe, rather than Bingo, but I digress. Once you earn a three-in-a-row line, you'll be rewarded with free zPoints. The first day, you'll earn 30 zPoints, the second day 40 and so on, until the end of the counter. Playing all five days in a row grants you a "Super Bingo Bonus" of 100 zPoints, making playing all of those days in a row definitely worth it.


To be clear, you won't have to login to RewardVille each time you play a new game, and for most players, you won't even need to try and complete a line on your card, as you might play enough games on your own to finish it automatically. In those cases, you can simply go about your business each day, and then add one last step of logging into RewardVille before signing off for the night. Your board updates with everything you've done that day and voila! Free zPoints are likely coming your way.

We'll make sure to keep an eye on this Bingo system, to ensure that other (non zPoint) prizes aren't added in the future.

Monday, December 26, 2011

Lady Gaga prizes now available via Zynga's RewardVille

"Let's Play with Gaga" is the slogan for Zynga's new section in RewardVille (their user rewards program), and it's officially launched this evening. For each of RewardVille's supported games (which include all the big names like FarmVille, FrontierVille and CityVille), you'll be able to use your zCoins to "purchase" one exclusive item (with the exception of Vampire Wars, which received two). To be especially clear, while GagaVille may be the main attraction in FarmVille, these items aren't specific to the farming game.

The items range from statues, sparkling gems and skull heads to shining thrones, avatar clothing and even a dancing monkey! You can find the full list of rewards, along with pictures and prices, behind the break.
Here's a full look at all of the prizes available:


CityVille: Lady Gaga Gyrosphere (bonus 6% payout) - 72 zCoins
FarmVille: Ruby Gaga Gem - 68 zCoins
Zynga Poker: Ponytail Skeleton - 56 zCoins
FrontierVille: Paws Up Statue - 64 zCoins
Mafia Wars: Lipstick Gun (115 Attack and 68 Defense) - 98 zCoins
Cafe World: Skull Faced Waitress - 66 zCoins
Treasure Isle: Fame Monkey - 56 zCoins
YoVille: Crystal Car - 88 zCoins
PetVille: Crystal Throne (color-changing) - 68 zCoins
Vampire Wars: LG Avatar Set Female or Male - 74 zCoins each

While you may already have enough zCoins stocked up to purchase any of the items you'd like across all of the RewardVille games, if you don't, you'll need to play games fast and often as these items won't be available forever. To be specific, they'll only be available through the end of the month, May 31.

As with other RewardVille items, once you redeem your zCoins, you'll be asked if you want to share a reward with friends via a post on your news feed. You can also purchase more than one of these Lady Gaga items if you wish, so long as you have enough zCoins to fund the purchase. Once you buy an item, just log into your game of choice and you should find the item waiting for you in that game's inventory system (whether it be the Gift Box in FarmVille, the backpack in Treasure Isle or elsewhere).

This is just the first of many pieces of GagaVille related content we'll be bringing you, so be prepared to go gaga for Lady Gaga!

Which of these prizes will you purchase first? Will you purchase items in games that you don't regularly play just because they're so exclusive or Lady Gaga themed?

Sunday, December 25, 2011

Cafe World Super Summer Food Fest Goals: Everything you need to know

To celebrate the summer in a big, big way, Zynga has launched the Super Summer Food Fest in Cafe World. You'll need to build your Food Booth, unlock new summer dishes (Chicken Salad Wrap, Baked Potatoes, Bacon Wrapped Scallops, and Baby-Back Ribs), and complete a new series of goals all in the hopes of seeing a great Fireworks show at the end of the event.

Here's a complete look at the new goals:

A Super Food Booth:



Place your Food Booth
Have 2 Festival Passes
Serve 10 Corn Dogs

You'll need to ask your friends for Festival Passes, which are actually a pretty limited item. You'll be able to earn only a single Festival Pass from the same friend throughout this entire Summer Food Festival, so I hope you have tons of friends around to help. Finishing this first goal gives you the Chicken Salad Wrap recipe.

Super Summer Fair:

Serve 15 Caramel Apples
Serve 15 Chicken Salad Wraps
Ask for 5 Tablecloths

That's right, in addition to these Festival Passes, you'll also have to ask for regular collectible items to finish these goals.

Summer Spuds:

Serve 30 Atomic Buffalo Wings
Ask for 5 Big Baking Potatoes
Have 8 Festival Passes

Your two passes from the first goal will carry over for this requirement, so at least you'll only have to find six more players to help you (or create more fake Facebook accounts to send the passes, but do that at your own risk). Finishing this goal gives you your second free recipe, the Baked Potatoes.

Enter the Ice Cream:

Finish Building the Ice Cream Cart
Ask for 8 Balloons
Master Baked Potatoes to level 1

As this Summer Food Fest includes all of the recently released cooking equipment in its theme, you'll need to have finished building the Ice Cream Cart, and later the BBQ Grill.

An Explosive Summer:

Master Chicken Salad Wrap to level 2
Have 15 Festival Passes
Ask for 7 Fireworks

Again, your eight passes are carried on here, leaving you to earn seven more for this task.

Grilling Season:

Serve 35 BBQ Chicken
Ask for 7 Saucey Suggestions
Ask for 10 BBQ Aprons

Yep, even after asking for tons of festival passes, you'll still need to spend the majority of this quest set asking for more items. Don't say I didn't warn you.

It's Officially Summer:

Complete the BBQ Grill
Ask for 12 Jars of Molasses
Serve Clubhouse Sandwich 40 Times

Finishing this goal gives you the Bacon Wrapped Scallops recipe. For a complete look at how to build the BBQ Grill, check out our guide.

Grilled to Order:

Master Pulled Pork to Level 2 on the BBQ Grill
Serve 16 Ginger Ale form the Drink Bar
Have 25 Festival Passes

This might be the first goal to actually give you problems with the Festival Passes, so just remember that you can always temporarily add new neighbors and Facebook friends to finish these goals and then delete them afterward. Admittedly, it's sad that we should have to add strangers as neighbors just to complete these goals, but I suppose if that's what it takes... For finishing this goal you'll receive 3,500 coins and 350 Cafe Points.

After these goals, Zynga has already announced that they are working on rolling out more goals to bring the total to 12. In the meantime though, you've got plenty to work on, so get to it! There's even a contest that will use those Festival Passes you've been collecting, and if you complete the goals you'll receive 500 extra passes (contest entries) as a reward. I suppose that makes all of this collecting worth it, right?

What do you think of the Super Summer Food Fest in Cafe World? Will you go out of your way to collect Festival Passes or complete these goals before the event ends?

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Cafe World High Tea Party Catering Order: Everything you need to know

Last week, we brought you a rundown of the British section of festivities taking place in Cafe World as part of the game's two-year-anniversary event. At the time, something was always missing from that equation (the catering order), but now, the Catering Order has officially been launched. Are you ready for high tea?

The High Tea Party catering order has a three day time limit, and isn't exactly easy. You'll be required to serve Yorkshire Pudding 500 times, Shepherd's Pie 30 times and Bangers and Mash 120 times. Do those recipes look familiar? They should, as they're part of the prize list that can be earned by completing the Winston's Royals goals in the game. However, you'll need to complete these goals multiple times to unlock all of the prizes associated with this event, so I can only imagine just how few chefs actually have all three of these dishes available to cook/serve. Luckily, you can bring 18 of your friends in on this order with you, so hopefully a few of them can take care of most of (if not all of) the cooking for you. Just remember to say thank you with free gifts!

On top of all of this, you'll need to collect 12 Fancy Hats and 12 Food Trays by sending out individual request to friends. If you can complete all of these tasks in under three days' time, you'll receive the three-star rating, 12 Catering Points, 3,200 Cafe Points, 70,000 coins and the 2-Year Anniversary cake recipe.

Unfortunately, you must finish in under three days in order to walk away with this new recipe. If you can't manage to do that, but still finish within five days (I have to admit that still sounds like it would be hard), you'll receive two stars, 8 Catering Points, 2,300 Cafe Points and 50,000 coins. Finally, if you finish at any point after the fifth day, you'll receive just a single star, 4 Catering Points, 1,400 Cafe Points and 30,000 coins.

As an extra bonus (since this catering order goes along with the two-year-anniversary event), if you can finish with three stars, you'll also walk away with 10,000 free Travel Passes, which are used to enter yourself (automatically) into contests for in-game prizes like stoves, but also real world trips around the world! Good luck to all those who enter, along with all those who tackle this High Tea Party catering order itself.

What do you think of this High Tea Party order? Have you unlocked all three of these dishes in your own cookbook, or are you being forced to rely on your friends to finish this one in time? Sound off in the comments.