Another free Farm Cash promotion has been spotted, making its rounds to the American users of FarmVille on Facebook, with this newest promotion coming from Microsoft. We've seen other Microsoft promotions before (for Microsoft Office and Bing), but rest assured, this is a new promotion, dealing with a year-end survey.
You'll be able to participate in this 2 free Farm Cash promotion by clicking on the Sponsored Link window seen at the right side of this post - it will appear for you in your own game underneath the FarmVille gameplay area. If you don't spot it the next time you load the game, we're assuming it is on a slow rollout, or you could have other promotions that are "in the way" that must be completed before this newest one will appear.
The activity itself will load in a new window, where you'll be able to fill out a survey, telling Microsoft what your favorite technology was of 2010 - the choices are of course Microsoft related (Windows 7, Kinect for Xbox 360, and Windows Phones), but you can make any choice and still have your vote count. You'll know you've received your Farm Cash when a phrase such as "You've earned your Farm Cash" appears in the top right corner of this new window. You can then close the activity window and refresh FarmVille to ensure that your 2 free Farm Cash is added to your account.
Showing posts with label Microsoft. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Microsoft. Show all posts
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Vostu snags MP Game Studio, access to brands like Coca-Cola with it
Perhaps Vostu's sticky legal dispute with Zynga isn't so bad, after all. The Brazilian social game creator announced that it has acquired Buenos Aires, Argentina-based MP Game Studio for an undisclosed amount. MP Games has created social games for major (like, huge) brands including Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, Coca-Cola, Microsoft and National Geographic.
As part of the deal, MP Game Studio will become fully integrated into Vostu, with its employees to relocate to the new Vostu headquarters that just so happens to be located in Buenos Aires, too. And Vostu will hit the ground running with this buyout, expecting to release its first game from the deal over the next few weeks.
"Vostu is committed to creating entertaining social games for our growing user base of over 42 million registered users," Vostu COO Matias Recchia said in a release. "MP has been on the cutting edge of development of online games, working with the most well-known well respected companies and brands and we are excited to add them to our team of more than 550 dedicated, talented and passionate programmers, game designers and artists."
If you hadn't noticed, Vostu is pretty darn excited about not only the talent in MP, but the brands it works with. While it's certainly not our wildest guess, we're confident that Vostu will get into branded social games, thanks to this acquisition. Now, if Vostu has access to that particularly lucrative Coca-Cola license, can we finally get game with those adorable polar bears on Facebook?
Do you think this buyout will help Vostu compete even better in the global big leagues of social games? What brands do you hope Vostu takes advantage of as part of this purchase?
As part of the deal, MP Game Studio will become fully integrated into Vostu, with its employees to relocate to the new Vostu headquarters that just so happens to be located in Buenos Aires, too. And Vostu will hit the ground running with this buyout, expecting to release its first game from the deal over the next few weeks.
"Vostu is committed to creating entertaining social games for our growing user base of over 42 million registered users," Vostu COO Matias Recchia said in a release. "MP has been on the cutting edge of development of online games, working with the most well-known well respected companies and brands and we are excited to add them to our team of more than 550 dedicated, talented and passionate programmers, game designers and artists."
If you hadn't noticed, Vostu is pretty darn excited about not only the talent in MP, but the brands it works with. While it's certainly not our wildest guess, we're confident that Vostu will get into branded social games, thanks to this acquisition. Now, if Vostu has access to that particularly lucrative Coca-Cola license, can we finally get game with those adorable polar bears on Facebook?
Do you think this buyout will help Vostu compete even better in the global big leagues of social games? What brands do you hope Vostu takes advantage of as part of this purchase?
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Microsoft breaks adorable new ground with Kinectimals for iPhone, iPad
You read that right: Microsoft Studios has released a game for an Apple device. (Did you see that pig?!) Kinectimals, the popular kids game that launched with the Xbox 360 Kinect, is now available for iPhone and iPad for $2.99. The game appears similar to the original in that players can interact, feed and play with a number of wild pets through touch controls.
The game also provides five exclusive new pets for those who already own the Kinect version of Kinectimals for their Xbox 360. The visuals in this mobile version of the motion-controlled selling point for Kinect look nearly identical, which is far from a bad thing. If anything, based on screen shots, it's testament to how far iPhones and iPads have come in the graphics department. As for play hooks, they look like much of the same, but with the novelty of touch rather than motion.
Created by Frontier Developments and published by Microsoft Studios, Kinectimals on iOS devices not only breaks its exclusivity with Windows Phone, but could mark the start of an interesting relationship. Microsoft and Apple aren't exactly best buddies, and never would the latter release a product on the former's hardware. Perhaps this is an attempt to foster some sort of relationship with the iPad maker. What we do know, however, is that your kids are probably going to go bonkers over this.
Click here to download Kinectimals for iPhone and iPad Now >
[Via Major Nelson]
Did you see this one coming at all (neither did we)? Will you pick this one up for your kids to play around with?
The game also provides five exclusive new pets for those who already own the Kinect version of Kinectimals for their Xbox 360. The visuals in this mobile version of the motion-controlled selling point for Kinect look nearly identical, which is far from a bad thing. If anything, based on screen shots, it's testament to how far iPhones and iPads have come in the graphics department. As for play hooks, they look like much of the same, but with the novelty of touch rather than motion.
Created by Frontier Developments and published by Microsoft Studios, Kinectimals on iOS devices not only breaks its exclusivity with Windows Phone, but could mark the start of an interesting relationship. Microsoft and Apple aren't exactly best buddies, and never would the latter release a product on the former's hardware. Perhaps this is an attempt to foster some sort of relationship with the iPad maker. What we do know, however, is that your kids are probably going to go bonkers over this.
Click here to download Kinectimals for iPhone and iPad Now >
[Via Major Nelson]
Did you see this one coming at all (neither did we)? Will you pick this one up for your kids to play around with?
Saturday, December 10, 2011
Xbox 360 cures gamers' loneliness, goes social in Dashboard update
Alright, so maybe they weren't lonely, but we'll bet that, after this Xbox 360 Dashboard update, players friends list will magically grow. Microsoft's Major Nelson, or Larry Hryb, made the announcement earlier this week that the next major Xbox update will hit Dec. 6 on his blog. Come the week after next, players will be able to share to Facebook straight from the Dashboard.
But the updates go a bit deeper with the addition of Beacons, which allow players to broadcast status updates to their friends that share what games they would like to play with anyone interested. These open call-outs for in-game teammates can be pushed to players' Facebook Walls too. Other changes include cloud storage for games, meaning more space on players' hard drives and access to games from any Xbox 360.
In a way, you could say that makes games more "social" as well, lowering the barrier to playing games with friends in person (IRL, if you will) ever so slightly. But we can't help but notice Microsoft's growing focus on social, and wonder if it's a response at all to the arrival potential game changers like these to Facebook. It may only a matter of time before that competition heats up.
[Via Inside Social Games]
Are you excited at all by these changes to Xbox gaming? Do you think Xbox-like games could ever be popular/successful on Facebook?
But the updates go a bit deeper with the addition of Beacons, which allow players to broadcast status updates to their friends that share what games they would like to play with anyone interested. These open call-outs for in-game teammates can be pushed to players' Facebook Walls too. Other changes include cloud storage for games, meaning more space on players' hard drives and access to games from any Xbox 360.
In a way, you could say that makes games more "social" as well, lowering the barrier to playing games with friends in person (IRL, if you will) ever so slightly. But we can't help but notice Microsoft's growing focus on social, and wonder if it's a response at all to the arrival potential game changers like these to Facebook. It may only a matter of time before that competition heats up.
[Via Inside Social Games]
Are you excited at all by these changes to Xbox gaming? Do you think Xbox-like games could ever be popular/successful on Facebook?
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Facebook has more gamers than Microsoft, Sony, Nintendo combined?
Social games have no doubt garnered more players in such a short amount of time than any gaming platform to date. But, if you look at the amount of consoles shipped and sold by all three major manufacturers, Beard's claim appears to fall a bit short. That is, unless Beard is talking online gamers. Then Facebook just might have the big three beat, to which Beard said, "These aren't games with friends sprinkled on top; it's more about social interactions with gaming on top."
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