PopCap, developer of Facebook hits like Bejeweled Blitz and the recently launched Bejeweled 3 for PC and Mac, has finally released Zuma Blitz to the masses on Facebook. Continuing with its tried-and-true Blitz style of gameplay, this Facebook version of the developer's popular Zuma's Revenge for PC and Mac challenges players' ball-busting skills in one-minute bursts.
Somewhat similar to Bejeweled Blitz, players are tasked with matching three or more identically-colored balls in a row to destroy them, keeping the oncoming onslaught of colorful orbs from reaching the Aztec-style skull in the center. Skilled players will be making combos and what are called "Gap Shots"--shots made through temporary gaps between balls made by previous combos--in no time. And because this is on Facebook, of course there will be weekly tournaments and power-ups made available for purchase with Facebook Credits.
You'll also be able to level up as you progress in the game, showing off your progress to friends while checking in on their most recent achievements. And in a feature new to Zuma Blitz, PopCap's second Facebook game, players will be able to channel their inner Hot Frog to unleash section-clearing shots. Considering Bejeweled Blitz has been played by 40 million Facebook gamers, according to PopCap, we'd say Zuma Blitz has a pretty good shot at making it to the big time.
Hiển thị các bài đăng có nhãn popcap. Hiển thị tất cả bài đăng
Hiển thị các bài đăng có nhãn popcap. Hiển thị tất cả bài đăng
Thứ Hai, 30 tháng 1, 2012
Thứ Tư, 4 tháng 1, 2012
March Madness Facebook Game Showdown: Final Four
Upsets galore in the second round of our March Madness Facebook Game Showdown, just like in the real NCAA Basketball tournament.
In our quest to determine the best Facebook game, most of our match-ups have been cruising along without any major upsets. No longer! In the second round of our Showdown, things went haywire with several favorites finding themselves on the outs, including three of Zynga's most popular games.
Pet Society by Playfish continued its unlikely run as its fans backed it all the way through to the Final Four. Pet Society defeated Zynga Poker 57% to 43% in a close match-up. Pet Society has now defeated two higher seeded Zynga produced opponents in Cafe World and Zynga Poker.
In what is likely the biggest upset this side of VCU over Kansas, Treasure Isle defeated the heavily favored FarmVille. The two Zynga made games went head to head and in unbelievable turn of events, Treasure Isle squeaked by FarmVille 52% to 48%. Unreal, considering how much Games.com -- The Blog! readers favor FarmVille over all else.
The last in our upset trifecta is the defeat of staff favorite FrontierVille by Pop Cap's plucky arcade classic Bejeweled Blitz. In what has to be the triumph of the name brand, Bejeweled over the newer FrontierVille, Bejeweled Blitz won 54% to 45%.
Rounding out our final match up of the second round and last Final Four participant CityVille, the number one seed in the tournament defeated Mafia Wars. CityVille is the only top seeded game to advance to the Final Four trounced Mafia Wars handily 66% to 33%
Here the Final Four match-ups for the March Madness Facebook Game Showdown:
In our quest to determine the best Facebook game, most of our match-ups have been cruising along without any major upsets. No longer! In the second round of our Showdown, things went haywire with several favorites finding themselves on the outs, including three of Zynga's most popular games.
Pet Society by Playfish continued its unlikely run as its fans backed it all the way through to the Final Four. Pet Society defeated Zynga Poker 57% to 43% in a close match-up. Pet Society has now defeated two higher seeded Zynga produced opponents in Cafe World and Zynga Poker.
In what is likely the biggest upset this side of VCU over Kansas, Treasure Isle defeated the heavily favored FarmVille. The two Zynga made games went head to head and in unbelievable turn of events, Treasure Isle squeaked by FarmVille 52% to 48%. Unreal, considering how much Games.com -- The Blog! readers favor FarmVille over all else.
The last in our upset trifecta is the defeat of staff favorite FrontierVille by Pop Cap's plucky arcade classic Bejeweled Blitz. In what has to be the triumph of the name brand, Bejeweled over the newer FrontierVille, Bejeweled Blitz won 54% to 45%.
Rounding out our final match up of the second round and last Final Four participant CityVille, the number one seed in the tournament defeated Mafia Wars. CityVille is the only top seeded game to advance to the Final Four trounced Mafia Wars handily 66% to 33%
Here the Final Four match-ups for the March Madness Facebook Game Showdown:
Thứ Tư, 14 tháng 12, 2011
PopCap to set fire to iPhone, iPad this winter with Popcorn Dragon
Look, PopCap, first you give us a lust for diamonds, and now you're just making us downright hungry. Bejeweled Blitz maker PopCap Games just announced Popcorn Dragon during an EA event in New York City. The game will have players shoot fireballs at flying popcorn kernels by touching the screen, and that adorable dragon will try to eat it all, according to Joystiq.
Popcorn Dragon has no specific release date nor were any other platforms mentioned during the game's reveal. Adding to the mystery, PopCap has yet to reveal a price, though we doubt it will stray far from the coveted $.99 price point. Actually, the EA-owned studio has become quite the fan of microtransactions as of late, so "free" is certainly a possibility.
Popcorn Dragon logo
But back to the game: It looks as if players will feed their miniature dragon across several movie scenes, earning stars and bumping up the infamous score multiplier for quick, accurate fireball shots. Players will be able to buy upgrades with "Tickets," reinforcing the assumption that microtransactions will be a major component to Popcorn. Well, that and growing that cute little whelp's tail. Now, where in the world is the Pop Secret?
Are you excited for PopCap's next big game? What do you think of the studio's next crack at an original idea?
Popcorn Dragon has no specific release date nor were any other platforms mentioned during the game's reveal. Adding to the mystery, PopCap has yet to reveal a price, though we doubt it will stray far from the coveted $.99 price point. Actually, the EA-owned studio has become quite the fan of microtransactions as of late, so "free" is certainly a possibility.
Popcorn Dragon logo
But back to the game: It looks as if players will feed their miniature dragon across several movie scenes, earning stars and bumping up the infamous score multiplier for quick, accurate fireball shots. Players will be able to buy upgrades with "Tickets," reinforcing the assumption that microtransactions will be a major component to Popcorn. Well, that and growing that cute little whelp's tail. Now, where in the world is the Pop Secret?
Are you excited for PopCap's next big game? What do you think of the studio's next crack at an original idea?
Thứ Tư, 26 tháng 10, 2011
PopCap to set fire to iPhone, iPad this winter with Popcorn Dragon
Look, PopCap, first you give us a lust for diamonds, and now you're just making us downright hungry. Bejeweled Blitz maker PopCap Games just announced Popcorn Dragon during an EA event in New York City. The game will have players shoot fireballs at flying popcorn kernels by touching the screen, and that adorable dragon will try to eat it all, according to Joystiq.
Popcorn Dragon has no specific release date nor were any other platforms mentioned during the game's reveal. Adding to the mystery, PopCap has yet to reveal a price, though we doubt it will stray far from the coveted $.99 price point. Actually, the EA-owned studio has become quite the fan of microtransactions as of late, so "free" is certainly a possibility.
Popcorn Dragon has no specific release date nor were any other platforms mentioned during the game's reveal. Adding to the mystery, PopCap has yet to reveal a price, though we doubt it will stray far from the coveted $.99 price point. Actually, the EA-owned studio has become quite the fan of microtransactions as of late, so "free" is certainly a possibility.
Thứ Năm, 15 tháng 9, 2011
Survey: Bejeweled Blitz could sharpen old noggin in baby boomers
For the young, and now the old, it looks like PopCap games are good for everyone. In a survey of over 10,000 U.S. residents conducted by researcher Susan K. Whitbourne, Ph.D., 47 percent of older adults who play Bejeweled Blitz regularly reported feeling sharper while performing tasks.
Whitbourne, a psychology researcher at University of Massachusetts Amherst, presented her findings at this year's American Psychological Association's (APA) convention in Washington D.C. According to PopCap, Whitbourne believes that Bejeweled Blitz could be a viable platform for improving cognitive skills in older adults because it involves several of the skills that have been shown the be improved after playing video games.
Designed to see whether Whitbourne's inklings checked out, the survey found that 22.4 percent of participants aged 65 and over found their ability to see patterns improved. A small 23.9 percent of the same group reported that they could perform timed tasks more quickly after playing the game regularly. While the survey consisted of 10,331 adults aged 18 to 80-years-old, 41 percent of those were 50-years-old and over (and 83 percent total were women). And it's worth nothing that over 78 percent of participants reported to have a college degree.
Nearly half (47.5 percent) of adults aged 50 and older said that they paid no attention to the 60-second countdown timer in Bejeweled Blitz, and 52.9 percent of those 65-years-old and over reported the same reaction. Both groups of older folks were less likely than those 18 to 24-years-old to report feeling anxious because of the timer. Overall, a whopping 66.4 percent said that the game's multiplier gems were positively motivating.
Whitbourne's findings were well-received by some at the convention, like Dr. Walter Boot, director of the Attention and Training Lab of the Department of Psychology at Florida State University. "I believe the work Dr. Whitbourne and her colleagues are doing, using Bejeweled Blitz, is both critical and exciting, and that more research like this needs to be done exploring not only the types of games that bring about cognitive benefits, but also the types of games older adults are willing to play and why," Boot said. "The best cognitive aging intervention in the world is useless if older adults aren't willing and able to engage in it."
Of course, PopCap has a vested interested in the various applications of its hit games. But these findings are interesting, nevertheless. Well, there you have it: It looks like PopCap games like Bejeweled have become the proverbial Coca-Cola of the games industry--not only are they delicious fun, but they're good for you, too!
Do you believe that games like Bejeweled could be good for your cognitive health? What games do you or older folks in your life play to keep the brain in tip-top shape? Sound off in the comments. Add Comment
Whitbourne, a psychology researcher at University of Massachusetts Amherst, presented her findings at this year's American Psychological Association's (APA) convention in Washington D.C. According to PopCap, Whitbourne believes that Bejeweled Blitz could be a viable platform for improving cognitive skills in older adults because it involves several of the skills that have been shown the be improved after playing video games.
Designed to see whether Whitbourne's inklings checked out, the survey found that 22.4 percent of participants aged 65 and over found their ability to see patterns improved. A small 23.9 percent of the same group reported that they could perform timed tasks more quickly after playing the game regularly. While the survey consisted of 10,331 adults aged 18 to 80-years-old, 41 percent of those were 50-years-old and over (and 83 percent total were women). And it's worth nothing that over 78 percent of participants reported to have a college degree.
Nearly half (47.5 percent) of adults aged 50 and older said that they paid no attention to the 60-second countdown timer in Bejeweled Blitz, and 52.9 percent of those 65-years-old and over reported the same reaction. Both groups of older folks were less likely than those 18 to 24-years-old to report feeling anxious because of the timer. Overall, a whopping 66.4 percent said that the game's multiplier gems were positively motivating.
Whitbourne's findings were well-received by some at the convention, like Dr. Walter Boot, director of the Attention and Training Lab of the Department of Psychology at Florida State University. "I believe the work Dr. Whitbourne and her colleagues are doing, using Bejeweled Blitz, is both critical and exciting, and that more research like this needs to be done exploring not only the types of games that bring about cognitive benefits, but also the types of games older adults are willing to play and why," Boot said. "The best cognitive aging intervention in the world is useless if older adults aren't willing and able to engage in it."
Of course, PopCap has a vested interested in the various applications of its hit games. But these findings are interesting, nevertheless. Well, there you have it: It looks like PopCap games like Bejeweled have become the proverbial Coca-Cola of the games industry--not only are they delicious fun, but they're good for you, too!
Do you believe that games like Bejeweled could be good for your cognitive health? What games do you or older folks in your life play to keep the brain in tip-top shape? Sound off in the comments. Add Comment
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