Social Gold: The Design of FarmVille and Other Social Games (Web2Expo 2010)
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Transcript of Social Gold: The Design of FarmVille and Other Social Games (Web2Expo 2010)
Connecting the World Through Games
Social Gold: The Design of FarmVille and Other Social Games
May 5, 2010
Amitt Mahajan - Zynga
Questions to answer
• How do I get people to play my game?
• How do I get people to tell their friends?
• How do I get people to stick around?
• How do I get people to invest?
Why do people play social games?
• Alleviate boredom
• Connect with friends
• Competition
Appealing to a wide audience
• Choose a broad non-offensive theme
• Keep core gameplay simple
• Consider international players
Choosing a theme
• Broader the better
• Appeal to something folks already know
• Avoid offensive subjects
Simple design wins
• Maintain a natural gameflow
• Increase decision points
• Reduce UI complexity
Inventory
Capturing a player
• Hidden but effective tutorial
• Gradually introduce complexity
• Focus on non-design challenges as well
More Complex More Complex
Treasure Fruit
Cater to different play styles
• Players find different types of fun in your game
• Provide several ways to win
• Get them to interact with each other
One Playstyle
Another Playstyle
Product clarity
• Single strong voice
• Have a long-term vision for gameplay
• Consistent art direction
Art direction
• Appeal to a fantasy
• Bright and colorful
• Avoid excessive detail
• Humor adds character
Appeal to a Fantasy
Sound
• Music adds atmosphere
• Sounds should be un-intrusive
• Capture a movie to provide direction on sound
Growing through social
• Forcing social causes negative reactions
• Integrate social elements into core gameplay
• Surface social actions by friends
Different types of social
• Light– Pokes, “Likes”
• Heavy– Comments, Wall Posts
• Have a mixture
Growing through metrics
• Metrics help you figure out what works
• 3 core metrics– Reach
– Retention
– Revenue
• Test your ideas and see what sticks
Increasing retention
• Leave your audience wanting more
• Remind the player to come back
• Let their friends help
Play sessions
• Keep them short
• Provide a goal for the player
• Link sessions together
X
Sustaining players
• Regularly scheduled updates
• Long term value
• Events
Moments of joy
• “Cool” events in your game
• Make the player feel good
• Leverage art to create these
Moments of Joy
Play, invest, express
• Engage users first
• Make it easy to convert
• Surface the value they are receiving
Play Currency Paid Currency
Enable expression
• Allow the reversal of mistakes
• Status symbols
• Social ROI
Wrap-up
How do I get people to play my game?Have a simple design and a theme that is relatable
How do I get people to tell their friends?Make social part of your core gameplay and not forced
How do I get people to stick around?Give them a reason to come back and something to aspire to
How do I get people to invest?Engage players and provide an easy way to express
themselves
Questions?
Twitter: @amittmBlog: www.amitt.com