Mososh. Mobile, Social, Games.

The Best Daily Reward System Ever

I want to preface this by saying this is all highly confidential, proprietary information - please do not share it. This information has been recorded here in the event that Facebook, AOL, Microsoft, Google, Zynga or some other suitably large entity tries to patent my daily reward system and thus prevent me from using it. It's currently available in my fantasy RPG, Chronicles of Herenvale.

1. What is a daily reward system?

A reward system is traditionally used to incentivize people to return to something. The system could be the punch card at your local coffee shop or a credit card's points or the Monopoly game at McDonalds. Social and mobile games have been using this type of thing for years to get players to return to games. Since the games are giving away stuff, there needs to be a limit on the reward. The limit is typically time based, and the time is usually a day giving us the "daily reward system". Lots of games give you better rewards if you return consecutive days, the reward getting increasingly better the more days you return.

2. What is my daily reward system?

I've taken the daily reward system and put a spin on it in order to make it more interesting - actually way more interesting - than every other daily reward. Some games give you a spin at a wheel or other nonsense to make it seem more interesting. You get a bit of eye candy, but that's about it. Not much better than just getting your pellet from the dispenser.

My system has the player create a combination that they enter to get their reward (you actually create and enter at the same time). This is sort of like the spinning wheel. It adds a bit of interactivity to the whole thing and makes the player feel like they're actually participating in the reward dispensing process. That's only the first part and not entirely too interesting by itself.

The next part is that the combination then gets associated (temporarily) with the reward the player receives. This means the player has actually created something - not quite a unique something but close enough that they can feel a bit of ownership. They can then share that combination with others until the combination expires meaning they can give others the same reward they just received.

3. Why is it the best?

The system includes interactivity, creativity, cooperation and even altruism. The codes spur conversation, discussion and promotion. They drive engagement and virality that every social game aspires to have.

The codes are also consumable. They expire which means the behavior that is desired has to be repeated. I'm sure if I were Zynga I would be measuring the optimal duration which creates the most "social activity" per code or some such KPI.

The system also gives players choice. They can opt to guess a code of their own, use a code which is known but might not be the most desirable prize or wait to see if they can find a code for a particular reward (of course they only have until the end of the day). The system also allows for "one-off" codes that are special rewards. These cannot be passed around but allow for the trade-off of higher risk, bigger reward for guessing your own code.

It's a bit of a game within the game.

Players Can Now Raid, Battle and Quest On Mobile

Over a year ago, a unique fantasy RPG, Chronicles of Herenvale, came to life on Facebook. Over six months ago, Kongregate's players were able to enjoy CoH. Now, everyone can join both Facebook and Kong's players through a native mobile application on android (available via Google Play) and ios (available on itunes). True cross-platform gaming is here.

As far as mobile goes, not every aspect of CoH made it into the mobile version, and I think that's okay. Not every aspect of a game needs to be translated to every access point. However, core features, especially those that are time based, are important to make accessible. A good example is the raid feature in Chronicles. Raids run on timers and you might miss out on a kill or simply not be able to contribute if you're unable to make it to your computer. Mobile enables you to maximize your opportunity to participate regardless of your personal schedule.

The core aspects of Chronicles (quests, battles and raids) are available in the mobile version. More of the features that are available in the web based version will be added to mobile over time. The itunes version launched a few days ago, and the android version launched just last night. It's a great start and the reaction so far has been reassuringly positive.

Existing players are loving the fact they can get into the game from anywhere. Here are a couple quotes:

"I have played this on the web for a while now and very happy to now have a mobile version. Everything is smooth and quick. I am currently logged into the same character on both the web and mobile to multitask :)"

"I love this game! Started on Kongregate, and using this to play inbetween classes."

And this one just about sums it up:

"Look, this game does not have retina graphics or killer cutscenes, etc. What it does have is great gameplay. If you've ever played those Mobsters kind of games, it's a bit like that, so it can get addicting. It's well thought out and leveling up is a strategy and not just a constant click of the same actions. If you make poor choices, it will show when you get to the higher Quests. The next thing this game needs is graphics to capture the "mainstream" gamers. If not, the game will still succeed with a Lebowski-like cult following. Actually, if you need help, google the game and look for a Wiki where those guys are sharing a plethora of tips to help you succeed."

CoH is currently being featured in the RPG section of itunes (see top image) and sits at #64 (just in front of Extreme Fishing). I feel pretty good about that and I'm also glad to finally have a bit more insight into the magical world of mobile apps.

Chronicles of Herenvale Joins Top Emerging Facebook Games

We knew it would come, we just weren't sure when. Our flagship game, Chronicles of Herenvale, hit the top emerging Facebook games this week by doubling in MAU. It's been over a year since we launched CoH, and we couldn't be more proud to see it's still going strong!

A lot of companies open the floodgates and slowly watch their game fizzle after launching. At Mososh, we prefer to launch, evolve and grow focusing on more hardcore gamers. We've been able to maintain a strong following by continuing to add interesting content and features more than 12 months after launching in addition to providing some of the best customer support in the industry (courtesy of training from Origin Systems - you know, the company behind the Ultima and Wing Commander franchises back in the day). Chronicles of Herenvale is also available on Kongregate.com in addition to Facebook.

Mososh has another adventure game in the works for 2012 and is currently developing a mobile version of Chronicles of Herenvale.

Read the full article on Inside Social Games.

Chronicles of Herenvale Tops One Million Plays

Kongregate is kind enough to count the number of plays and I'm excited to see that my flagship game is now tipping the scales at over 1,000,000 plays on Kongregate.com. I published the game on Kong about four and a half months ago, and it's gotten a great response from the community even though it's not like most of the flash games they are used to seeing on there. Love the team over at Kongregate who have always been very responsive and helpful.

Looking forward to the next million as well as the next game!

Migrating Your Facebook Iframe App To OAuth 2.0

If you're like me, you haven't really looked at your auth code since you wrote your app. I just finished going through the oauth update process required by October 1 with Chronicles of Herenvale. While my changes aren't live yet, I wanted to write 'em up before they migrate to the back of my mind. The process is actually much simpler than it seems. The challenge is that Facebook changes their API so often that a programmer's best friend (google) can turn into a nightmare of misinformation. You can read more on Facebook's authorization updates here.

There are a few common issues that I'll try to cover by relating what happens when you don't implement something correctly and how to fix. I use PHP so all my code and examples will use PHP. Finally, I'll throw down my whole chunk of auth code so if you're just looking for the cliff notes you can skip to the end.

Common Issue #1: The Blue Logo Of Death

You go to load up your awesome app and WHAM! Facebook wants you to see their not-so-awesome logo...twice. This happened to me and based on my google results 1.3 million others.

The issue is for users who haven't authorized your app. You're basically redirecting the user to your app's site inside Facebook's iframe which then tries to load Facebook's auth dialogue. Facebook really hates you for this so they display their logo instead of your app. The good news is the fix is really simple. Here's the php that works for me:

echo '<script>top.location="'.$loginUrl.'";</script>';

exit;

Once you get them to the authorization screen, you're a third of the way home.

Common Issue #2: Bad Signed JSON signature

This error message will show up in your PHP error log. Once again, the fix is relatively simple. The problem is an incorrectly initialized Facebook object. The Facebook object now takes an array of data rather than a parameter list. Something like this should work:

$fbConfig       = array('appId' => $app_id, 'secret' => $app_secret, 'cookie' => true);

$facebook       = new Facebook($fbConfig);

Common Issue #3: Infinite Reload With Rotating State Param and/or "CSRF state token does not match one provided"

I was getting an infinite loop of page reloads after authorizing my app. The state GET parameter was updating with each request. Why does the error happen? Typically, or at least in my case, the user's cookie is getting stomped on. Say, for example, you do something like $_COOKIE = null or $_COOKIE = array().

Another error message that might show up in your logs is "CSRF state token does not match one provided". Basically, Facebook is protecting against "Cross Site Request Forgery" (yeah, I didn't know what that meant either). They stuff some data in the user's cookie and then check whether it matches up with data that is being passed around as the authorization happens. The data in the request is named 'state' as is the property on the Facebook object.

Ensuring both the request state and the user's cookie are intact can help you troubleshoot if this happens.

Testing

I tested using an unreleased app on my admin account. I would simply de-authorize the app on the app settings screen after updating my code.

The Code

Here's the whole chunk of auth code in one place:

$my_url         = 'http://apps.facebook.com/herenvale/';

$code           = ''; 

$access_token   = ''; 

$app_id         = '208888888100000';

$app_secret     = 'e23rds932kxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx';

$fbConfig       = array('appId' => $app_id, 'secret' => $app_secret, 'cookie' => true);

$facebook       = new Facebook($fbConfig);

$fbUserId       = $facebook->getUser();

$me             = null;

if ($fbUserId) {

  try {

    $me             = $facebook->api('/me');

  } catch (FacebookApiException $e) {

    error_log($e);

    $fbUserId       = null;

  }  

}  

if ($me){  

  // do my app

}   else {  

  $next = 'http://myapp.com/';

  if (isset($_GET['next'])) {  

    $next = $_GET['next'];

  }  

  $loginUrl = $facebook->getLoginUrl(array('canvas' => 1,'fbconnect' => 0,'next' => $next)   );  

  echo '<script>top.location="'.$loginUrl.'";</script>';

  exit;

}

Hopefully this helps anyone else trying to get their app updated by the October 1 deadline. Feel free to let me know if you see any errors or better ways to do something and I'll update the info. Now to get an SSL cert.

Is Zynga Thinking Too Small

Allow me a little indulgence if you will - I might even ramble. I'm going to talk about strategy in regard to a billion dollar company and I don't even have an MBA. I started writing this post a while ago but now that Floodgate has been swallowed by the Jaws of social gaming, I'm actually going to publish it.

Zynga is sitting on the biggest cache of users in the known universe (as long as your known universe doesn't include China). We all know that. They put out Game X, Game Y, Game Z, they are going to see Return 1, Return 2, Return 3. That's math for the most part where they are concerned. I don't really believe they need Skaggs or Reynolds to turn the crank on their money machine. I do believe they can incrementally improve the efficiency of their money machine with these guys so it makes sense from a numbers perspective to have them.

According to GamesBeat, Zynga's made 9 acquisitions in 8 months. Most of them have been smallish game studios - content creators. They're probably doing it for no reason other than the "talent". The unfortunate part is that the "talent" is going to work in the mines of the social gaming world which doesn't really require talent - just a pick and a shovel and a mine. Okay, it's a little more complicated than that but remember, I said I didn't have an MBA and I love to oversimplify complicated things. [Update: 10 acquisitions with Floodgate, I believe.]

Companies like DeNA are making moves, snapping up Ngmoco which not only gives them talent but IP they actually derive value from. Following suit, Tencent acquired Riot Games and League of Legends. These guys are getting much more than talent and a handful of games that are either shut down or put out to pasture to quietly die. Granted, they're paying more (much more) for these BIG acquisitions but they are BIG, long term strategic moves.

I don't have any insight into what's going on at Zynga HQ but have they lost their mojo (or was the mojo just Facebook's explosive growth coupled with some extra rubles - google "DST zynga" if that doesn't make any sense). What do you think Zynga's next BIG play is? Will all of the gaming industry's greatest minds with the exception of Ian Bogost (oh wait...) be put to work on farming games? Will anyone live up to Scott Jon Siegel's brilliant rant at this year's GDC? [Note: While still awesome, the text doesn't do the rant justice but I couldn't find a video - seriously, this kid was brilliant.] I'm eagerly awaiting next year's rant session to find out but feel free to weigh in.

Facebook Games Don't Really Have Free Gifts

I've had several players in my game Chronicles of Herenvale ask why we're the only game that doesn't have free gifts. It's a fair question given the games they've been playing and how those games are structured. Most of those games have been created by or were modeled after games created by a handful of companies. Most, or perhaps all, of those companies are trying to make as much money as possible and "free" gifts are generally understood to be one way to increase the number of bucks rolling through their systems. What then is a free gift and why might it not be free.

Free gifts are just another form of advertising. It's advertising that comes with a pretty little bow and might be provided by one of your friends but it is just an ad. The gift is meant to bring your attention to the game or back to the game. The company has negotiated the price of 1 Energy or 1 hay bale or whatever it is in order to get the player to send that ad to their friends. It's cheaper than paying Facebook to host their advertisement and it's got the additional benefit that it's coming from a friend. Gifting is effectively a "social" ad.

Back to Chronicles of Herenvale and why we don't have gifts. Advertising is a fair way to support a web property, be it a game, a news site, blog or whatever. I believe in Chronicles, we can provide a compelling experience that supports the business without using these types of social ads that add little to gameplay. They are a big part of the grind in most social games so you end up with programs like this:

 

I'm not saying we'll never have gifts. It could be that I come to the conclusion that I need that "free" advertising to stay in business. Or it could be that someone convinces me players really want it. Or I might just come up with what I think is a compelling reason to use a gift-like system in Chronicles of Herenvale. Perhaps gifting as it exists in games like FarmVille, City of Wonder, Castle Age, etc is compelling to farmers, city builders, cake bakers and such but I suspect it isn't to the more traditional RPG-er, adventurer types.

"What Games Are" Explains CityVille, Zynga and Social Gaming

Hats off to Tadhg Kelly for his brilliant piece on whatgamesare.com. Tadhg has broken down social gaming in a very accessible and logical way using what is arguably the most successful example to date, CityVille. He's released his work in four articles on his way to writing a book titled What Games Are.

The first article focuses on the rise of Zynga and other major developer/publishers like Crowdstar and Playfish. Tadgh claims that visibility is the driving factor in spreading games on Facebook. While I don't think he gives quite enough credit to virality - especially if you're a small developer where 1,000 extra players a day can make a big difference, I do agree with his assessment of how the big guys are winning these days. They used (abused) the viral channels when those channels were open and leveraged Facebook's now deprecated notification system to achieve their current size. Notifications were infamous for the amount of visibility they provided games. Now, the major players are able to dominate the landscape (literally) with the war chests of players and cash they've amassed through funding and cash flow. As Tadgh puts it: "The Facebook economy, like the television economy, is all about dominating and converting attention rather than meritocratic-ally acquiring it, and all of the big developers on the platform have realised this".

The second article talks about engagement and retention - are players playing in an ongoing fashion. I really like the distinction Tadgh makes between amusements and distractions. The article dives into many game mechanics of CityVille and why the mechanics are designed in a certain way. One interesting aspect of the discussion is Tadgh's analysis of knock-off games in a section he calls "Context". He states that it's "important to be the first one of that type that the average user sees". I actually disagree with this statement. It's fine to be second, third or fifth as long as you understand the context. I.e. that you are fifth, and what that creates as expectations in your players. In some cases, it's advantageous not to be first (FarmVille?) if you can provide what the players enjoy and improve upon it.

I'll read the second two articles this weekend but for now I have to get back to work on my game, Chronicles of Herenvale. [No, I'm not going to write a post without plugging my game ;-)]. I gotta chill some champagne for tonight too. Happy New Year everyone! 2011 - going to be a great year.

Best Cross Platform Xwars Style Social Game Ever

Or as one of my Spanish speaking players put it, "es el mejor juego". Those are pretty big statements but whether you're in social gaming or high tech start-ups (or both), it's often in your best interest to dramatize. Big statements can bring in players and/or money. Modesty rarely does either. My latest game is an evolution of the adventure games that have become status quo on Facebook and I hope it lives up to those lofty words.

The first statement was made by John Szeder, Director Developer Relations/Mobile, at hi5.com. The second was made by a player on hi5 (google translator says that it means "is the best game"). Chronicles of Herenvale (CoH) is the game they are talking about, and CoH is the beast I've been trying to tame for the last few months.

Of course, much of the game is built on tech I built for my previous games, Big Top Life, Fish Feeder and even Blood Rogue. However, in order to get the game to the level of quality and engagement I wanted, whole new systems had to be developed in addition to moving to an iframe app on Facebook from my previous FBML apps.

Since I was already operating games in an iframe on hi5, I decided to develop CoH for hi5 first and port it to Facebook. Turns out that was a really good decision as it allowed me to avoid learning a few intricacies of the FB platform before launching. I was able to get the game up and running on hi5, collecting feedback and data (and revenue) while porting the game to Facebook.

Ten days after the hi5 launch, I launched the game on Facebook. Now the real fun begins.

I might dive into varying levels of detail on the game's creation in later posts but I'll mention one here: quests. The quest system was developed behind the idea of an interactive comic where the player is the hero. I deviated a fair amount from the list driven interface that most games like Castle Age use fairly prevalently. I wanted to put the player in a rich graphical environment, short bursts of text driving the story and actions made by the player that reinforce the narrative. No progress bars like Mafia Wars and its derivatives. Rather, I added individual interactions the player must work through in each quest. Could be defeating a monster, smashing a lock or chasing a villain. I have to admit I would like to go further - add richer detail to this aspect of the game but schedules are schedules and budgets are budgets. Much to come in 2011 but I believe this really sets Chronicles of Herenvale apart from similar games (in addition to a couple other features like the fighting system and hero customization).

 

In launching the game, I also wanted to thank the rest of the team (these guys really came through - many times):

• Bill Hiles. Words. Concept work, backstory and cartography.
• Michael Stack. Code. General javascript guru and equipment manager builder.
• Edgar, Nino, Teddy, Judah and Anthony. Art. Amazing collections of pixels.

There are still many aspects to polish, features to add and I'm sure bugs to fix but I'm looking forward to living up to lofty words. Check out the game and let me know what you think.

Players Don't Like To Scroll (Who Knew)

So I launched Big Top Life a few months ago and I've been adding new features and refining the existing ones. A player posted last week a great little review pointing out some of the game's shortcomings. One of her points (that seems so obvious in hindsight) is all the scrolling in the UI is excruciatingly annoying. Being the boss, I reprimanded the design team (yeah, that's me too) for being fools then whipped out Gimp to play with moving some things around.

Games like Castle Age and Mafia Wars have this flaw yet have done exceedingly well in spite of it. Of course, they are both what I would call generation 1.0 Facebook games. They've gone through loads of updates, for sure, and even addressed scrolling in some of the newer areas yet haven't really touched the original quest/job interface. Perhaps it's too much work or perhaps they've got bigger fish to fry. For me, it seemed like a more than sensible improvement to make given it's core to the play experience and also where the player's first interaction happens.

Yeah, that's the old list on the right. I'm not sure I can even write enough in this blog post to make it to the bottom. Crazy. With the wonders of javascript, ajax, etc., there's no reason for that sort of craziness.

I'm working on a new game, Chronicles of Herenvale, and I had a different vision for that game that doesn't involve a list of any kind. Weird that those thoughts never cross-pollinated with my Big Top Life thoughts. At GDC Austin I met with the founders of 5th Planet. Really, really great guys. One of the cornerstones of their design mentality (based on their experience with Castle Age) was NO SCROLLING.

So, I'm a little late to the party but happy to be here and hope to move more of Big Top Life in this direction. If you're just getting started or have the means to change an old design, don't make your players scroll. I just launched the update today and I'll be interested to see what the players as well as the numbers (yes, I'm going to measure the impact of the change - see my previous blog post for more on that).

Looks like I made it to the end of that damn image. Here's a shot of the new interface.