Translation Results Requested Through Conyac Made Public

A Closer Look at Zynga’s Adventure World
September 1st, 2011 No.2

The final area Hyatt shared with us was the Base Camp area where all players first start out. From here, players can purchase items that help out on adventures, decorations for the camp itself, and supplies needed before going out on adventures. Like CityVille, there is a time restriction on how fast the player can bring in supplies without paying premium currency, forcing the player to spend a certain amount of Base Camp instead of rushing right back out to the adventure maps.

Adventure World is monetized through the sale of energy refills, supplies and special “gadget” tools, like the grappling hook. Some of these gadgets can be unlocked through gameplay, while others are premium items. Some provide a direct influence on gameplay like the dynamite gadget that can blow up rocks blocking off parts of the map, while others provide a passive bonus like a compass gadget that reveals all hidden treasures on the map.
Interestingly, Zynga Boston hasn’t chosen to monetize hints for the puzzles and quests. In other classic adventure games and puzzle games, the player must give up something in order to get a hint on how to solve a puzzle or find an elusive piece of treasure on the map, usually buying a special item or taking a score penalty. Hyatt explains that through play testing, Zynga Boston is confident they’ve made the puzzles intuitive enough to where nobody will need a hint. And in case the large maps overwhelm a player’s eyesight, a “Show Me” button on the quest screen will automatically pan the camera to where the player’s next objective is at no cost to the player. Adventure World is due to go live in the next week or so, according to Hyatt. Zynga’s last new game, Empires & Allies, launched in June and peaked at an all-time high of 53.2 million monthly active users and 7.7 million daily active users. The Pioneer Trail expansion for FrontierVille launched in mid-August and so far has 19.7 million MAU and has stabilized at 3.1 million DAU. You can follow the progress of these games with our AppData traffic tracking service for social games and developers.