Mafia Wars Message Board

#facebook Facebook has implemented countermeasures to purge fake, forged, hacked or otherwise unsavory 'Likes' from its pages, resulting in the sudden departure of several hundred thousand of Zynga's several hundred million fans. More »

We've heard Ron Perlman's voice in games many times, but don't you think it's time we got his face in there too?

A while back, rumors started kicking around that a game based on Sons of Anarchy, FX's hit series about SAMCRO, a motorcycle club that tussles weekly with rival gangs, drug runners, white supremacists, and all manner of other shady characters, was in the works. Unfortunately, those rumors centered around a social, browser-based game. While a version of Mafia Wars with bikers and meth dealers sounds basically reasonable conceptually, it's also not something I would particularly want to play.

So color me perhaps overly excited given the actual number of details available that the direction of this Sons of Anarchy game appears to have changed. Showrunner Kurt Sutter, well-known for just kind of saying whatever the hell is on his mind via various online platforms, took to the social media platform recently to provide an update on where the game currently stood. From his description, the focus has shifted to a full-fledged, console-based game, and "not some slapcrap browser MP thing." His words, not mine.

The reason for the shift had to do with quality, it seems. Sutter described the original social game concept as something he "wanted to love," but said it ultimately felt "rushed and unsatisfying." Sutter has evidently been meeting with publishers recently, and stated that he, FX, and parent company FOX are all committed to making this new console game happen.

When you think about popular TV shows that could potentially make the jump to the video game space in a quality way, Sons of Anarchy actually seems like kind of an obvious choice. The question, of course, is what kind of game befits the kind of territorial action the show has built itself around? Open world action game? Road Rash-style vehicular combat? Meth eradicating puzzle platformer? Man, these ideas practically write themselves.

Zynga has been struggling with its stock price since the IPO late last year, and Sterne Agee analyst Arvind Bhatia says there are more dark days ahead. When you compare Zynga's $120 million marketing budget to its recent rise in only 400,000 new players (about $300 a person), the numbers don't look good: "We know that, on average, these people are spending about $150 or so," says Bhatia, which suggests that Zynga is spending about $300 for every $150 in profit. "That math won't work for very long," obviously.

Zynga's spending is indicative of a few trends in social gaming. First, the company has discovered it's very hard to earn new players. Many of Zynga's games are similar, and without really experimenting, it's going to be hard to generate uniques. Second, Zynga's earnings are based on "whales": A small percentage of players who spend big. You need to find a lot of unique free-to-play players to land a few whales, and Bhatia doesn't see Zynga doing that lately.

So what's the solution? "Zynga will have to find their next FarmVille," says Bhatia. Until the company finds another phenomenally popular hit and the surge in new players that comes along with it (which is incredibly tough to do), Bhatia expects to see even more problems with Zynga and its stock.

#mafiawars Bettysue Higgins, who until recently worked as an admin assistant for a law firm, has pleaded guilty to embezzlement charges after her fraudulent spending on casual video games was caught out. More »

#zynga As rumored two days ago, it is now confirmed that Zynga will hold an initial public offering of its stock on the NASDAQ tomorrow. More »

#zynga Police on Tuesday arrested a Zynga temp who is accused of stealing $100,000 worth of merchandise and equipment from the company behind casual games FarmVille, CityVille and Mafia War, the San Francisco Examiner reports. More »

#zynga The man behind monster hits FarmVille, Mafia Wars and CityVille is scrambling to reclaim some of the stock options he handed out to long-time employees, the Wall Street Journal reports. More »

#mafiawars The keystroke-capturing computer virus that infected the networks used to pilot U.S. Air Force drones had nothing to do with Mafia Wars despite early reports to the contrary, Zynga tells Kotaku. More »

#mafiawars Earlier this month, it became known that the US Air Force's aerial drones had been infected with malware. It didn't blow them up or anything, but it was embarrassing for the Air Force nonetheless. More »

#mafiawars Forget the farms, the adventures, the empires and the allies. Love them or hate them, Zynga will soon release what they're calling their "most bad-ass game to date," Mafia Wars 2. More »

FarmVille and Mafia Wars maker Zynga, has been slapped with another lawsuit, this time for patent infringement. New York-based Segan wants to get paid for a 2006 patent it holds—"system for viewing content over a network"—claiming Zynga is violating it. Sound like patent trolling to you? [Bloomberg] More »

#privacyville Zynga's bajillion dollar bid to go public came with oodles of fun insight into the company, thanks to that filing with the securities and exchange commission. It also landed around the same time that the Facebook game developer launched a new game, one all about your privacy. More »

WHO'S HUNGRY?

There's a reason so many designers have put traditional games behind them, in favor of social games: there's piles and piles of cash to be had. Zynga, the developer behind Mafia Wars and FarmVille, is the biggest social juggernaut, and is poised to capitalize on its success.

The company has filed an IPO with the Security and Exchange Commission today, with the hope of raising at a billion dollars.

IPO means a company is going public. Public means shareholders. Shareholders mean a company has to answer to the people who have invested in the company. It also means Zynga has a way to raise cash for expansion much, much faster.

"Dear potential Zynga shareholders, I’m proud and excited to be writing this letter to you today," said Zynga founder and CEO Mark Pincus in the documentation filed today. "Our strategy from the beginning has been to build the biggest macro bet on social gaming to provide our players with the most accessible, social and fun games. Despite our rapid growth, we have been careful to build for the long term. I’ve always thought of this journey as being a series of sprints that make up a marathon."

The biggest problem with any of the new business models is proving it out, by getting into the black and showing the pay-to-play model works. Zynga's financials show the company had a net incoming of $90.6 million in 2010, backed up by nearly one billion dollars in cash, as of this past March.

#top The game makers behind mega Facebook games Farmville, CityVille and Mafia Wars today filed papers with the Securities and Exchange Commission to take Zynga public in hopes of raising $1 billion. More »

#porkfutures The company behind FarmVille, Mafia Wars, CityVille (and perhaps the death of PC gaming) may be going public this week, valued as high as $20 billion, Reuters reports. More »

The already-extraordinary X-Men have gained a new ability: the mutant power to dispense loot. Players of social game Mafia Wars can look out for "loot to heighten your defenses like Magneto and strengthen your attack like Beast!" thanks to X-Men: First Class. [Mafia Wars] More »

#zynga Wherever there is crime you'll find the Green Hornet and Kato, and that includes Zynga's popular social mobster game Mafia Wars, where players can unlock one hell of a ride if they play their clicks right. More »

Nothing quite says "family friendly" like West Coast gangsta rapper Dr. Dre, which is likely why social game magnate Zynga has inked a deal with the musician to crosspromote his forthcoming album, "Detox," within Mafia Wars. "Dre is a culture icon that has inspired generations of music lovers. We're huge music fans at Zynga and we know the players within Mafia Wars will loe the chance to discover incredible music content while playing with their friends," Zynga CEO Mark Pincus noted in the bizarre announcement.

Aside from watching Dre's newest music video for the song "Kush" streaming in-game, players can enter the "Hustlin' wit Dre" area of the game to earn "limited edition goods" (with examples including headphones, a vintage car, and weapons). If that weren't enough, an "exclusive Dr. Dre video message" is somewhere hidden in the game as well -- we're holding out hope that it's actually just a live performance of "Nothin' But a G Thang."

Hey, it's not quite exploding armored cars in the Nevada desert, but it's a start, right, Dre?

Rap icon promotes his new album in Zynga's social networking game.

#facebook When you log into Mafia Wars today you're going to be able to check out the first new single released from Dr. Dre in more than ten years. You'll also get a chance to hustle virtually with the music icon. More »

#zynga Dozens of Facebook applications, including Zynga's wildly popular casual games FarmVille, Mafia Wars and FrontierVille, transmit user data in violation of the social network's privacy settings, according to a new report from the Wall Street Journal. More »

#facebook Fresh off cameos in NBA Jam and NBA 2K11, President Obama and his two predecessors are appearing in Mafia Wars. As novelty masks, anyway. A bank heist weekend offers the chance to get them, and a badass machine gun. More »

Digital Chocolate is suing Zynga over its use of the name "Mafia Wars," an alleged trademark infringement -- this much we know. Last night, however, Joystiq acquired the full, 157-page complaint. The crux of the suit is Digital Chocolate's common law trademark claim to the name "Mafia Wars," though the company never formally registered the name (as Zynga did last summer).

In registering the trademark last July, Zynga claims under penalty of perjury that it has "belief no other person, firm, corporation or association has the right to use the mark in commerce, either in the identical form thereof or in such near resemblance thereto as to be likely ... to cause confusion, or to cause mistake, or to deceive." It's on this stipulation which Digital Chocolate hinges its lawsuit, and the company has proof that Zynga knew about DC's version of Mafia Wars.

Put down that Mafia Wars Slurpee! Trip Hawkins and his company Digital Chocolate claim that one of Zynga's biggest Facebook moneymakers isn't actually owned by Zynga -- in name, at least -- and he would really like you to quit giving them credit. According to Courthouse News, Digital Chocolate seeks to have Zynga "enjoined from using the Mafia Wars name," "ordered to deliver up all Mafia Wars products," and "engage in corrective advertising costing twice what Zynga spend promoting Mafia Wars." Which means you should stop drinking that Slurpee, like, right now.

Litigation is stemming from Digital Chocolate's previously trademarked mobile game of the same name, Mafia Wars, where players "must advance their characters through levels of a fictional crime syndicate by completing tasks." DC also claims that, in speaking with Zynga last year about the trademark rights, "Zynga attorneys responded with a letter promising to stop using the name." In its defense, a Zynga rep told Joystiq, "We are surprised and disappointed by Digital Chocolate's lawsuit. The timing of the action appears to be opportunistic, and we plan to defend ourselves vigorously."

The United States Patent and Trademark Office lists Zynga's first filing date for a game under the name "Mafia Wars" as July 1, 2009, though no filing under that name could be located with Digital Chocolate as the applicant. Digital Chocolate has not responded to requests for comment by press time.

#lawsuit Popular Facebook game Mafia Wars comes under fire today as creator Zynga is sued for trademark violation by Digital Chocolate, the creator of the Mafia Wars mobile phone game series. More »

Digital Chocolate claims trademark infringement.