作者：Andrew Webster

成功的社交游戏要如何采取后续行动？《Mafia Wars 2》和《Ravenskye City》是对这个问题的两种不同解答方式。当然，还有许多其他的选项。你可以不断让游戏充满新鲜内容，你可以创造大规模的扩展内容，或者你可以发布全新的续作和副产品。但是哪个选择是最好的呢？

RavenSkye-City-logo(from dotmmo.com)

外界通常认为，社交游戏更像是种服务而不是产品。与传统游戏不同的是，游戏完成并递交给玩家并不意味着开发者的工作就此结束。他们需要定期添加新内容和解决问题，尽量保持玩家在游戏过程中的愉悦性。新的任务、道具和其他内容可以用来更新社交游戏，但是当游戏的流行程度开始下降时，就需要更大的改变才能够挽救局面。

因而，到目前为止，毫无疑问扩展内容是最为盛行的选择。比如，《English Countryside》和《Lighthouse Cove》的扩展内容使《FarmVille》变得更大。这些扩展不仅增添了新的功能，而且还有新的地域和农场供玩家享用。它们中有故事和角色，并且对游戏的视觉效果做出改变。这种措施不仅能够保持玩家的兴趣，还能够诱惑那些之前失去的玩家。在Facebook面世之前，这项技术的使用就已经获得了成功。例如，《魔兽世界》新扩展包面世时，都会吸引许多流失的玩家重新回到游戏。

发布续作这种方式很少见。Zynga是该平台上最大的开发商，该公司近期推出的《Mafia Wars 2》是其首款游戏续作。原版《Mafia Wars》之前不断更新内容，包括以新城市的形式升级游戏。但是它依然是个过时的游戏（游戏邦注：基于文字的角色扮演游戏在Facebook游戏发展早期是非常流行的题材，但是目前情况已经发生了改变）。

因而，该系列正面临测试续作是否能够发挥作用的完美时机。续作的优势显而易见。《Mafia Wars 2》有着可为众人所识别的品牌，很可能吸引的不仅是那些认为原版游戏内容枯燥无味的新玩家，还包括已经将注意力转移到其他游戏上的老玩家。而这种效果是通过内容更新甚至发布扩展内容所无法取得的。这是款与原作完全不同的游戏。因而，它应该被授予“续作”的称号。

但是与传统游戏不同的是，发布续作有个危险之处：危及现有用户基础。《Mafia Wars》是款较老的游戏，但是仍然有逾300万的玩家。如果玩家发现开发商将注意力转移到新游戏上而不是他们现在所喜欢的这款游戏，那么会有何感想呢？他们会转移到新的游戏续作上，还是会就此离开该系列游戏？想象下，如果更大的游戏发布续作，会发生何种情况。假如Zynga随后发布《CityVille 2》又会如何呢？

这就给我们提供了社交游戏相对独有的第三种选择：副产品。迅速成长的《Ravenworld》便是最佳的范例。《Ravenwood Fair》是款轰动市场的巨作，它甚至被当成是《Ravenstone Mine》的扩展内容。但是随后开发商Lolapps采用了别出心裁的做法，声称这款游戏并非续作，而是在相同世界背景下设置的新体验，近期发布的《Ravenskye City》和之前发布的《Ravenshire Castle》采用的都是这种做法。

那么，这些做法的目标是什么呢？

发布续作的目标在于将玩家带回到某个有着更新体验的系列游戏中。发布扩展内容的目标在于尽量让玩家保持对现有游戏的兴趣。但是诸如《Ravenskye City》之类的副产品的目标并没有那么明确。《Ravenwood Fair》仍然有着数百万的玩家，尽管与其巅峰时候相比明显较少。发布副产品的目标是将一款游戏的玩家带到另一款游戏中吗？新游戏是否会重新引燃玩家对之前游戏的兴趣呢？

《Ravenskye City》的发布或许对两类玩家都有吸引力。离开《Ravenwood》的玩家可能想要去体验下与之前已有所投入的游戏背景相同的新游戏，而当前玩家可能会同时玩两款游戏。随后，还会有新玩家加入进来。

从理论上来说，副产品似乎是种用全新游戏提供类似扩展内容的媒介。Zynga的《Pioneer Trail》似乎已经从这种做法中尝到甜头，这款游戏从《FrontierVille》中分离出来，现在却比原作拥有更多玩家。

因而，对于上述提出的问题而言，社交游戏推出后续作品所需采取的最佳方式并非一成不变。对于较老的游戏来说，发布翻新的续作或许是较为正确的做法。但是对于那些仍然有着大量活跃用户的游戏来说，发布副产品似乎是个较好的选择。但是，选项众多这个事实也证明了社交游戏领域的发展尚未成熟。或许未来几年之内，我们会看到某种方式将成为最为流行的选择，也有可能会看到之前闻所未闻的选项。比如，多款有着相同背景的游戏可以相互联系起来，向那些同时玩这些游戏的玩家提供额外的奖励。

当然，社交游戏将来的发展方向也可由玩家的喜好来决定，这是件很棒的事情。社交游戏会根据玩家的反馈并且做出改变，在这个方面，续作、扩展内容和副产品三种方式的发展演变之间并无差别。所以，继续玩你最喜欢的游戏，肯定能在将来看到这款游戏有更出色的表现。（本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译，拒绝任何不保留版权的转载，如需转载请联系：游戏邦）

Monday Morning Quarterback: the social game sequel problem

Andrew Webster

Mafia Wars 2 and Ravenskye City are two different answers to the same problem: how do you follow up a successful social network game? There are any number of choices.

You could keep pumping the game full of new content, you could create large-scale expansions, or you could launch all-new sequels or spin-offs. But which choice is the best?

Social games are often referred to as more of a service than a product. As opposed to traditional games, the developer’s job isn’t over once the game is completed and in the hands of players. They need to add new content and fix issues on a regular basis in order to keep players happy and playing as much as possible. New missions, items, and other content are par for the course when it comes to social games, but much bigger changes are needed once a game starts to really dip in popularity.

Expansions have been arguably the most popular choice thus far. FarmVille, for example, has gotten much bigger with the addition of both the English Countryside and Lighthouse Cove expansions. Not only have these added new features, but new areas and farms for players to enjoy. They have stories and characters and provide a nice visual change. It’s a great way to not only keep players interested, but also lure back lapsed players. It’s a technique that’s been used to great success for quite sometime, long before Facebook. Just ask the hordes of players who renew their subscriptions every time a new World of Warcraft expansion comes out.

Sequels are much more rare. Zynga is the biggest developer on the platform and it only released its very first sequel recently with Mafia Wars 2. The original Mafia Wars was constantly updated with new content including major upgrades in the form of new cities. But it was also a game that was showing its age. Text-based role playing games were very popular during the early days of Facebook gaming, not so much any more.

And so the series was the perfect chance to test out how a true sequel would fair. The advantages are obvious. Mafia Wars 2 has a recognizable brand that will likely attract not only new players who thought that all those menus in the original were dull, but also lapsed players who moved on to other games. And it’s something that couldn’t be done through a content update or even an expansion. This is a significantly different game. And so it deserves its sequel designation.

But unlike traditional games there’s a danger in releasing sequels: damaging your existing audience. Mafia Wars is an older game, but it still has more than three million people playing. How do they feel about the focus being put on a new game as opposed to the one they currently love? Will they move on to the sequel or simply move on from the franchise? Imagine if this happened with an even bigger game. What if Zynga were to release a CityVille 2 tomorrow?

This brings us to a third option that’s relatively unique to social games: spin-offs. The best example is the burgeoning “Ravenworld.” Ravenwood Fair was a massive hit and it even received the expansion treatment with Ravenstone Mine. But then developer Lolapps did something unique by announcing games that weren’t exactly sequels, but instead new experiences set in the same world, including both the recently launched Ravenskye City and the previously announced Ravenshire Castle.

But what’s the goal exactly?

With a sequel you’re attempting to bring players back to a series with an updated experience. With an expansion you’re trying to keep players interested in an existing game. But with a spin-off like Ravenskye City it’s not quite so clearly defined. Ravenwood Fair still has millions of players, though significantly less than at its peak. Is the goal to bring players from the fair to the city? Will a new game renew interest in its predecessor?

The release of Ravenskye City might actually be the best of both worlds. Lapsed Ravenwood players may want to check out a new game set in the same universe they’re already invested in, while current players might actually play both. And then there are the new players.

In theory the spin-off seems to be a happy medium offering expansion-like content but with a whole new game. It seems to have worked for Zynga’s Pioneer Trail, which now boasts more players than the original FrontierVille it was spun off from.

As with many questions, the answer as to what’s the best option for social game sequels appears to be “it depends.” With an older game, maybe a revamped sequel is the right way to go. But for something that still has a large group of active players a spin-off might be the better option. The fact that there are so many options, though, is a sign of just how young the social space is. Maybe we’ll see one form of follow-up emerge as the most popular option over the coming years, or maybe we’ll see new, previously unheard of options. Imagine if multiple games set in the same universe could talk to one another, providing bonuses to users who play each one.

What’s great, of course, is that the future will be shaped by your preferences. Social games adapt and change based on player feedback, and the evolution of sequels, expansions, and spin-offs will be no different. So keep playing what you like the most. You’re almost certain to see more of it in the future. (Source: Gamezebo)