也许有玩家还没有想到，自己还可以在Google Maps上种植花草树木，并与现实世界的好友进行互动。但Self Aware Games工作室却已经让这个设想变成现实，并推出了Fleck这款基于浏览器的游戏，目前正以Fleck.com的形式进行测试。玩家可以直接通过该网站注册玩游戏，也可以通过Facebook在10秒内快速连接到该游戏。需要指出的是，玩家在Facebook体验该游戏的前提是已经安装了Fleck应用，但有人认为，作为独立应用的Fleck游戏体验远胜过在Facebook有限空间中的玩法，该游戏还支持运行于iPad平台。

fleck-grow-your-world

Fleck游戏玩法可以看成是MMO游戏和Facebook社交游戏的合体，玩家可根据自己所选择的地理位置，进入任何一个遍布大量真实玩家的现实环境，并通过一系列活动与其他玩家互动，改变自己所处的环境。Fleck的新颖之处在于游戏背景完全基于从Google Maps看到的现实世界，也就是说，每一个场景代表的都是一个现实地区，但它们并非完全以动画背景显示，或是以静态建筑和植物的形象示人，而是像Google Maps所提供的服务一样，以白线代表街道，绿色区块代表公园等植被覆盖范围。

但这并非表示动画效果在Fleck中无所体现，它主要通过全景来显示。玩家可以在游戏中种植3D版本的花花草草，让整个游戏世界以数字化方式展示于眼前。与其他社交游戏一样，玩家也需要时常照料这些植物，以免它们枯萎死亡，它实际上具备了所有最主要的社交游戏元素。游戏界面会显示玩家的精力值、健康条以及经验值，如果玩家完成了相关任务（游戏邦注：例如浇花种树等），就可以升级开启新道具。此外，游戏还支持玩家向好友发送免费礼物，例如自己已经开启而对方却还没有的花草新品种。

虽然玩家在Fleck中的行动均由自己掌控，但与MMO游戏一样，玩家一举一动的变化都会被其他玩家看在眼里。在Google Maps背景中，玩家可以在美国或加拿大等各地随意闲逛，也可以在自己现实世界的附近街道种植草木，甚至是访问附近一向不太让你满意的地区，将其改造成一个美丽新世界。如果不知道具体路线，玩家只需向Travel工具条输入特定名称，就可以访问一些名胜古迹或标志性建筑，例如自由女神像、太空针塔等。

玩家最有可能首先访问的地区当然是自己的家庭地址，该游戏的任务系统也会鼓励玩家采取这种行动。玩家可以在任何一个地点创建一个小屋，并在下次登录游戏时自动获得一些积分。这些任务将为玩家引进更多与Fleck平台相关的多种新功能。

该游戏界面中还有一个即时聊天窗口，支持玩家与其他用户沟通交流，同时玩家也可以绑定Twitter帐号上传自己的Fleck资料。另外，玩家如果在地图上找到了一个环境特别优美的地方，还可以留影纪念——系统提供了一个拍照按钮，它可以自动给玩家拍照，并在玩家许可的情况下发布一个TwitPic。你是一个Yelp控吗？Fleck游戏地图中会弹出一些Yelp评价的现实世界商业活动或服务信息，或是支持玩家使用虚拟货币购买某橦建筑。虽然这些信息多属于交叉推广内容，但它们并不会强迫玩家使用，而是让玩家自由选择。

Fleck-Yelp

另外要指出的是，该游戏中还设置了僵尸这个元素，玩家在每个地图的中间区域总会碰到一个墓碑，但这些墓地与现实世界的坟墓并没有一一对应（假如也是真实坟墓的虚拟化身，那也真是太可怕了），如果玩家进入这个区域就要做好心理准备，展开一场迷你僵尸大战了。这些紫发僵尸会四处追赶玩家，大老远就开始向玩家吐唾沫，玩家的虚拟角色会自动向这些僵尸射击，但最好还是赶紧逃离这个是非之地，以免落入僵尸之手。（本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译，转载请注明来源：游戏邦）

Fleck brings social gaming (and zombies) to Google Maps and Facebook

Ever wonder what it would be like to grow trees, build houses, plant flowers and interact with other real world players all on top of Google Maps? No, I hadn’t really thought of that either, but the people at Self Aware Games sure have. They’ve brought their idea to life via Fleck, a new browser-based game that’s currently in beta at Fleck.com. Fleck can be signed up for independently, or you can connect to the game via Facebook to easily start playing in less than 10 seconds. It should be noted that Fleck is technically available to play as a game on Facebook by installing the App, but I found the experience to be much more enjoyable when not confined to the small play area on Facebook. You can also play the game on your iPad.

Fleck’s gameplay can be most easily thought of as a combination of MMO and the established Facebook social game. You’ll enter into a real-time environment populated by dozens or even hundreds of other real-world players, depending on your geographical location, and can then interact with both those players, and the surrounding environment through a variety of activities. The novelty behind Fleck is the game’s world – the real world, as seen through Google Maps. That is, each environment in the game represents a real world place, but rather than seeing a completely animated background, filled with static buildings or plant life, you’ll see the white lines of streets, green shaded areas representing parks or forested areas and so on – just as though you were looking up a general location via the Google Maps service.
This isn’t to say that animation isn’t represented here, but that all happens in the foreground. Rather than simply looking at these plain map sections, you’ll be able to plant flowers or trees in 3D to make the world come to life digitally. Like in other social games, you’ll need to water plants often or they’ll die and wither. In fact, all of the major social gaming elements are here. You have both a stamina and a health bar, and XP meter that fills as you complete tasks (watering or harvesting plants or trees and so on), and will unlock new items to purchase in the store as you level up. There are even free gifts to send to your friends, like new flowers that they may not have unlocked on their own otherwise.

While your actions in Fleck are your own, your alterations are seen by all players, just like the world of an MMO. In this is the beauty of the game. Due to its Google Maps backdrop, you can literally travel anywhere within the United States or Canada, so long as you know an address. This allows you to stand on top of your own real-world home, planting flowers on the nearby streets, or, will even let you travel to what may be a particularly shady part of your real-world neighborhood and make it a better place – at least within the game. You can even travel to landmark locations, such as the Statue of Liberty or the Space Needle, without knowing the address, by just typing the name of a particular landmark into the Travel bar.

One of the first places you’ll likely visit is your home address, which is encouraged through the game’s ample Quest system. You’ll be able to place a small house on any particular address in the game, so this only makes sense. Doing so gives you an automatic spawn point whenever you next login to the game. These quests will also introduce you to the many, many features and various platform integrations available in Fleck.

For one, there’s a real-time chat window where you can talk to other players, and there’s also the ability to connect your Twitter account to your Fleck profile to send themed tweets. In addition, say you’ve found a particularly pretty area of the map and want to take a picture of it. There’s a button for that too – automatically taking and posting a TwitPic if you’ve allowed for the connectivity. Are you a Yelp fan? Businesses may even pop-up on your map, allowing you to read that real-world business’s Yelp reviews, or allow you to purchase the building in-game for coins.

While this may be a lot of cross-promotion, none of it seems forced, allowing you to use as much or as little of it as you please.

Oh, and did I mention there are zombies? Every now and again, you’ll come across a grave stone in the middle of a map’s area. These don’t seem to correlate one-to-one with real world cemeteries (that would be a bit too creepy, I think), but once you find one, you’ll be able to start a new zombie battle mini-game. The Zombies of fleck are unlike anything I’ve seen – bright purple mounds of hair that chase you around the map or spit at your from afar. Your character will automatically shoot at the undead, but you need to click around the map to move and avoid being lunch.（source:games）