Breaking News! Zynga's FrontierVille arrives on Facebook

FrontierVille rides into town on today, courtesy of FarmVille creator Zynga. The new western themed Facebook game is best described by Zynga's Chief Game Designer Brian Reynolds, who calls it "Oregon Trail meets Little House on the Prairie meets FarmVille."

The goal of the game is to build your own frontier town, while growing your family and keeping the wilderness at bay. The game begins with a covered wagon and a plot of land, and from there you plant and harvest crops, custom create a log cabin, take on a spouse and make frontier babies (it's all very G-rated, don't worry). You'll be able to put the entire family to work, taking on quests and keeping snakes, bears and groundhogs from treading on your property.

frontierville on facebook

FrontierVille's social elements revolve around helping neighbors with their frontier towns, hiring friends to get jobs done quickly. The game also has a built-in reputation system -- the more favors you do, the better your reputation -- which in turn will make you more useful to friends who hire you for work.

Like other FarmVille and other Zynga games, FrontierVille will be updated with expansions and new items regularly and will be powered by a microtransaction system, which will allow you to use real-life cash to buy in-game currency which can then be used for special power-ups or premium virtual items.

Expectations at Zynga are big for this new game. EReynolds, who we interviewed about FrontierVille, wouldn't give us any specific numbers they're trying to meet, he says it would be a good thing if the game beat Zynga's fastest-growing game, Treasure Isle, which attracted 5 million users in one week. Our full interview with Reynolds will be coming shortly.

FrontierVille is the first social game for the video game vet , best known for creating multi-million dollar strategy games such as Civilization II and Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri. Even though other Facebook games have been built by video game alums, it will be interesting to see how Reynold's experience will make this wild west game stand out from the pack.

Play FrontierVille on Facebook now > frontierville on facebookfrontierville on facebook frontierville on facebook

FrontierVille on Facebook: Think this is a FarmVille-killer?

FrontierVille: Complete the 'Hot Wheels!' Goal for a Deluxe Buggy!

A new goal appeared in FrontierVille (as if building your own Horseshoe Pit wasn't enough) this weekend titled "Hot Wheels!" that asks players to complete three simple requirements to get the Deluxe Buggy. Honestly, the item is simply the original Black Buggy with a new name, but what's in a name anyway?

The original cost of 55 Horseshoes for the Black Buggy compared to zero for a Deluxe Buggy is a trade we would take any day. Join us behind the break for a short guide on how to accomplish this not-so-daunting task.
FrontierVille Hot Wheels Mission

This goal has three requirements, two of which aren't necessarily difficult, but will take a little while to complete:


    Collect Ten Saddle Soap (Unlock for 20 Horseshoes)
    Collect Ten Elbow Grease (Unlock for 20 Horseshoes)
    Clear Five Grasses




While it appears last on this list, the simplest requirement here is clearly the grasses, so just get that out of the way first. The two other goals require you to ask your friends to gift the items to you. But don't worry about trying to sell them on the idea, a free lunch is in it for them if they decide to lend a hand. Also, remember to respond to your friends' requests for these gifts, because doing so will net you one of the items too.
FrontierVille Hot Wheels Mission Complete

After you've complete the three requirements, you'll find yourself with a new whip and 100 more experience points. Not too shabby for an item that used to cost quite a lot of Horseshoes. Don't pass up on this chance to have the ride of your dreams, at least until the Jalopy shows up. Hey, it's only a matter of time!

FrontierVille Storage Space III Timed Mission: Everything you need to know

For those of you that have been keeping up with the various Storage Shed expansion missions in FrontierVille, you'll be happy to learn that the third and final mission in this trio has been released.

Appropriately, the mission is called "Storage Space III," and for those that have completed Storage Space I and II, released over the past two weeks, this will give you the chance to earn your final five free additional storage shed slots, so that you can store more items from your Frontier. This is a timed mission, only being available for three days once you accept it. To be clear, you have all the way up until January 7 to accept this quest, but once you do, you only have three days to complete it.

There are three tasks in this mission, and they will prove to be quite a challenge for those players with no debris or crops on their land:

Clobber 5 Groundhogs
Clobber 10 Snakes
Collect 10 Crowbars

You'll need to draw Snakes out on your land by clearing rocks, thorns, or skulls, and you can bring out Groundhogs by harvesting crops. As for the Crowbars, you'll be able to ask your friends to help you by posting a general wall post to your news feed so that you friends can send you a crowbar. This is a "Give one, get one" situation, so everyone that decides to help you will receive a Crowbar in return (and vice versa).

The rewards for this new mission are the aforementioned five free slots in your Storage Shed, along with 400 experience points and 750 coins - not a bad deal, if you can manage to lure out 15 varmints in a three day time.

Have you completed the other two Storage Shed missions? How are you liking your expanded Storage Shed?

FrontierVille: Purchase Kobe Cow to help Japanese earthquake victims

Zynga has added to their partnership with Save the Children to help those victims of the Japanese earthquake by releasing a new charitable animal in FrontierVille. In addition to the Daikon Radishes in FarmVille, and the Sweet Potatoes in CityVille, you can now purchase a Kobe Cow in FrontierVille using Horseshoes. 100% of the purchase price of Kobe Cows will go to Save the Children's Japan Earthquake Fun, to help those victims in need.

The Kobe Cow is available to purchase as the first item on the "Special" tab in the marketplace. You'll be able to purchase a single Kobe Cow for 45 Horseshoes. This cow needs to be fed once every 10 hours, and you'll receive 5 XP and 50 coins for doing so. It's presumable that you could buy multiple cows if you so choose, knowing that each will cost 45 Horseshoes in the process.

There's no expiration date currently listed on this offer, so if you need to head to the store to buy a Zynga Game Card, you'll likely have plenty of time to redeem it and still donate before the Kobe Cow leaves the store.

Will you purchase a Kobe Cow in FrontierVille?

Pioneer Trail Capital One Goals: Everything you need to know

While we've already taken a look at the Capital One cross-promotions in FarmVille and CityVille, Pioneer Trail's version of the promotion is definitely the most complex, taking four goals to complete. The first of these goals introduces you to the Capital One Goat, who hopes that you can help him find his lost band mates, and bring their bandstand to life on your Homestead. That's right - there's a new building to create as part of this cross-promotion, along with the four goals. Here's a complete rundown of the event.

Sterling the Bloodhound

    Collect one Bandstand Upgrade Part
    Visit Capital One Facebook Page
    Craft Sterling's Guitar in the Bandstand


First things first, the Bandstand can be purchased inside the store for under 10 coins if you have the discount enabled in your game. You won't have to whack a frame or collect items to create a functioning Bandstand; however, you will have to collect these parts to upgrade the building. This is done by clicking on the Bandstand and then clicking "Upgrade" on the menu that appears. From here, it's the familiar process of asking your friends for items.

You'll need to collect 10 each of Stage Lights, pieces of Band Merchandise and Concert Wristbands, all of which are earned through general news posts, while 15 each of Sandbags and Scaffolding are earned by sending out individual requests to your friends for help. The final item - the five Band Groupies - are earned by completing these new goals, as they'll be earned automatically. That being the case, you don't have to be in too great of a rush to collect the rest of the ingredients, as you literally can't complete it anyway.

As for finishing this first goal, you'll need to head inside your Bandstand to craft items as you would in other buildings. From there, you'll need three Guitar Fretboards and five Guitar Strings to actually craft the guitar. These are both new items, requiring you to tend goats or simply ask your friends to help you earn them, among other tasks. Finishing the entirety of this first goal will give you 250 XP, Sterling the Bloodhound and 250 coins.

Toonie the Bear

    Chop 10 Trees on your Neighbors' Homesteads
    Feed 30 Goats on your Homestead
    Craft Toonie's Upright Bass in the Bandstand


Again, you'll need to head inside the Bandstand to craft Toonie's Upright Base, which requires three Tailpieces and five Bass Strings. Again, you can ask your friends to send you the Bass Strings, and can craft the Tailpieces, also inside the Bandstand.

Once you finish this second goal, you'll receive 500 XP, Toonie the Bear and 500 coins.

Penny the Bullfrog

    Feed 30 Geese on your Homestead
    Have or Collect 3 Termites
    Craft Penny's Banjo in the Bandstand


Again, just head inside the Bandstand to see the parts you need to craft Penny's Banjo (in this case the Banjo Pot and Banjo Pick), and then make sure you have three termites from the Oak Tree collection to finish this one off. For doing so, you'll receive 750 XP, Goat and Penny (the two remaining band members) and 5 Band Groupies. Remember those Groupies that you needed to complete the upgrade of the Bandstand? There you go.

Entertainment, Not Food

    Collect the Upgraded Bandstand Bonus Once
    Collect 10 Wildberries
    Harvest 50 Corn


Like a regular building, the Bandstand has a daily bonus that can be collected, so complete that and these other simple (albeit time-consuming) tasks and you'll be golden. You'll receive 1,000 XP, a Rockin Horse (a new mount for your avatar that wears sunglasses) and 1,000 coins for finishing this final goal.

All told, we're not given an expiration date for when this cross-promotion and these goals will leave the game, but your best bet would be to finish everything off as soon as possible just to make sure you don't miss out on anything. Have fun!

Check out the rest of our FrontierVille Cheats & Tips right here.

What do you think of this entire Capital One promotion in Pioneer Trail? Are you going to make your avatar ride this horse-with-shades?

Pioneer Trail Ice Shed: Everything you need to know

Just days ago, we saw the launch of the Potting Shed in Pioneer Trail, and now we've seen another "shed" added to the game. This one, the Ice Shed, will allow you to "keep your milk cold," while receiving Critter Milk for free everyday. You'll unlock two new animals via the construction of this building, and will also have a couple of goals to complete along the way. Here's a complete guide to the Ice Shed, so get our your hammers and get ready to build! Note: This feature may not be available to all players as of this writing.

Once this update rolls around to you, you can either place the base right away, or you can purchase it from the store at a later time if you choose to finish some other tasks first. Once you place it, you'll need to gather plenty of building ingredients: 10 each of Rivets, Sheet Metal and Warm Gloves, along with 15 each of Ice Boxes, Saw Dust piles and Insulation. These final three items are earned through individual gift requests sent to friends, while the former trio are earned through general news feed posts.

Once built, your Ice Shed will give you access to free Critter Milk everyday when collecting the building's Daily Bonus, and you'll also receive a free Dairy Cow (that goes by the name of Daisy) once you finish the building's two goals:

Milk Cooler

    * Place Ice Shed
    * Tend 25 Adult Cows
    * Collect 15 Blocks of Ice


You'll need to ask your friends for the Blocks of Ice, as you might expect. For finishing this first of two goals, you'll receive 500 XP, 1,000 coins and a single bottle of Critter Milk.

Stockpiling

    * Tend 15 Neighbor Goats
    * Tend 15 Pigmy Goats
    * Collect 15 Glass Milk Bottles


Again, you'll finish this collection task by asking your friends to help you, while you'll need to visit at least three neighbors for all of those regular Goats. As for the Pygmy Goat, it becomes available to purchase in the store once you've completed your Ice Shed. If your friends beat you to it, it looks like you can tend their Pygmy Goats instead. Finish this goal and you'll receive 800 XP and the Daisy Dairy Cow that I told you about earlier.

All told, this is a fairly simple and straightforward building project and goal series (albeit probably a bit time consuming), so just make sure to take a few seconds out of your day to ask for these building pieces and you'll eventually finish both off.

Check out the rest of our FrontierVille Cheats & Tips right here. >

What do you think of the Ice Shed in Pioneer Trail? What other sorts of items would you like to receive free from buildings, if not Critter Milk? Sound off in the comments.