EA transplant to Zynga confirmed: Jeff Karp joins as marketing head

The cat has been officially removed from the bag ... by Zynga. The FarmVille creator confirmed to us that Jeff Karp (pictured), former executive VP of EA's casual games label, EA Play, has been hired as Chief Marketing and Revenue Officer at Zynga. Of course, Karp will oversee all marketing operations at the $11.5 billion company (at least), as well as international sales.

Before joining Zynga, Karp enjoyed 11 years at EA in various executive positions including chief revenue officer of the EA Games label. It was there he oversaw international marketing for properties like Battlefield, Medal of Honor, Mass Effect and more, according to Zynga's statement.

This EA-Zynga transplant joins a number of high-level traitors former EA executives. Most recently it's rumored that Mark Turmell, senior creative director at EA Sports and creator of NBA Jam, has joined Zynga. Just this June, former GM of EA-owned Easy Studios Ben Cousins joined Ngmoco to head its Sweden studio. And there are plenty more to mention.

It's unfortunate that just as the company goes full speed ahead into social and casual games with one of the biggest buys in recent gaming history that some of its most important positions have gone temporarily vacant. But it looks like The Sims Social could already be the shot in the arm EA needed--it's already attracted over 7 million players.

Zynga vs. MindJolt: MySpace founder Chris DeWolfe has buyout spree

Wasting no time after MySpace's imminent failure, founder and former CEO Chris DeWolfe has acquired two new social game development companies through MindJolt, his own social game platform. MindJolt gobbled up both SGN and Hallpass Media, a leading developer and publisher of social mobile games and a popular free online game network, respectively.

The terms or amounts spent on the buyouts are undisclosed, but DeWolfe said this in a statement: "The acquisition of SGN and Hallpass broadens our content offering and extends our reach," DeWolfe said. "Mindjolt becomes a cross-platform 'triple threat' with great games across mobile, social, and web platforms. This three-pillar approach enables MindJolt to deliver our games wherever people choose to play, and differentiates our service from others in this space."


As you can see from his previous endeavors, DeWolfe aims big--all the time. And the former MySpace chief appears to refuse defeat in this next venture, laying the framework for a social gaming company to compete with the bigwigs like Zynga and EA's Playfish studio. SGN, founded in 2008, has seen its mobile games like Mini Tycoon Casino, F.A.S.T., and Skies of Glory top the charts on the Apple App Store, and now brings those games to MindJolt. Not to mention its development talent.

Chris DeWolfeHallpass will help MindJolt expand its reach beyond Facebook with a network of over 4 million players and 1,500 new games. The company is already well-positioned to take the FarmVille creator head on in the Facebook arena as well with an app that enjoys 6.8 million monthly players and over 1.2 million daily fans.

With these two acquisitions, it appears that MindJolt is working to expand where Zynga has just begun to venture into: mobile and the rest of the Internet. However, Zynga already has two of the top mobile developers, Newtoy, and Area/Code. Will MindJolt be able to stake its claim on mobile before Zynga has a chance to capitalize on its own recent buyouts?

That's not even the end of it. According to AdWeek, DeWolfe (pictured right) plans to follow Zynga's lead in other areas as well like advertising. Zynga has already been wildly successful with brand integration in its games--though perhaps not for gameplay's sake--and MindJolt aims for the same results. "With 25 to 30 million unique users, there's a critical mass of users there," DeWolfe said to AdWeek. "We can go to ad agencies and to top media buyers and integrate their brands into our games."

And with DeWolfe looking to sell more virtual goods too, Zynga is looking at an assault from all angles. The only problem is that CEO Mark Pincus and his crew have already been at this game for a year. DeWolfe and MindJolt are already at a disadvantage. Though, DeWolfe has plenty experience in this department, creating MySpace and bringing social networking into the mainstream. MindJolt just might have a better shot at toppling Zynga than most companies that rise to the challenge, but we won't see the dust settle on this battle for some time.

[Image Credits: MindJolt and Mark Robert Halper]

How well against Zynga do you MindJolt will do given these acquisitions? Should Zynga be wary of MindJolt, or is this just another company looking for a sliver of the social gaming pie?

EA free-to-play studio GM leaves to head Ngmoco Sweden studio

Yet another EA executive has left the company for a competitor in the casual/free-to-play games industry. This time, former general manager of EA's free-to-play developer Easy Studios, Ben Cousins (pictured), has left to lead Ngmoco's Sweden studio in the making. According to Gamasutra, Cousins left EA back in March of this year, and just now has announced his association with Ngmoco's upcoming Stockholm studio, which will focus on global free-to-play titles for DeNA's Mobage Network.

The games industry is at an inflection point," Cousins explained to Gamasutra. "These platforms are bringing hundreds of millions of new gamers into the fold, and at the same time existing core gamers are discovering the innovation, immersion and connectivity they bring." This is the third time in just under two months that a former EA executive has left the company and later joined a competing free-to-play games provider.

Even Bing Gordon, former EA CCO and now an investor in Zynga, has shared his personal advice for the giant to survive amidst the rapidly shifting games scene. Times are uncertain for everyone in social games. While EA has enjoyed a distant second to Zynga for some time when it comes to Facebook games (and possibly even in wealth), it stills holds some valuable brands like Monopoly and its EA Sports games. So, all is far from lost. Though, it might be time to consider Bing's business-wise words.

[Image Credit: Gamasutra]

Why do you think this many execs are leaving EA in such a short period of time? Will EA survive both this and Zynga's imminent IPO? And what about the games?

Christmas Guide: CityVille, FarmVille, The Sims Social & more

'Tis the holiday season! And whether you're celebrating Christmas, Hanukkah, or Kwanzaa, the holidays have arrived in CityVille, FarmVille, The Sims Social, and all your favorite Facebook games. The Christmas updates have begun rolling in, so don't miss out on any of the Christmas items, features, and more. Check out our complete guide below for the complete CityVille, FarmVille, and The Sims Social Christmas extravaganza.


Jump to:
CityVille Christmas | FarmVille Christmas
The Sims Social Christmas

cityville christmas
CityVille Christmas

    CityVille Holiday Carousel: Everything you need to know
    CityVille: Winter comes early with new Cookie Condos, Gingerbread House and more
    CityVille: Deck the halls with Winter and Christmas themed items
    Zynga starts decorating really early in CityVille Holidaytown for iPhone



farmville christmas
FarmVille Christmas

    FarmVille: Zynga apologizes for Winter Wonderland glitches with free gift
    FarmVille: Free rides to Winter Wonderland available now!
    FarmVille Poetry Corner: 'Twas the Night Before Christmas by Cheryll
    FarmVille: Add a festive touch of snow and lights to your farms
    FarmVille Winter Holiday Items: Candy Cane Gnome, Gingerbread Tree and more
    FarmVille Santa's Sleigh: Everything you need to know
    FarmVille: Win a Christmas Plush and 75 Farm Cash from Zynga
    FarmVille Pic of the Day: Mimidursley's Jingle Bells in Winter Wonderland
    FarmVille: Santa's coming soon - have you been naughty?
    FarmVille Winter Wonderland Crops: Everything you need to know
    FarmVille Winter Wonderland Sweet Shoppe: Everything you need to know
    FarmVille Winter Wonderland Snow Treasures: Everything you need to know
    Cyber Monday FarmVille Plush Giveaway




The Sims Social Christmas

    The Sims Social Winter Garden Mystery Box: Everything you need to know
    'Tis the season to play The Sims Social's Cozy Winter Retreat update


Make sure to check back for more Christmas updates as we get closer to the holiday!

Which Facebook game Christmas update is your favorite? Are we missing anything?

The Sims Social: Grab your free Plumbob Hoodies while you still can!

While we knew that the Sims Social would be celebrating fans this week with a series of freebies (including Simoleons, collectibles and the like), here's a gift that tops them all - a free Plumbob Hoodie for both girl and boy Sims! For those that don't know, the Plumbob is the name of the Gem that appears over each Sims' head, and lets the owner know of their status based on its color. This particular Hoodie displays a bright green Plumbob, and it's yours for the taking, but only for a limited time.

To be clear, there are two links available to claim this Hoodie, and therefore two Hoodies available for all users: one for male Sims and one for female Sims. Even if you are fairly certain you'll never change the gender of your Sim, why not grab both? They're both absolutely free, after all. Here are the links to claim both (found on the game's Facebook fan page):

Female Sim Plumbob Hoodie
Male Sim Plumbob Hoodie

While you're on the game's fan page, make sure to grab the extra Simoleons and Hope items that are also being given away. Now's a great time to be a fan of the game, with daily giveaways like these, but we'll make sure to let you know when the more noteworthy prizes come along if you don't want to fan the page yourself.

What do you think of these Sims Plumbob Hoodies? Did you claim both, or just the one for your Sim's current gender? Let us know in the comments!