Job Board event (more mafia chores) 3/26

 Toothy Walkers, armor [145/220]

Because we don't already have too many Mafia Chores to do each day, Job Board event!

January Job Board

February Job Board

Family Job Board Leader gets the Toothy Walkers!

Global Job Board Leaders get the Graveller, vehicle [varies]

Fence Master Event: Even More Mafia Chores! 3/11

Book Keeper, henchmen, Gold level [225/175]

Global Fence Leader Reward

What I think happened: Zynga gave us a little Survey to ask us what we liked in the game the most.

Feb 20 Mafia Wars Survey

Then Zynga announced: The Daily Fix: More Mafia Chores because apparently our favorite thing we do each day is all the assignments. The daily 150 Ices for Family Progression. The property, job and  helper things we do each day. I thought we had just about the right amount of chores to do. 

So here we are in mid-March with another Mafia Chores Event. Okay let's see what we have.

There are two possible loot items to collect from this event. The first is the Pygmy Raccoon, animal [150/221] for the Family Fence Board Leader

The second item is the Book Keeper, henchmen [225/175] for the Global Fence Leader. 

And here are our newest "tasks" and chores:

I'm not sure if the numbers to the right are a points scale for each task or some other thing, like how many times we should do this task or how many days we have done this task. As usual, Zynga cannot explain anything worth a hill of beans. These numbers (on the right hand column) do not change, so I am assuming they are points this task is worth.

This is what the task board looks like as you get some tasks done:

Many of these tasks do not show any progression, so I do not know how Zynga is deciding whether we did enough of those tasks.

The only one of these tasks that really surprised me was second to last, "Add members to Mafia" because, any Chimpanzee can tell you, Mafia Wars Daily Average Users are down. For this one, you *can* remove a member from your mafia and add them back. 

The Global Fence Master Rankings:

The Family Fence Master Rankings:

Daily Fix: More Mafia Chores 2/27

Twice Shy, weapon [171/120]

The Daily Fix FAQ Official Mafia Wars Blog is almost as long as their post about the Arena.

This feature is rolling out slowly, and that is making a lot of players unhappy. 

As soon as it showed up in my game, I clicked the "Enlist" option to see what we have.

My first new chore was to collect from a property, which I had already done, so I was unable to complete the first task on our newest chore assignments. Boo hoo. 

See the little red x where I did not achieve my daily fix clip.

This sucks because we need to complete 21 of 28 Daily Tasks to get to Ruby Level, so I suggest that you also check this part of the game right off when you log in to play.

Today when I logged in, this was the first thing I looked for so I wouldn't make the same mistake twice. Today's task/chore was build one item in the Chop Shop. When I completed the task, I was awarded the loot item above, the Twice Shy. I have 9 hours 38 minutes until my next task. 

Click the link below for more detailed explanation of this feature.

Daily Fix Detailed FAQ Official Mafia Wars Blog

Yes, I know their images suggest we can win Rewards Points, no I do not know how or when that will happen.

Here are some examples of Daily Fix tasks/chores you may  be assigned.

Collect from Armory

 Collect from Weapons Depot

Do 5 jobs in London.

Job Board 2/6

Gentoo Penguin, animal [146/219] Gold Level

Job Board, because your Mafia Chores weren't plentiful enough.

The Top Three Global Jobbers will receive the Gentoo Penguin, animal [varies] 

These are the loot items. Only 1st place among family will get the loot item. I really do not know how they are figuring that we have 5 active members in our family? Maybe if you are in an inactive family, this is supposed to get you to make those other players come back to the game? 

If you are the Number One in your Family jobber, you will get the loot item:

Double Up, armor [216/141]

To see where you stand on the Job Boards, click Home and see the Progress/Family/Job Board tabs.

From here, click to Global Ranking to see your standings globally.

What I Call a Problem.

                                                         Before you read this know that I still hope the game can be saved.

The problem that mafia wars faces, as far as attracting new players, is that Mafia Wars has a reputation.  I know people who have never even played MWs that are aware of how involved the game is (Mafia Wars junkies have been identified by society lol).  I have been told that Mafia Wars does not seem like it would be fun, and my friends and family have told me many times they believe the game ultimately causes me stress and anxiety.  So why would they start playing? Wouldn't they be crazy to volunteer to play this game? Who would sign up for this crap?

I guess the main reason I still play now is because I played back when it was fun. I'm like a drug addict chasing that first high, only it is becoming more and more obvious that those days are long gone.  The game really is not that much fun anymore.  It is a job with an asshole employer. A full-time job for many, and at the very least, a part time job for most - and the pay is crappy...  Really it is the people I have come to call my "family" and friends that keep me playing.  And yes, I still enjoy a good fight.  But as for most of the actual game? It is a burden.

The game is in its death rattle.  Only the most radical changes in the players' favor will entice players back and new players to start, and I doubt even that would save the game. I think ANYTHING Zynga does will be too little too late. The game used to be simple and fun. It has now become something that requires you to sacrifice nearly everything in your life to maintain, even to a mediocre degree. MAFIA CHORES.  Full of timed events, clocks and timers, reward points, limits, limited this limited that, pop-ups and spam, on and on. It just makes me sick.  And really, I'm not sure there is much I can do about it, besides not spending anymore money.

You can't reason with a moron.  At every turn Zynga has run counter to reason.  Misty herself said it best last night:  "Can't Zynga find a bigger target than their own foot? ::facepalm::". Their next brilliant move should be to stop giving out a reward point for every other level up.  Maybe also take away the energy and stamina packs.  And double the energy and stamina timers.  And how about adding TWO new limited time properties at once with even shorter beg period and more parts per level.  In light of all the other things Zynga has done, those seem like excellent ideas that should be implemented immediately all at once.

I want to thank Mafia Spirit for their latest guest article which inspired tonight's diatribe against Zynga: http://tinyurl.com/community-divided
Visit Mafia Spirit: https://www.facebook.com/MafiaSpirit

yours truly,
a very depressed {ℳ} ßrµ†µ§ =Ʀ²Ƒ=

Is it fun or a gaming addiction?

So the Question is: Is it fun or a gaming addiction?

Well, that's complicated.  If you spend more of your personal time playing than living, I think it's safe to say that's an addiction.  Everyone that plays has some form of a real life, no matter what their circumstances.  So if you are neglecting your real life, the real people in your life, your relationships, your job or family and not practicing some type of moderation then it's time to re-evaluate where you stand.  There are lots of players looking at the game and wondering where their time went and whether zynga really cares that they are driving players off in droves because of the excessive everything.

A simple thought is this: If Mafia Wars causes you stress in any way, it might be time to think about if you are playing a GAME or addicted.

For the addicted who know they are addicted and still enjoy it, I'm offering an anti-stress kit below.  For those that are still not sure, see the list after the anti-stress kit so that you can contemplate where you fit in on the addiction scale for Mafia Wars.

In the past jokes have been passed around as status posts on fb that are similar to the list below.  In this instance, these were created by me (in humor) so that you can see how many you identify with to determine if you might just be an addicted Mafia Wars player. 

• It’s safe to say you are probably at least mildly addicted to playing mafia wars if you can identify or relate to more than say, 5 of the following:
• You have logged into the game more than twice a day to make sure you have built from your properties
• You know what speed building is and have tried it more than once
• You have “Mastered” a Spam Event all 3 times
• You have or have had more than 3 tabs open with all tabs running a different script/bookmarklet in the game
• You know what Chucker is and the first thing you think of is not a tv show about catapulting pumpkins
• You *care* what your “worst item” Attack/Defense stat is
• You know what a Mock War is
• You have completed/collected all the items for every collection
• You have completed all of the jobs in every available City
• You have maxed out your property upgrade on every property in every available City
• You have contemplated whether to use battlefield, assassinator or slayer
• You know what a Secret District is
• The Don’s Gift doesn’t sound like a present from your friend named Don
• You have seen more guns on your computer screen than in a movie
• You know what the maximum gift collecting limit is and don’t like it
• You can only help 25 friends in this City per day means something to you
• 5 part property max is an all too familiar message and you think it bites
• Beg for parts
• A farm account has nothing to do with playing Farmville
• Boss fight can can be individual or as a family and does not mean you might get fired
• Arson buff is not someone who is good at committing arson
• You see another “new” property and think :sigh: then check to see if any of the items you can build will come with more than 6 skill points
• You suffer from Event Fatigue
• You have a list of things that you try to accomplish every day within a GAME
• You like friends that return special parts more than ones that send Mystery Shipments
• You have over 10,000 animal feeds
• You know what re-vaulting means
• You know the difference between a Leader’s Reward and a Helper’s Reward
• Congratulations!  For being a loyal player you have been rewarded with…is a message you try to remember to receive every day
• 3 free spins means something to you
• A mission is something you try to complete not something you read about a military doing in the newspaper
• You can only help in 5 wars = annoying
• You have ever had RGB or PFR on your wishlist and know what those letters stand for
• GC = a trading commodity and you have traded for something
• Stolen Ice means something other than an ice machine getting robbed and you are annoyed by that message
• When you hear “The beast” you in no way think of a Disney movie
• Tediously checking your player updates and posting capos on group walls is something you have done
• You have bought, with real actual money, RP
• You have more than 2 accounts for the sole purpose of anything related to mafia wars
• You have had a bad experience with zynga customer service more than once
• Unframe has nothing to do with paintings hung on your wall
• 
  

Bad Business in the Back Alley

It appears i will not be able to collect any skill points by collecting the 3 loot items unless i pay for them. According to a "helpful" player advocate at Zynga, once Ruby mastery is reached no more loot will drop. I contacted CS because ever since I reached Ruby mastery I have not had any more loot drop. My numbers stayed steady at 9, 8, and 19 respectively. I explained the situation using very simple English to Zynga CS and this is the response I received:

"Hello Jon,

Jon, I understand that you are not receiving any loot from Back Alley Business and I want to let you know this is because you have already fully mastered it, and our Developers has designed the District that after you complete it you won't receive any loot, so that's why you are not receiving Items.

If you have any other concern or question please contact me back, have a wonderful day.

Kind Regards,

A***** B********

Zynga Player Advocate "

I have to ask why this is the case. Why would loot stop dropping when I have mastered the district? I feel I am being punished for completing a Mafia Chore on time. And if this is how it has to be, why not make this seemingly important detail very clear to me as a player? I have, of course, replied to this ridiculous response from CS. I wish I could have used chat....it is so hard to explain things clearly to the Zyngons using e-mail. If there are any further developments, I will pass them on. In the mean time, keep fighting the good fight.