Inside Social Games

I’m really bad at bowling. So it is with a certain level of chagrin that I take a look at Bowling Buddies on Facebook.

Developer Playfish has created a pretty solid Flash bowling game here, but I’m not very good at it. You control the ball by manipulating your mouse and releasing it at the appropriate time. You can also spin the ball after you release by using your mouse, but even with this advantage, I’m still not very good.

But I’m a bit hooked. The Flash graphics are great, the difficulty is believable and the depth is pretty substantial.

The more you play, the more achievements you unlock. There are some for skills, and there are some for how many times you play, and there are some for how many people you invite. You can customize your bowler, and this little sprite will cheer or groan depending on you do. In order to get new outfits to dress your character, you need to invite more of your friends.

Though the “challenge” feature is just launched, you get a sense that there is a large community here by clicking on the “world” feature (and subsequently letting a little groan yourself as you are nowhere near as good as these people).

The game has some nice innovations over typical Flash animation as well. You can play 2-D or 3-D version and manipulate the graphic quality depending on how good a computer you are running. Touches like this make Bowling Buddies a universal winner.

Gameplay: 7
Development: 8
My average score: 89