Facebook games were once incredibly popular, with titles like FarmVille, Texas HoldEm Poker, and Mafia Wars boasting tens of millions of monthly active users at their peak. However, over the past decade, Facebook games have declined significantly in popularity and number. There are several reasons for this.
The Rise and Fall of Facebook Games
Facebook first launched its developer platform in 2007, allowing third-party developers to create applications and games on the social network. The Facebook gaming scene exploded in popularity over the next few years. Zynga led the charge, with smash hits like FarmVille (2009), CityVille (2010), and Words With Friends (2009). At one point, Zynga alone had over 300 million monthly active users playing its games.
Other developers found success on Facebook as well. Playfish’s Restaurant City and EA’s The Sims Social also gained millions of players. Social games took advantage of Facebook’s viral channels and social graph to grow quickly and retain users. They were simple, casual titles that appealed to mainstream audiences who enjoyed playing with their real-life friends.
However, by 2012, Facebook games began losing steam. The market became oversaturated, with developers flooding Facebook with low-quality games. At the same time, users tired of spammy notifications and game requests from friends. Casual gamers moved on to mobile gaming on smartphones and tablets, which offered more convenient gaming on-the-go. Social games failed to transition their franchises successfully to mobile platforms.
Facebook also made changes to its platform that damaged the games ecosystem. In 2012, it ended notifications for game requests, cutting off a vital user acquisition channel. Then in 2014, Facebook removed games from users’ news feeds entirely. Finally, in 2020, Facebook discontinued its Facebook Gaming app on iOS and Android due to lack of traction.
The Fate of Specific Facebook Game Franchises
The decline hit major game franchises hard. Here is what happened to some of the most popular Facebook games from the peak years:
- FarmVille – Zynga’s farming simulation game peaked at over 80 million monthly active users in March 2010. However, the franchise began declining after that. Zynga tried to revitalize it with FarmVille 2 in 2012, but users lost interest. The original FarmVille game shut down in 2020.
- Texas HoldEm Poker – Zynga Poker dominated the Facebook gaming charts for years, with over 50 million monthly players at its height. But like FarmVille, it slowly declined over the 2010s. Zynga still operates mobile versions of the game, but the fanbase is a fraction of what it was.
- Mafia Wars – Zynga’s mob-themed RPG reached nearly 30 million monthly users in 2010. Zynga shut the game down in 2012 as part of cost-cutting measures. An attempted reboot, Mafia Wars 2, flopped soon after.
- Restaurant City – Playfish’s restaurant simulator was played by over 10 million people per month in 2010. But Playfish closed Restaurant City down in 2011 after numbers fell. It lived on briefly as Tiki Resort before shutting down for good.
- YoVille – This virtual world game had over 6 million monthly users at its peak. But developer Zynga decided to sunset YoVille in 2012 during its decline. An attempted mobile sequel failed to take off.
As these examples illustrate, even the most popular Facebook game franchises could not escape the platform’s declining games scene. Their player bases shriveled up rapidly between 2012-2014. Today, the few remaining titles limp along with small, but dedicated player bases.
Reasons for the Decline of Facebook Games
There are several leading theories around why Facebook games declined so sharply:
Market Saturation
The Facebook game market became oversaturated by the early 2010s. At one point, new games were launching almost daily. Most of these were low-quality, cloned games that flooded Facebook’s app directory. It became impossible for any game to stand out. There was too much choice for players, but little quality.
Shift of Casual Gamers to Mobile
The rise of smartphones and tablets drew mainstream gamers away from Facebook. Mobile gaming provides many advantages over Facebook gaming:
- Play anywhere, anytime convenience
- Higher quality games built specifically for mobile
- Less social spam/notifications
- Better monetization models for developers
Titles like Candy Crush Saga and Clash of Clans offered the casual gameplay that Facebook gamers craved in a more modern package. Desktop-based Facebook games suddenly felt outdated in comparison.
Facebook Platform Changes
As mentioned earlier, Facebook damaged social games by removing notifications and news feed visibility. This cut off the viral channels that games relied on for user acquisition. Developers found it much harder to attract new players or re-engage lapsed users. The platform changes prioritized Facebook’s advertising model over games.
Shifting Interests
On a broader level, consumer interests changed. Facebook users simply became less interested in simple, cartoonish games. And the novelty of playing with real friends wore off. Gamers became more immersed in deeper experiences on console and PC. Social games came to be seen as a passing fad tied to Facebook’s cultural peak around 2010.
The Current Facebook Games Landscape
While the glory days are certainly over, some games still operate successfully on Facebook today. Here is a look at what the current Facebook games ecosystem looks like:
- Zynga still maintains some of its classic games like Words with Friends, Zynga Poker, and FarmVille 2. But user bases are a small fraction of their heights.
- Slot machine games and simple card games thrive on Facebook’s Instant Games platform. Titles like Jackpot Magic Slots, Gin Rummy, and Solitaire have modest player bases.
- Hypercasual mobile games like Gardenscapes and Homescapes have found success repackaging levels for Facebook Instant Games.
- A few newer experimental games like EverWing and Jeopardy! World Tour attract some engagement through viral channels.
Overall, Facebook’s gaming platform represents less than 1% of the greater gaming market. But it still drives meaningful revenue for some developers in specific genres. While not as culturally relevant, Facebook gaming has settled into a smaller niche compared to its heyday.
Could Facebook Games Make a Comeback?
Given the history, it seems unlikely that Facebook games will return to their former popularity any time soon. Mobile and other platforms better serve today’s casual gamers. However, if Facebook made platform changes to better support games, it’s possible they could see a resurgence. For example:
- Allowing games more visibility in news feeds and profiles again
- Developer incentives to create quality original games for Facebook
- Features that tie Facebook gameplay and mechanics to real-world social connections
- Tools to help port popular mobile games over to Facebook’s Instant Games platform
Facebook is still an incredibly powerful distribution channel thanks to its user base. With the right conditions, developers could potentially reignite the social gaming craze that flourished nearly a decade ago. But significant platform changes would likely be needed to make it happen.
Conclusion
Facebook games were a cultural phenomenon at their peak, but declined due to market saturation, shifting user interests, and Facebook’s own platform decisions. Major franchises like FarmVille and Zynga Poker collapsed as casual gamers moved to mobile. Today, Facebook gaming is a shadow of its former self. While unlikely, games could potentially make a comeback on Facebook with meaningful platform changes aimed at reviving the game development ecosystem. But for now, the social gaming glory days from 2010-2012 remain a unique moment in internet history.