THE GAME

PlayFirst, the studio behind the massively successful Diner Dash games, has had a string of downloadable hits, most notably, their popular Chocolatier franchise. With three Chocolatier titles already under their belt, it was time to take the gameplay online, building a brand new Facebook iteration to appeal to the millions of casual gamers salivating for more online social game content.

Demographically, Chocolatier hits a broad niche, appealing to younger players, but coming in strong in the core casual gaming audience of 35-55.

CREATIVE AND EXECUTION

Chocolatier: Sweet Society takes players to a Victorian age, where chocolatiers were true artists, and the shops they were served in were the very picture of luxury. Beginning with a humble shop, players are challenged to whip up batches of chocolate to sell to customers. The funds from these sales can quickly be turned around to expand the shop, upgrade the decor, and purchase more machines for the chocolate factory, and more display tables to increase the store's capacity.

Chocolates take time to be produced - a few minutes for the most basic of chocolate bars, and hours for more complicated recipes. Have a shop full of customers but no wares available yet? Players can opt not to wait for the full production run, but instead collect all of the bars currently finished, and collect a proportionate amount of the XP.

Players can send and receive gifts, visit friends' shops and compare stats with them, as well as view an overall leaderboard of everyone who's playing the game on Facebook.

Expanding the store size is linked directly to one's friends--bigger floorspace requires a minimum number of friends to activate, allowing the game to propagate as players progress. More money and higher levels allow players to unlock ever-more sumptuous creations, which also net the store a much heftier sum of money. This, among a host of other social hooks, keep the game growing steadily in its current beta release.

Creatively, the game presents high caliber visuals and animations, with Victorian-era trimming throughout, adding an extra sheen of polish to the Facebook gaming trend.

Look for a collection of new updates and features as the beta release continues!