"When Plan A doesn't work, go to Plan A"

Yikes:

Poker remains the steadiest Zynga game by far because it has a game dynamic that works. Almost all its other games are reliant on content, and pacing. While some social game designers continue to insist that this is a good thing, its the users who ultimately decide if it is. So without constant and heavy promotion, social games tend to fade away pretty quickly. For all of the development effort that gets put in to making new games, makers like Zynga seem to mostly just push existing users around (which leads to wondering whether they really need to make new games at all), stealing from Peter to pay Paul. And occasionally trying to buy a bulk of news users to add to the mix (which is what the Draw Something purchase was all about).

Nails it:

If Minecraft were a little more friendly, free to play, a little prettier and a little more easily hooked into social networks maybe that would be it. Or perhaps if Triple Town were a little more parallel. These are examples of games with different dynamics that are simpler than many G1 games, but experimental. One of them has been very successful while the other is more a cult hit. Both show inklings of the future.

Minecraft... Or Xbox Live...