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The farmer in the net

If you own a Facebook account, which I’m sure you do, you might have come across several applications that may have either intrigued or annoyed you. Among the many interactive games available on Facebook, Farmville deserves a place of honor because of its fun graphics and originality, something that’s definitely more amusing that irritating like Pet Society.

Farmville has nearly 35 million monthly users, and pretty soon, it’ll surpass the 35,554,755 record achieved by the ‘How Well Do You Know Me?’ application on Facebook. Farmville’s San Francisco-based developer, Zynga, says that the game provided a simple, fun way for people to unwind at the end of the day, with players spending an average of 20 minutes a day. The game’s popularity has been boosted by a growing trend among urbanites to try to their hand at being a leisure farmer without getting their hands dirty, literally.

Urban Planning

The objective of the game is to make your farm bigger, profitable, level up faster, avoid crops being destroyed, and to socialize with friends. You can plant and harvest fruit seeds, crops, trees, purchase different farm animals, decorate how you want your farm to look.

“What I like most about the game is the fact that young people can play it too,” says Yciar Castillo who plays it with her son. “We send each other gifts and we tell each other when it’s time to harvest. It also teaches kids patience & the value of money in the sense that you have to make money by planting seeds (which you have to pay for) and harvesting and selling your crops.”

It is important to note first of all, that the farming profession requires lots of patience and tender loving care. Neglect your crops for a couple of days and you may come back to a dry miserable field. Of course, this will affect your earnings as well.

In order to be a rich farmer on Farmville, you will need to be a bit savvy about your crops and think well before deciding what to plant.

Go home and plant Camote!

If someone tells you that, go ahead and do it – but do it with class. In Farmville, you get to plant all sorts of things, which help you earn points from berries, veggies, coffee, peppers, pineapples, wheat, cotton, and trees. While in nature, it may take months or years to harvest, in the virtual world of Farmville you can see your crops grow within a few hours. If you wont have time to toil your cyberland, plant things that take longer to grow, like trees. You can also put animals that aren’t high maintenance.

Place everything you own as close together as possible; leave no empty space on your lot. Fill it with trees and animals, this way every inch of your land is making you money.

It’s Berry Good

If you’re bored and have tons of time on your hands, invest in a lot of strawberries. “Planting the berries are the fastest way to earn money, since they have a really short harvest time,” shares Farmville fanatic Kristine Icasas.

Written By ALEXEI F. VILLARAZA

Source: Manila Bulletin