RISK: Factions Is Uniquely Suited to Facebook Sensibilities

RISK: Factions managed to become a surprise hit in 2010, when it launched on the Xbox Live Arcade service from Microsoft, and now publisher Electronic Arts is bringing the game to the Facebook social service, seeking to expand the audience for the Hasbro property.

Speaking to Gamasutra Spencer Brooks, who is the producer and designer working on RISK: Factions, said, “At the same time, I didn't think the space needed something ultra-realistic, like a Medal of Honor or a Halo. I tend to like quirky, funny little things, so I went in that direction.”

The version of RISK that is offered on XBLA and now on Facebook is a little different from the board game that players know, with zombies, cats and even yetis making appearances.

Brooks says that these changes and the modifications made by Hasbro to the core mechanics of the game also serve to open it up to a bigger potential audience.

He added, “They made it objectives-based, rather than world conquest... you can still play world conquest, but objective-based gameplay sped up the game a lot. It's great; at the beginning of the game there are eight objectives and the first person to get three of them wins.”

The virtual version of RISK also plays faster and allows for a little more freedom for the player, something that Electronic Arts believes is needed in a fast paced virtual medium.

The Facebook version of the game also has special weapons for all the factions and more visual differences in order to determine each player to commit to one side and develop a strategy that uses it’s unique advantages.

Electronic Arts has made a big push for the Facebook medium and has managed to make The Sims Online a big success, with the game challenging the Zynga made titles in both number of overall players and when it comes to overall time spent playing it.

The company also maintains a spin-off from the popular Dragon Age series, called Legends, which continues to get regular updates and new content.