Reef Life - Raising the Bar for Social Games
The Launch.
On September 8, 2009, Storybook Anytime, officially announced the beta release of “Reef Life“. A family friendly social game on the Facebook platform. This marks the long anticipated follow up to the “original” Facebook aquarium game, Sam’s Fish Bowl. Over six months of around the clock work by the Storybook Anytime team has produced an immersive underwater world that has combined elements of virtual world exploration and social gaming to truly raise the bar for social games today.
What is really special is the uniqueness of the game. Coming from the origins of Sam’s Fish Bowl, we could have easily taken the approach of creating a game of “fish management” in an aquarium like setting. Sam’s Fish Bowl was very much a simplified version of that concept. We wanted to create an original, immersive and deep game that allow users to invest their personalities into game play in a very real way. In “Reef Life” you and your friends are the fish.
The Story.
You were once a small fish living the good life inside a fish bowl. While on a Caribbean cruise with your human family, your bowl accidentally fell overboard. As you drifted through the vast depths of the ocean, you came to rest on a large coral reef. You soon discover that this reef is actually an amazing underwater world filled with all kinds of interesting characters and unique marine life. You are immediately taken under the fin by “Reef Whale”, Ronald Trout. Mr. Trout is going to teach you how to start living the “Reef Life” and in the process, how to become a whale yourself.
Life on the reef is a fragile balancing act, but there is plenty of opportunity for you and your friends. You can find starfish and recycle bottles to earn coins- the main currency of the reef. If you are really entrepreneurial, you can rent neighborhoods with businesses to give yourself even more earning potential.
The Results… So Far.
As a social game, “Reef Life” is not meant to have a traditional beginning, middle or end. It is in a constant state of improvement and development. Major feature builds are being launched weekly and will likely slow to bi-weekly after the first of the year. It is expected to remain in beta until at least that time as only a fraction of the game play and features have been revealed. Already, the game is experiencing stellar viral growth and receiving a few positive kudos from industry insiders in early reviews. It is a project that myself and the entire Storybook Anytime team could not be more excited about. We look forward to growing the game for the users.
Find out more about “Reef Life” at http://www.becomeawhale.com.