Cow Clicker
Encyclopedia
Cow Clicker is a social network game
on Facebook
developed by game theorist
Ian Bogost
. The game is designed to be a satire
of social games on the popular social networking web sites, particularly those developed by Zynga
(such as FarmVille
). The goal of the game is to collect "clicks" by clicking on a cow
received by the player, but a cow can be clicked only once every six hourshowever players can earn additional clicks and other items by spending "Mooney" on them. Players can collect more clicks by inviting friends to their pasture.
The game became quite popular; Bogost has earned an undisclosed but probably quite significant sum of money by selling mirrored cows and extra clicks, and he has also spent quite some time and effort improving the game - but without adding any actual gameplay. It is suggested that the success made him unhappy.
In late 2011 Bogost decided to create a 'Cowpocalypse' and then removed all the cows in a rapture. The game can still be played by clicking on the empty fields where there once were cows. Responding to a fan's complaint that the game was "not a fun game" after the cow rapture, Bogost responded: "It wasn't very fun before."
Social network game
A social network game is a type of online game that is played through social networks, and typically features multiplayer and asynchronous gameplay mechanics. Social network games are most often implemented as browser games, but can also be implemented on other platforms such as mobile devices...
on Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
developed by game theorist
Game theory
Game theory is a mathematical method for analyzing calculated circumstances, such as in games, where a person’s success is based upon the choices of others...
Ian Bogost
Ian Bogost
Ian Bogost is a video game designer, critic and researcher. He is a professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology and a founding partner at Persuasive Games...
. The game is designed to be a satire
Satire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
of social games on the popular social networking web sites, particularly those developed by Zynga
Zynga
Zynga is a social network game developer located in San Francisco, United States. The company develops browser-based games that work both stand-alone and as application widgets on social networking websites such as Facebook and MySpace....
(such as FarmVille
FarmVille
FarmVille is a farming simulation social network game developed by Zynga in 2009. It is similar to Happy Farm, Farm Town,, and older games such as the Harvest Moon series...
). The goal of the game is to collect "clicks" by clicking on a cow
Cattle
Cattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
received by the player, but a cow can be clicked only once every six hourshowever players can earn additional clicks and other items by spending "Mooney" on them. Players can collect more clicks by inviting friends to their pasture.
History
Bogost is a critic of social network games that are free of challenges and demand little more than clicking on things at regular intervals. At the 2010 Game Developers Conference, he coined the term "cow clickers" for these kinds of games. Playing a bit with this, he decided to distill the social game genre down to its essence and actually made the Cow Clicker game.The game became quite popular; Bogost has earned an undisclosed but probably quite significant sum of money by selling mirrored cows and extra clicks, and he has also spent quite some time and effort improving the game - but without adding any actual gameplay. It is suggested that the success made him unhappy.
In late 2011 Bogost decided to create a 'Cowpocalypse' and then removed all the cows in a rapture. The game can still be played by clicking on the empty fields where there once were cows. Responding to a fan's complaint that the game was "not a fun game" after the cow rapture, Bogost responded: "It wasn't very fun before."