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Hasbro's Zynga board games now available, paradoxical

Hasbro's Zynga board games now available, paradoxical

Lest you hadn't heard, Hasbro and Zynga recently teamed up to create board game versions of its popular video games. That includes a CityVille-themed version of Monopoly, a weird mash-up of FarmVille and Hungry Hungry Hippos, and Draw Something (the board game mechanics of which should be self-explanatory).

Bizarrely, the collection also includes a board game version of Words with Friends. Words with Friends is often cited as being very similar – practically to the point of infringement – to Scrabble, the classic word game published by ... Hasbro. Just to reiterate: this is the board game version of a video game version of a different board game published by a company that should be, in theory, a competitor.

Try not to let your head explode.



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Hasbro Brings Popular Zynga® Brands to Life with New Line of Games

Words With Friends®, FarmVille®, CityVille® and Draw Something™ Jump Off Screen and Onto Store Shelves

PAWTUCKET, R.I.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ: HAS), in collaboration with Zynga® (NASDAQ: ZNGA), will bring some of the world's most popular digital game brands to life with a new line of games based on Zynga's Words With Friends®, FarmVille®, CityVille® and Draw Something™ brands. The line will hit store shelves this month at most major U.S. retailers and will also be available globally this fall in the U.K., Australia and Canada.

"We are thrilled to be working with Zynga to give their millions of fans an exciting experience with the Zynga games they love"
With the new games, fans can choose from FARMVILLE inspired characters in the HUNGRY HUNGRY HERD game to see who can gobble up the most apples, race to build their dream cities in the CITYVILLE MONOPOLY game, play their best word combinations in the WORDS WITH FRIENDS game, and showcase their artistic abilities in the DRAW SOMETHING game.

Each of Hasbro's Zynga games takes features and game play from Zynga's digital games and transforms them into an engaging experience for family and friends to share in person. Many of Hasbro's Zynga FARMVILLE, CITYVILLE, and WORDS WITH FRIENDS games also include digital values to help enhance players' online or mobile game play. With purchase of Hasbro's Zynga WORD WITH FRIENDS or WORD WITH FRIENDS LUXE games, players get access to a bundle of digital features, including Word-O-Meter, The Count and Tile Pile to boost their online or mobile Words With Friends experience. With purchase of Hasbro's FARMVILLE or CITYVILLE games, parents can redeem FARM CASH to keep their digital farms growing strong in Zynga's FarmVille game or CITY CASH to continue their building adventures in Zynga's CityVille game.

"We are thrilled to be working with Zynga to give their millions of fans an exciting experience with the Zynga games they love," said Eric Nyman, Senior Vice President, Global Brand Leader, Hasbro Gaming. "Gaming brings people together, especially during the holidays, and we can't wait to offer friends and families even more great options to play."

"We are proud to team up with Hasbro and excited for our players to experience their favorite Zynga games in a new way," said Barry Cottle, Executive Vice President, Corporate and Business Development, Zynga. "Our hope is to enhance relationships through play through our web and mobile social games and now with the new games from Hasbro, we can make those connections even stronger for our players."

"Hasbro's new games bring popular Zynga brands to life, offering fans a unique new gaming experience," said Laurie Schacht, Toy Insider Mom and contributing toy editor at Woman's Day. "The fun face to face game play and the digital features included with most of Hasbro's Zynga games will surely be a huge hit this holiday season!"

For more information, visit: www.hasbro.com/zynga. Hasbro will launch eight new Zynga games in 2012 in the U.S., including:

WORDS WITH FRIENDS Game

Choose tiles, arrange them in your tile rack and see your words come to life in real time as you place them on the WORDS WITH FRIENDS game board.
Similar to ZYNGA's WORDS WITH FRIENDS mobile game, Hasbro's game enables players to take turns placing tiles onto the game board, building upon opponent's word creations with their own. Bonus spaces such as Double Word or Triple Letter let you rack up even more points and the player with the highest word score at the end of the game wins!
Game includes full-size board, four curved tile racks, tile bag and 104 tiles.
Purchase of the WORDS WITH FRIENDS game also includes a bundle of digital features to enhance your WORDS WITH FRIENDS online or mobile game experience, including Word-O-Meter, The Count and Tile Pile.
Available October 2012 at most major toy retailers nationwide and HasbroToyShop.com for the approximate retail price of $19.99. 2-4 players. Ages 13 years & up. Mobile device not included. To access the digital features, you must be 13 years or older and have a valid WORDS WITH FRIENDS account on Zynga.com or Facebook. Additional terms and conditions apply to digital features offer.
Named as a "contender" for the 2012 Toys"R"Us® Holiday Hot Toy List
CITYVILLE MONOPOLY Game

Zynga's CITYVILLE and Hasbro's classic MONOPOLY game join forces to become the fast-play way to build your dream city!
Grow your city to keep your citizens happy and compete to become the first mayor to build four skyscrapers to win.
Combines classic MONOPOLY gameplay with new, creative ways to build - any way you want!
Buy and build a variety of great locations that are from the ZYNGA CITYVILLE game like train stations, the toy shop and the bakery.
Use stackable buildings to build houses, community buildings and businesses in the center of the board!
Give and receive Mystery Gifts to decorate your neighborhoods and increase your rent value.
Each CITYVILLE MONOPOLY game includes a unique code for parents to redeem 85 CITY CASH of in-game currency for use in ZYNGA's CITYVILLE online game so the building adventures can continue online.
Available October 2012 at most major toy retailers nationwide and HasbroToyShop.com for the approximate retail price of $24.99. 2-4 players. Ages 8 years & up. To redeem the unique code, you must be 13 years or older and have a valid Facebook account. Additional terms and conditions apply to CITYVILLE CITY CASH offer.
DRAW SOMETHING Game

Choose a card, pick one of three items to draw ranging in difficulty from easy to hard, and challenge friends to guess. The more difficult the item you've chosen to draw, the more coins received if another player guesses correctly.
Similar to ZYNGA's DRAW SOMETHING mobile game, Hasbro's game enables players to take turns drawing items. Artists score coins if another player correctly shouts out what they have drawn; the first player to collect 15 coins wins!
Game includes four Draw Stations, 180 cards, four crayons (red, green, blue and purple), four pads of paper, four Coin Tracker Clips and a Game Guide.
Available October 2012 at most major toy retailers nationwide and HasbroToyShop.com for the approximate retail price of $19.99. 3-4 players. Ages 8 years & up.
FARMVILLE HUNGRY HUNGRY HERD Game

Based on the popular social game FARMVILLE, kids can now experience all the fun from the farm with this marble-chomping frenzy!
Choose Gobbling Horse, Munching Pig, Snacking Sheep, or Chomping Cow, load its favorite food into the troughs, and get snacking.
Includes a unique code for parents to redeem 50 FARM CASH of in-game currency for use in ZYNGA's FARMVILLE online game to help keep digital farms 'growing' strong.
Available October 2012 at most major toy retailers nationwide and HasbroToyShop.com for the approximate retail price of $22.99. Ages 4 years & up. Adult Assembly Required. To access FARM CASH, you must be 13 years or older and have a valid Facebook account. Additional terms and conditions apply.
About Hasbro

Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ: HAS) is a branded play company providing children and families around the world with a wide-range of immersive entertainment offerings based on the Company's world class brand portfolio. From toys and games, to television programming, motion pictures, digital gaming and a comprehensive licensing program, Hasbro strives to delight its global customers with innovative, well-known and beloved brands such as TRANSFORMERS, LITTLEST PET SHOP, NERF, PLAYSKOOL, MY LITTLE PONY, G.I. JOE, MAGIC: THE GATHERING and MONOPOLY. The Company's Hasbro Studios develops and produces television programming for markets around the world. The Hub TV Network is part of a multi-platform joint venture between Hasbro and Discovery Communications (NASDAQ: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK), in the U.S. Through the company's deep commitment to corporate social responsibility, including philanthropy, Hasbro is helping to build a safe and sustainable world for future generations and to positively impact the lives of millions of children and families every year. It has been recognized for its efforts by being named one of the "World's Most Ethical Companies" and is ranked as one of Corporate Responsibility Magazine's "100 Best Corporate Citizens."Learn more at www.hasbro.com © 2012 Hasbro, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

HAS-GP

About Zynga Inc.

Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA) is the world's leading provider of social game services with 306 million monthly active users playing its games, which include FarmVille, Words With Friends, Matching With Friends, Scramble With Friends, The Ville, Bubble Safari, Ruby Blast, Draw Something, Zynga Slingo, CastleVille, CityVille, Hidden Chronicles, Zynga Poker, Zynga Bingo, Zynga Slots, Empires & Allies, The Pioneer Trail, and Mafia Wars. Zynga's games are available on a number of global platforms, including Facebook, Zynga.com, Google+, Tencent, Apple iOS and Google Android. Through Zynga.org, Zynga players have raised more than $12 million for world social causes. Zynga is headquartered in San Francisco, Calif.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains forward-looking statements relating to, among other things, Zynga's partnership with Hasbro. The success of the matters covered by such forward-looking statements involves risks. Actual results could differ materially from those predicted or implied. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, among other things, changes in player interests or the Facebook platform. More information about risks Zynga faces is included in its quarterly and annual reports filed with the SEC, copies of which may be obtained at http://investor.zynga.com or the SEC's web site at www.sec.gov. Undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking statements in this release. Zynga assumes no obligation to update such statements.

About the Toy Insider

The Toy Insider (www.thetoyinsider.com )is the source for the hottest toys and gift for the holidays. Now in its seventh year, the Toy Insider is an annual guide featuring toy and gift recommendations broken down by age categories. The 2012 guide is jam-packed with 116 toy recommendations from more than 80 different manufacturers, each of which were carefully selected by a team of experts with years of experience in the toy industry. The Toy Insider is published by Adventure Publishing, publisher of leading industry trades The Toy Book and The Licensing Book.