What is Social Gaming?
Although there is no official definition of what Social gaming is, Social gaming, as the name implies, is gaming among friends trough an online community or social network (Facebook, Twitter, etc) for a virtual currency instead of for real-money, with the aim to either advancing within the social game or unlock other social games. Most Social Gaming brands offer a so called Freemium version of the game, which means that the player will get the basic features of the game for free, but needs to pay for additional features.
For instance, if players decide playing a social slots game, they will get a certain amount of spins for free. Once this amount of free spins has been used, the player has two options. First option is to wait a certain amount of time, in order to another set of free spins. However, for those of you who do not want to wait there is the second option: purchase a virtual currency! With this currency, the player has the option to e.g. unlock other casino games.
Social games can be downloaded as applications to mobile or other portable devices or be played as web-based games that facilitate the integration of a social network. Different to the console games, where players play anonymously or against machines, in social games players interact with peers online.
The social aspect combined with multiple incentives not only ensures the sharing with friends but also ensures players will continue playing. What makes social gaming unique is that players can interact and track each other in a similar way they will do it in a social network.
Some of the top performers in the industry are:
PurePlay is the largest U.S. based online poker site, with millions of users and a strong online community they offer risk-free online poker, slots, video poker, bingo, roulette and over 100 casino games. Players can play through over 50 levels of free casino games or play free poker and win real cash.
Win develop cross platform social games, From Sports Betting and Poker to Casino, Slots and Bingo games.
Double down Interactive with millions of players online in their free casino, players can enjoy a variety of games including over 30+ free slots, Poker, Bingo, video poker and slot tournaments and much more, they operate a Facebook app called DoubleDown Casino.
Big Fish Casino have a wide array of Slots, poker and blackjack. Players will join millions of other players at public and private tables, they will be able to Buy gifts, chat with other players, and earn prestigious titles.
Zynga is the world’s leading provider of social game services with more than 240 million monthly active users playing its games, which include CityVille, Zynga Poker, Draw Something, etc. Zynga’s games are available on a number of global platforms, including Facebook, Zynga.com, Google+, Tencent, Apple iOS and Google Android.
 for a virtual currency instead of for real-money, with the aim to either advancing within the social game or unlock other social games.){kind=link}