Scrabulous Out, Scrabble In

For those that are Facebook junkies, playing their hearts out of Scrabulous, you’re going to be hit with some reality: it’s not real scrabble. Hasbro has attempted to pull the Scrabulous game off of Facebook because they’re not licensing it from the owner, but it’s still there. Is Hasbro’s “real” Scrabble going to sway addicted Scrabulous players?

Now, Hasbro is launching the real Scrabble game on pogo.com and on Facebook for social networking purposes. Our own Casual Gamer Chick, Jennifer, will be reviewing the upcoming Facebook app later this week (once we get her to sign up for Facebook!)

This will be Hasbro’s first go at social networking, given their trying to beat out Scrabulous, it’s going to be a tough battle, let’s see how they do!

EA AND HASBRO DELIVER AUTHENTIC SCRABBLE WEB FUN TO FACEBOOK PLATFORM AND POGO.COM

Redwood City, Calif. – July 7, 2008 – Sign in and start playing the most renowned word game, as Electronic Arts (NASDAQ: ERTS) and Hasbro Inc. (NYSE:HAS)  deliver the latest in SCRABBLE games in the US and Canada on the Facebook® and online at Pogo.com™. EA’s first Hasbro-based Facebook application launches later this month and the Pogo.com SCRABBLE game is available now, extending the presence of EA SCRABBLE games across two new platforms in July.

SCRABBLE from EA on Facebook Platform will be the first EA Hasbro-licensed property to go live on a social networking site, with many more Hasbro game properties in development and slated to launch on social networking sites later this year. SCRABBLE on Pogo is the initial HASBRO title in a suite of free online games slated to go live on Pogo in 2008. EA SCRABBLE games currently are available on mobile phones and the iPod® in the US and Canada.

“SCRABBLE is one of the best social game brands in existence and we’ve worked diligently with the Hasbro team to ensure that regardless of the platform you’re playing, you’ll be able to enjoy a world class version of SCRABBLE with friends or family,” said Chip Lange, General Manager, EA Hasbro Games. “We’re delighted to be bringing communities everywhere access to one of their favorite games.”

“Hasbro, together with EA, is eager to share our expertise and technological know-how by bringing a genuine SCRABBLE experience to fans throughout the US and Canada whenever they want and wherever they go,” said Mark Blecher, General Manager, Hasbro Digital Media and Gaming.  “We understand the current popularity and potential of web-based and social network gameplay for a wide range of our toy and game brands.  EA and Hasbro are committed to providing SCRABBLE fans with a great digital game experience.”

“After playing with EA’s social networking and Pogo versions of SCRABBLE, I have no doubt that SCRABBLE players in the US and Canada will absolutely love the gameplay and overall experience,” said John D. Williams Jr., Executive Director of the National SCRABBLE Association (NSA). “We have seen the SCRABBLE brand grow in popularity in so many different ways, including this year’s School SCRABBLE Championship and the current interest in SCRABBLE for social networking.  I am particularly pleased that the Pogo and Facebook EA SCRABBLE games offer such simple and clean interfaces that allow players to jump right in and start playing.”

SCRABBLE on Facebook Platform
The SCRABBLE application built on Facebook platform provides an intuitive interface that allows head-to-head challenges with family, friends or anyone accessing Facebook from within the US or Canada. Players can choose to play a real-time turn-based game or pause and pick up to resume playing at their leisure. With easy tracking of scores and statistics, players will always know where they rank against competitors. While playing SCRABBLE on Facebook, gamers can enjoy built in chat and dynamic animations. They can also get help from extensive word lists and choose one of the several flexible speed levels to customize their level of difficulty.

SCRABBLE on Pogo.com
Play SCRABBLE for Pogo alone or with up to three friends in real time. Players can choose one of five customizable skill levels that match the dictionary and opponent accordingly. Pogo offers several “rules” including: house rules when playing with family, traditional rules to follow the style of the board game and à la carte rules for those who want to make up their own. Timed games allow for fun competition, but the integrated hints, tips and tricks allow every level of player to hone skills and become a champion in SCRABBLE on Pogo. As a bonus, Club Pogo players will be able to unlock extra SCRABBLE features including their own set of NSA tournament rules, the ability to play rated games modeled after the National Scrabble Association’s rating system, a choice of three different SCRABBLE boards and a NSA room, exclusively for NSA tournament players to compete online.