Mafia Farkle – themed version of the popular dice game
by Paul Wilks
Apr 12, 2012 1:42 PM –
Install
Mafia Farkle is a themed version of the popular dice game. The game is slickly animated and, if you enjoy the game of Farkle anyway, lots of fun. While you can play alone to better your own personal score over 10 rounds, the game relies heavily on signing in via your Facebook account and playing against friends who do the same.
Price: Free
Tested on: HTC One X
Content Rating: Medium Maturity
Pros & Cons:
Pros
- Nice graphics!
- Cool music!
- Multiplayer opportunities!
- Slick presentation and responsive!
Cons
- Compulsory Facebook signup to either earn chips or engage in multiplayer.
- No option to play against computer.
Features:
Mafia Farkle is a cutely themed edition of the hugely popular Farkle game. If you don’t know what Farkle is, here’s a very brief overview: Farkle is a dice game featuring 6 dice. You roll the dice looking for 5′s and 1′s, or combinations of three or more of the other numbers. These will each earn you points- 1= 100 points, 5= 50 points and combinations are generally the number you roll x 100 (eg. 3 x 4′s = 400 points). When dice are selected you continue without them for that round. If you fail to score any points in a roll, it’s ‘FARKLE’ and the round is void. You can either play to 10000 points or aim to score as many points in 10 rounds.
In Mafia Farkle the game is essentially split in two. You can either play solo or multiplayer against friends or other online players. In solo mode you can bet to earn chips. If you bet that you will achieve 5000 points over 10 rounds you can earn so many chips and so forth. You then play the ten rounds and collect the chips if you win. In multiplayer mode you can bet chips against other online players or Facebook friends who also use the game.
I was disappointed to see that Facebook login is pretty much compulsory if you want to earn chips and play against other players. There is currently no support to play anonymously, via email log in, via a social gaming network or via any less intrusive social networks such as Twitter… it has to be Facebook. Now, if you either do not have Facebook or are trying to cut down on the volume of personal information you make available to third parties, Mafia Farkle is not going to be much of a party. Integration with Game Centre is a feature on its way but until then you will have to allow Mafia farkle access to your Facebook account, giving it permission to invite your friends, post to your wall and access your basic information. For a simple dice game, I felt this was incredibly intrusive.
I really enjoy Farkle generally and thought Mafia Farkle was a nice twist that permitted multiplayer engagement. While only allowing this to occur through Facebook is rather jarring, but if you’re really into that social network this probably isn’t an issue. The game environment is bright and cheerful with cool little animations and graphics.
Watch on Mobile
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Mafia Farkle – Typical solo gameplay view
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Mafia Farkle – Typical solo gameplay view 2
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Mafia Farkle – Typical solo gameplay view 3
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Mafia Farkle – Scoring
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Mafia Farkle – Score and win
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Mafia Farkle – Game over
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Mafia Farkle – Play with friends and invite others
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Mafia Farkle – Not logging in prevents you from using some parts of the game
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Mafia Farkle – Tutorial
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Mafia Farkle – Bonus round
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Mafia Farkle – Challenge your friends
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Mafia Farkle – Multiplayer options
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Mafia Farkle – Multiplayer mode result
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Mafia Farkle – Splash page
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Mafia Farkle – Facebook sign-up
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Mafia Farkle – Facebook permissions
Fun Factor:
Playing Mafia Farkle without Facebook involvement is quite a bland affair aside from rolling dice and bettering your score. There is no computer AI to play against, which is also a shame. While Farkle is quite good fun on it’s own, if you don’t plan to sign into Facebook within the game, there are better Farkle apps available. However, if you do get stuck in and use your Facebook login, it becomes a open platform to take on players from all over the world. The fun here wholly lies in the multiplayer mode.
Addictive:
I think the thing about Farkle in general is that it’s very addictive. If you get good circle of players to take on, whether they be friends or strangers, it’s lots of fun and great way to kill time.
Graphics:
Like all gambling, card and casino games the graphics are relatively restricted and Mafia Farkle is no different. The visuals are certainly better than quite a few similar games I’ve played and the environment is at least rich with small animations, such as the Mafia don that shows up here and there, and the rolling dice. It’s not in anyway revolutionary, but it suits the game really well.
Accelerometer, Vibration & Sound:
The game features some pretty cool background music. Chilled out beats with more than a hint of casino-drenched Cosa Nostra menace 