Frisky Mongoose

While Facebook isn’t without its fair share of “customize your avatar and home” virtual worlds, Japanese company CyberAgent is hoping that its international take on the genre (offering conversations with people all around the world), Ameba Pico, will be enough to draw players away from more established games like YoVille.

Inside Social Games recently took a look at Ameba Pico, and found the what the game may be lacking in aesthetics, it makes up for in content.

There are the traditional elements of decorating a home and avatar, but both are tweaked in such a way as to make them original. Outfitting your avatar, for instance, gives you almost limitless item combinations, as you aren’t restricted to a single item for your shirt, or a single item for your pants. That is, you could wear a t-shirt under a jacket, and place a scarf on over that, instead of having to choose between the three.

The game itself is broken up into different chat rooms; with the game being set in New York City, these chat rooms come in the form of areas like Central Park, the Statue of Liberty and so on. Stores are contained therein that allow you to purchase new furniture and clothing items mostly using the game’s premium currency, Ameba Coins.

The game does contain a free currency though, in the form of Gummies, but these seem to be used primarily in a game called Gacha, which will allow you to press a button and receive a random prize – it could be Tokens (a third type of currency that is rare, but can be used to purchase anything within the game, at a cost of a single Token), furniture or clothing items.

Like games like FarmVille or YoVille, users can access the game both at a stand-alone site, with Facebook Connect, or through the Facebook app proper. To give Ameba Pico a shot, head over to the game’s Facebook page.

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4. YoVille’s Clothing Store Offers Finishing Touches for a Valentine’s Day Ensemble
5. Big City Life’s Style Section Offers Complete Avatar Customization