I have found that the game was stagnate. Little to do too keep a person amused. The game was more of a c**** than anything else.
Then CUBA !
Well, 2 weeks later and all done for the most part found it too be little more than eye-candy to placate bored players. It was NOT constructed in a manner that would placate anyone long term,which was what this game had needed.

The game is meant to entice players to spend money or complete offers,generating revenue. While I do not doubt the company makes a fair amount, the motto goes "Enough is never enough".

I, like so many others, again,found myself bored and logging in for 10 minutes at a time and quickly doing my deeds and dashing off to play more involved games. Games with thought and an actual incentive to spend money.

*Yawn* wait...FARMVILLE ! While too all appearances a blatant rip off of Farm TOwn, still it seems to have been done better...on the cover. Another game done poorly ? More like in a rush, the primary function of expansion, not even enabled...again another Zynga *yawn*

So,why bother ?

Not sure I can answer that anymore,after yesterday.

Like many the "Energy Pack" joke seems to be just that, a big joke. I feel that somewhere there si a small group who beta test these ideas and they are laughing at the players and at those who collect money.
Your energy pack idea clearly serves 1 purpose, to speed the game up for people who do not aggressively purse the game. While I am by no means a "big Dog",still 900 mafia and level 270 means I will never miss an energy pack. A different prize should have been initiated for a 1 number win if you were going to bother.

In Keno, the game the lotto is, not what some of you think it is, there are the same basic set ups. 5 numbers minimum and 1-50 to pick from. 2 numbers is a push in Keno, means you break even,which is how Zynga set it up, and 1 is a big fat zip...which is how it is now for established and aggressive players.

Simply showing a payout for 2-5 numbers would have solved your headaches that are being directed today.

The lack of explanation and addressing of players concerns in a direct manner shows a poor grasp of how your player base thinks,acts and reacts. This reflects on your inability to actually "listen" to your players and, like so many failed games on the web,wither and shrink.

Yes, I know your funds, across all of your game platforms,rakes in a fair amount of cash. Zynga is publicly viewable,so no big leap to see your numbers. But your potential income vs present income is marked by a substantial gap.

Lets take a look at your more recent competitors

battle Stations or Mafia Empire.

Mafia Empire has a java based applet which allows players to see combat. The game makes use of common laws of physics and common sense. 5 men can fight 5 whereas 501 cannot run up and shoot at 501. The game is esthetically pleasing and is still in beta. I know you have checked them out..God..I hope so or I would have to say your life expectancy is shorter than I would have assumed initially

Battle Stations,marketed by Tyler productions as well is a DEAD ON POINT game,constructed with similar ideas to Mafia Wars yet has a AP/Energy system as well as a terrifically dynamic combat system that I,myself,have spent just under 35.00 this month to play and have fun. Again, a game just barely out of beta and one that knows they make 40-50k a month,off of 1 obscure game, by listening to it's players.

I am unsure how long this will stay up since most sites scream,have a fit and demand a topic erased that mentions competitor's products,so I will echo this on my website,completegibberish.com, so I know at least 2 million others will view my side-long look at Mafia Wars, if none are able too here.

See, I have digressed.

Anyway, 1 mistake,2 mistakes,20 mistakes, that's just how games work. Trial and error. However most have beta functions, ope or private, to "test" these concepts out before going live,something that was done, I am sure, with Cuba and the lotto. So, how did your people not realize that the upper end players would knock Cuba out in weeks and be back to square 1 on the boredom board ?
How did you not think that with the hundreds of ADD ME threads across some 18 venues,that a large portion of your people would have aggressive and large Mafias,negating the need for the Energy Pack farce in your lotto ?

Who knows. I am not paid to state why,only a patron with the mental capacity to look,factor,think and hypothesize.

So, in a long winded post, I am simply announcing that I am done with your game and your products.
Yes, I enjoy Texas Hold'em most of the time and damned if the shoot out wasn't fun at 1st,but let's face it, half the table going all-in every single game,over and over, is hardly poker.

See, it is too easy to complain, and while some can say it is a mark of my personality, I will let you know it is a mark of frustration with several of yours. My parting remarks sum it up best

http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/8500/donewithmw.jpg

Good luck in your Endeavors
Learn from your mistakes or I am sure there will be more like myself this weekend.