CityVille Cheats and Tips: How to be a good Neighbor

Who knew that being someones neighbor in CityVille could mean so much? Well, according to CityVille forum user pupitza, it most definitely does. The disgruntled mayor details in a lengthy forum post the things to do and not to do as a CityVille neighbor. Pupitza mentions that most of his neighbors do nothing but send buses to his city and that this needs to stop. (Really? I thought that's what we were supposed to do.)

The other thing that seems to grate on pupitza's nerves is collecting from neighbors' houses and Community Buildings. In his opinion, this doesn't help him much at all, and he kind of has a point. But here's what pupitza thinks would help neighbors more than just sending legions of tour buses:

    - Revive/water/harvest my crops. (especially to those that takes longer to grow, like peas, wheat, pumpkins or corn)
    - Salvage/guide/empty my boats (guide especially those that last longer to arrive like Dubai and empty those that are closer like New York, for them to not vanish)
    - Build levels to unfinished buildings (it takes too long to a level to build and the bonus bar is gone until it is build)

That all sounds pretty reasonable, especially since Zynga recently changed things so that friends can help complete your Goals by harvesting crops and completing your buildings during visits. Guiding players' boats would also be more helpful than just collecting coins and goods. However, there are other ways that you can be fine and dandy neighbor than just paying your friends a helpful visit.

Pupitza points out that replying to +3 Energy batteries sent through the Zynga Message Center will send back only a +1 Energy. So, replying to these gifts manually through the Free Gifts page would result in more Energy sent than normal. (Granted, this is something Zynga should look into.) In fact, responding to most requests through the Free Gifts page seems to be more effective, according to pupitza. While a lot of what pupitza is asking for doesn't necessarily help visitors, it's something to consider next time you visit a friend in need.

[Image Credit: Fred Rogers Company]

Check out the rest of our CityVille Cheats & Tips right here.

What do you normally do when visiting a friend in CityVille? What do you think of these more helpful neighborly duties?

CityVille Police Station Upgrades: Everything you need to know

It's time to play Cops and Robbers in CityVille with a massive overhaul to the Police Station community building. Now, players have the opportunity to upgrade their Police Station, but they will have to request from their friends five different items to complete it. Once players finish these upgrades by either asking friends or sending them out through the free gifts page, the second level of the Police Station will be complete and little police officers will begin patrolling the streets. And here's the best part: They're your friends!
Items Required for Level 2
Items Required for Police Station Level 2:

    5 Sirens
    5 Balls and Chain
    5 Badges
    5 Whistles
    5 Outfits


Police Station Level 2 will unlock a whole new feature to CityVille: Cops and Bandits. Once you collect from businesses after upgrading the Police Station, Bandits will have a chance of appearing in your city. While they won't actually reduce your collection values, catching Bandits will earn you rewards. However, catching Bandits requires Police Officers, two of which you receive immediately upon upgrading.

Police Station Menu
Types of Bandits to Capture:

    Billy the Bandit
    Meowing Marauder
    Couture Criminal
    Pie-faced Pete
    Mommy and Clyde
    The Heartbreaker


While all Bandits supply rewards, some will even provide new Businesses upon capture. Police Officers can apprehend one Bandit at a time, and need to eat Donuts (how mildly offensive of you, Zynga) before catching more criminals. These can be requested from friends through the brand new Police Station menu or bought for City Cash. Also, these Police Officers have titles, though they don't seem to effect anything. As you upgrade the Police Station beyond Level 2, your squad will grow by one for each increase. And, of course, catching more Bandits leads to upgrades for your building.

Police Station Upgrades
Police Station Upgrade Requirements:

    Level 3: Capture 10 Bandits or 60 City Cash
    Level 4: Capture 30 Bandits or 120 City Cash


When you upgrade to Level 3, Police Officers will capture Bandits in a patrol car, but at Level 4 they will break onto the scene in SWAT vans. Rewards are automatically thrown into your inventory upon catching Bandits, but those Bandits can also escape your Police Station. However, if your Cops are "Sleeping," or in between Donuts, you will not be able to capture the Bandit until you wake them up again. According to these screen shots, it looks as if there is room for upgrades beyond Level 4, so there will be a lot more Bandit bustin' where this came from.

[Source and Image Credit: CityVille Goals]

Check out the rest of our CityVille Cheats & Tips right here.

Have you started the Police Station upgrades yet? What tips do you have for getting this feature going even faster?

CityVille: Casa del Sol offers fun-in-the-sun living for a huge price

If you thought the Playa del Rey Apartments in CityVille were expensive, costing 75 City Cash for a population boost of 2,350 citizens (at least), try this newest building on for size. The Casa del Sol home is priced at 90 City Cash, and is also in the Mexican item theme, making it limited edition. Specifically, the Casa del Sol home will be in the game for 10 days (note that that's also one day less than the Playa del Rey Apartments).

Once you purchase the Casa del Sol, you'll have a home that starts with a whopping population of 3,000 citizens, and can be upgraded by collecting from the building (or your friends can collect from them as well; all upgrades drop randomly) to a staggering figure of 5,500 citizens. If you're looking for a quick way (albeit expensive way) to unlock that next expansion by reaching your next population goal without adding multiple homes to your town, this would definitely be an easy way to get that done. However, at a price this high, even I'm not sure it's worth it.

Still, I suppose the building's rent potential could raise its value. You'll receive 156 coins every hour if you're prompt enough to routinely collect your earnings, which would give you upwards of 3,000 coins daily, if you were really on top of things. Still, does that justify the current cost of over $11 US for this single building? I'll leave you to be the judge of that.

What do you think of the Casa del Sol in CityVille? Will you purchase one of the expensive homes for your city, or would you rather purchase multiple, cheaper buildings instead?

Zynga partners with Pizza Hut across CityVille, FarmVille and more

Zynga isn't a stranger to charitable donations, so it comes as no surprise that the major developer has launched another charity project across four of its Facebook games this weekend. This promotion comes by way of a partnership with Pizza Hut, in an effort to "share a slice of hope" with the World Hunger Relief campaign.

Specifically, this promotion is available through the company's RewardVille rewards program, and offers a single prize in FarmVille, CityVille, Pioneer Trail and Empires & Allies. For each donation of $5 US or more, you'll receive your choice of one of the four items. Here's a rundown of what's available:

FarmVille: Food Wagon
CityVille: Nutrition Center
Empires & Allies: Farm
Pioneer Trail: Merino Sheep


To be especially clear, you must contribute at least $5 to the cause to be eligible for a prize, and you'll only receive a single prize (of your choosing) for each donation. If you play all four of these games and want all four prizes, you'll need to make five separate donations (for a minimum of $20 in total).

This promotion is set to run from September 25 (now) and October 31, giving you plenty of time to make a few donations if you choose. Here's the link to the donation site if you'd like to help out.

Will you donate to the Pizza Hut and Zynga World Hunger Relief event? Which of the four items are you going after, or will you donate enough to earn multiple items? Sound off in the comments.