Move over Slap Chop: Ninjas slice 250,000 pieces of fruit every 60 seconds

Mobclix rolled out an infographic that shows what happens on mobile devices in every minute, and - surprise, surprise - a big chunk of that time involves playing games.

According to the chart, in 60 seconds: 208,333 minutes of Angry Birds are played; 180 million coins are collected in TinyZoo friends; 80 copies of Fruit Ninja are sold, and 250K pieces of fruit are sliced in the game. Damn, that's a lot of fruit.

fruit ninja, angry birds mobile infographic

Too bad we can't say the same for Fruit Ninja Frenzy on Facebook, which seems to be steadily losing players. The Facebook version is a decent game, but there's just something awesome about using your finger to chop fruit like a highly trained ninja.

Wayne Brady is a serious gamer, but he ain't down with the FarmVille

When Let's Make a Deal host (and hilarious Chappelle Show cameo) Wayne Brady isn't, well, making deals with contestants, he's playing video games. During an interview with USA Today, Brady revealed his intense passion for the pastime, stating that his 30-minute breaks between shows consist of Halo: Reach and Mortal Kombat. But he also name-dropped another game.

"I like to be left alone when I'm not working," Brady told USA Today. "So the last thing I want to do is go to a (game like Zynga's) Farmville and have a community. I want the single player experience. I play a storyline all the way through. The more cinematic the game is, the more can replay it."

Well, Facebook games haven't come terribly far since FarmVille when it comes to cinematic experiences. So, we'll avoid trying to sway Brady just yet. Instead, we'll just remind him of two particularly lovely ladies that he might like to hear are down with digital farming. Both Superbad's Emma Stone and Mila Kunis of That '70s Show fame have admitted to being hooked on FarmVille.

So, you might want to at least give it a shot to up your game. Nah--even we won't recommend Facebook games to boost your appeal with the ladies. Hey, you may as well just wait until those nifty Unreal Engine-powered games hit Facebook.

What do you think of Brady's opinions on Facebook games? Are you looking for more cinematic experiences in your social games? Any luck yet?

Asteroids: Gunner to crash-land onto your earthly iPhone, iPad shortly

How do you revive one of most recognizable classic games of all time? Turn it into a mobile social game, duh. Atari will soon release Asteroids: Gunner, the next take on its hit franchise, to iOS devices everywhere. The game, which is said to hit Nov. 10, turns the retro staple into a freemium dual-stick shooter, meaning power-ups and upgrades are available for both in-game currency and real cash.

And by "dual stick" we mean that players will push their thumbs frantically in opposite circles to both avoid running into asteroids and blow them to smithereens. The social comes in with both Game Center and OpenFeint support with a myriad of achievements to brag about with friends. We'd say that Asteroids: Gunner marks a shift in Atari's direction, but we'd be lying.

Atari has been keen on social on mobile gaming for some time now, having launched a Facebook version of Asteroids and two original games: puzzler Faeries vs Darklings and Dungeons & Dragons-themed role-playing game Heroes of Neverwinter. While the three games have enjoyed tepid results, Atari is far from finished.

In addition to Asteroids: Gunner, the company has a mobile version of iconic brick-breaker Breakout in the works for iOS, too. Stay tuned for an in-depth look at the next Asteroids later this week. (Spoiler: You're going to blow things up--including yourself--a lot.)

EA Partners exec leaves to make a killing with Crime City maker Funzio

All aboard the gravy train. Yet another EA executive has left the company to join a competing social game maker, IndustryGamers reports. This time, it's former EA Partners Director of Business Developement Jamil Moledina (pictured), who just revealed that he had joined Crime City creator Funzio as its VP of Business Development.

Moledina will pretty much be doing the same thing, it seems: making sure Funzio stays in the black by working with partners new and old across platforms. The business development veteran has been with the games industry for some time, working as the executive director of the Game Developers Conference before his stint with EA. As for Funzio, Moledina appears psyched.

"From what I've seen, the future of games is about creating fun social action games for play on any device, any platform, anywhere," Moledina said to IndustryGamers. "Funzio is one of very few companies whose vision and execution are delivering on that goal, and I'm excited to join a team inventing that future."

Moledina follows a number of EA execs who jumped ship into more social waters, despite even the company's headway into social gaming with The Sims Social. Over just this summer, GM of EA-owned Easy Studios Ben Cousins left for ngmoco, NBA Jam creator Mark Turmell joined Zynga (since confirmed) and former executive VP of EA Play Jeff Karp ditched for Zynga, too. While these could all just be coincidental, EA could have a bigger problem on its hands than just Big Trouble in Little Haven.

Frogger is 30 years old, still bouncin' in Frogger Pinball on Facebook

Alright, so 30 is far from old, but that's ancient in frog years. Konami celebrates the 30th anniversary of gaming's favorite jaywalker with Frogger Pinball on Facebook. The game, created by Silverball Studios, is definitely a departure for Frogger, having the little green guy save his Lily from the clutches of the evil RoboCroc ... as a pinball. We at least hope the villain drives a red sedan.

Frogger Pinball takes cues from games like Bejeweled Blitz with its weekly leaderboards and tournaments, but attempts to add a light storyline to its naturally twitch-reflex play style. Come on, did you expect anything less from a Frogger game, and a pinball-themed one at that? The game's story mode spans three different tables: the Swamp, City and Space Station.

Players can unlock special characters from there to compete with their friends for the high score in Challenge Mode. Of course, unique power-ups and bonuses are rewarded throughout for leveling up, hitting targets and completing loops. We're sure each pinball table features unique obstacles, and you'll have to complete them with both Frogger and Lily to play Challenge Mode with all three characters.
Frogger Pinball in action
Konami has been no slouch when it comes to social gaming, either. The company has already released a few Facebook games, including an original in Viva! Mall. While that game has since shut down, the company has reported that social games helped the company double its profits year-over-year, according to Joystiq. That said, expect way--and we mean way--more where Frogger came from.

CityVille: Zynga announces upcoming changes - more expansions, business renaming and more

Over on the official CityVille forums, Zynga has announced a series of new features and items that will be coming to the massive city-building game in the future. These additions or changes are those that users have been calling for once, and I have a feeling you'll like what they have to say.

So far, a list of confirmed "features in the works" include:

A bridge over the river to expand your city even further
Ability to change your city's name
Ability to change your business names
Franchise improvements

We're not quite sure what "franchise improvements" Zynga actually has in mind, but we'll let you know when we learn more. Meet us behind the break for a look at the other items Zynga has promised.
In addition to new features or gameplay changes, four new item themes are being created for additional decorations or even buildings that may be released in the future. These themes are:

Little Italy
AsiaTown
Nightlife District
Beach Boardwalk

Again, there's no telling when these features and new item themes will officially be released in the game. They very well may be full of businesses, homes, and decorations, or they could just be a series of decorative items - only time will tell at this point.

Remember to keep checking back with us in the future, as you'll be the first to know when Zynga starts launching these many additions in the futur

CityVille: Observatory, Music Store, & Furniture Store now available

If you're one that likes having at least one of each kind of business and community building in your town in CityVille, get ready to bust out your virtual pocketbook, as Zynga has released two entirely new businesses and one community building (which are all incredibly pricey) to the game's store.

The two businesses are the Music Store and the Furniture Store. Both cost 200,000 coins each, and both come with a population requirement that must be met before even having access to purchase them in the first place. You must have at least 7500 citizens in your town to unlock the Music Store, while you must have 6500 for the Furniture Store. The Music Store produces 910 coins for every 170 Goods you supply it, while the Furniture Store produces 864 coins for every 160 Goods supplied.

As for the Observatory, it too costs 200,000 coins to build, and as a community building grants you access to having 1900 more citizens in your city. However, to build the Observatory, you must first have 6500 citizens in your town to unlock it in the store.

Luckily, none of these items have level requirements, so if you've been saving up the coins (and have enough people living in your town) feel free to purchase them right now and adding a bit of culture to your town.