FarmVille Sneak Peek: Apple Bobbing feature coming soon?

With the fall season now upon us, it looks like Zynga will be releasing a new feature in FarmVille concerning a Fall staple at carnivals and parties: Apple Bobbing. Via a new Apple Bobbing Stand, seen in the banner above, along with at least five goals, we'll be able to apparently bring the chaotic fun of apple bobbing to our farms.

While the exact function of the Apple Bobbing Stand or even the accompanying goals has yet to be announced, there's always room for speculation. With the bag of Apples that we see above, it looks like the Apples themselves might be collectibles of some kind. Could this be the return of the token-collecting feature that sees us collecting dozens, if not hundreds of apples to redeem them for special fall-themed prizes?

Or, perhaps these goals will simply function as a way to reward us with this Apple Bobbing Stand, which will animate in some way (or serve some other purpose beside being purely decorative) to make it worthwhile. Whatever the case, it has this farmer incredibly interested in learning more, and if you're the same, make sure to keep checking back with us as we'll bring you all of the info about this supposed Apple Bobbing feature as soon as we know more.

Note: This is an unreleased feature, which may change before release or may never release at all (granted, that final option is incredibly unlikely).

FarmVille: Is a free Duckling a sign of things to come?

The last time we were frequently given free Ducklings in FarmVille, we had yet to see the launch of the Aviary animal habitat in the game. One could theorize that the launch of the Ducklings back then were a warning for us that Ducks and Birds in general would become pretty important in the game in the future. If we take that route of speculation, then what does today's free Duckling mean?

First things first, you'll receive this free Duckling automatically when logging in (if you don't receive it yet, it's possible that the freebie hasn't "rolled around" to your game yet). Once you click on the "Place" button, you'll see that your Duckling is a Red Duckling (by all accounts, it doesn't seem that this varies across users), which can grow into anything from a Black, Blue or Red Swans or even a Rainbow Duck (with a few options in between).

Unfortunately, this free Duckling doesn't let you escape from the work of growing it, so you'll need to ask seven friends for help in nurturing your little Duckling. The quicker you do so, the more options you'll have when it comes to growing it into an adult, or you can simply sell the Duckling for a quick 100 coins of profit, if you'd rather not deal with growing it up.

If we go back to speculating, does this mean we might see a new Duck/Bird-themed item released in FarmVille in the future? Perhaps a set of Ducks will be released in the Lighthouse Cove theme? Or, maybe this isn't as complicated as all that, and is simply a gift from Zynga to us to keep us busy this weekend. Whatever the case, we'll keep an eye on things and will let you know.