Bin Weevils

Bin Weevils
Developer(s) 55Pixels Ltd
Publisher(s) 55Pixels Ltd
Platform(s) Online
Release date(s) Online Website: 2007 (Advertisement released in 2003 on Nickelodeon Inc.)

Bin Weevils is a British children's online game, owned by gaming studio 55Pixels. The website has been independent from Nickelodeon since 2010, after getting their own site in 2007. Bin Weevils have won the BAFTA Kids Vote.They won 4 times in a row 2011 2012 2013 and 2014.

History

Bin Weevils first appeared as a cartoon series on Nickelodeon in 2003. Following the success of the cartoons, an online virtual world was made on the Nickelodeon site called 'Bin Weevils'. This online game was very successful, so in 2007, Bin Weevils launched their own separate site from Nickelodeon. Although still owned by Nick, the new website featured separate pages for parents, blogs, etc. In April 2010, it was announced that Bin Weevils would be going through a massive re-vamp. This occurred a few weeks later, and Bin Weevils re-did their whole site, the whole game, and was no longer owned by Nickelodeon, but became owned by its own company, Bin Weevils, Ltd. In Autumn 2014, following the upcoming release of their new game Crater Craft, they created a new company called 55Pixels.

Features

Bin Weevils is based around the theme of the real animals, Weevils. The game is set in a "Bin", with numerous places being designed specifically for this theme (e.g. Flum's Fountain, Dirt Valley, and Gong's Pipenest), designed using items you would usually find in a bin, such as cardboard. Users have their own "nest" (house), which they can customize by buying items from the 'Shopping Mall' and placing them in their nest accordingly. The user's nest can have up to 8 rooms, a private cinema, a garden, and a plaza. Most of these features can only be obtained by paying for a membership (referred to as a 'Bin Tycoon' membership) which offers other features for members, including the ability to purchase hats, exclusive items and other things like getting more rooms and a plaza.

All users have a garden in their nest, in which they can plant and harvest plants from the 'Garden Shop'. Harvesting a plant earns the user in-game money ("Mulch") and experience points ("XP") which they can use to buy more items or contribute the points towards leveling up towards the next level. There are 80 levels in total, but more are often added. Moreover, players can buy a virtual pet, known as a "Bin Pet", bed, clothes, and many other items by completing the in-game missions or you can buy that by spending real money.

Another currency, Dosh, was added, and it replaced Bin Tycoon limits and high Mulch prices in many places, although it also requires payment. Users with a premium (Bin Tycoon) membership earn a monthly Dosh salary from an in-game ATM. With this Dosh they can purchase exclusive hats and nest items.

Merchandise

Bin Weevils entered into a license agreement with the toy company Character Options to create a line merchandise based off the game.[1] In February 2012, Bin Weevils launched a magazine to celebrate their 2011 BAFTA Award.[2] In June 2012, Bin Weevils launched a trading card game.[3] In some month in 2012, Bin Weevils started Dosh coins for Bin Tycoons to trade. In October 2012, Bin Weevils launched new toys including figurines and a Nest playset. They also launched plushes and backpack clips.[4] They also released clothes.[5] Bin Weevils also has a range of books. They announced in December 2012 that they teamed up with music label Sony to create a music album called Bin Tunes. In December 2012 until January 2013, a competition was held for four children to write song for the album. In February 2013, the winners came to London at the studios to hear and perform their song. The album was released on 29 July 2013 with 12 children songs included onto the album. It was considered one of the most popular merchandises.[6] A new series of the trading card series, Good vs WeEVIL, was released in late June 2013.[7] A new software for Bin Weevils called Arty Arcade released in early 2015 and is available for PC and Mac. Bin Weevils started a new era and a rebrand with the new Bin Weevils logo released. A brand new game called Crater Craft was released in 2016. [8] The game has also won the BAFTA Kids' Vote for the Best Website category 2011-2014. In 2015, it was announced that the Bin Weevils Magazine was discontinued due to lack of sales, and the last magazine was published in February 2015. 55Pixels discontinued all forms of Bin Weevils merchandise.

Membership

Players are able to subscribe to extra features on the site by becoming a member, called "Bin Tycoon". Paying this membership opens up access to wide range of exclusive features, such as purchasing hats, additional nest rooms, a plaza, creating their very own in-game magazine and much more.

BAFTA Awards

Bin Weevils has won four consecutive BAFTA Awards for the Best Children's Website category, winning their first in 2011 and winning again in 2012, 2013, and 2014.

Criticism

Bin Weevils is heavily criticized for heavy amounts of advertisements.

It has also been criticised recently for lacking a bin-like environment, which was previously a large part of the game.

References

  1. ↑ "Web craze's toy story; Merchandising". The Independent. p. 56.
  2. ↑ Andrew Laughlin (16 February 2012). "Bin Weevils kids' social network launches magazine". Digital Spy. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
  3. ↑ dotAgency. "404 - Toys 'n' Playthings". toysnplaythings.co.uk. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
  4. ↑ "BLE 2012: New Bin Weevils Toy Collection arrives". toynews-online.biz. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
  5. ↑ "BinWeevils clothing and bag ranges to launch this Autumn - Toy World Magazine". toyworldmag.co.uk. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
  6. ↑ "Could YOU write the next big hit tune? - Bin Weevils". binweevils.com. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
  7. ↑ "Bin Weevils Good vs WeEvil Trading Cards Have Arrived! - Bin Weevils". binweevils.com. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
  8. ↑ "55pixels - Multi award winning gaming studio". 55Pixels. Retrieved 12 January 2016.

External links

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