(Lil) Green Patch

(Lil) Green Patch has been described as the "granddaddy of green Facebook apps" and its game play and art style have inspired many other similar applications. Before “Games for Good” was a category, (Lil) Green Patch proved that micro‑actions in a social game could translate into real‑world charity. Its success directly inspired other developers. For example, the creators of myFarm (the first Facebook farming game) explicitly said they based their concept on the success of Lil’ Green Patch. This lineage eventually led to FarmTown and FarmVille, which defined the entire social‑farming genre. The game’s mechanic — sending plants to friends — became a template for early Facebook games. This “gift loop” was later used by nearly every major social game. To say the least, this game was a proof of concept before Zynga dominated the market.