And here we thought date auctions were just a fiction created by hack writers for third-rate sitcoms and romantic comedies. No, apparently they are a real thing, or a virtually real thing, at least, thanks to a new social game called DateBid.

Just launched on Facebook (and coming soon to other social networks), DateBid gives new members 5,000 "Datebid Fun Dollars" to bid on auctions for virtual webcam dates with other desperate shutins virtual daters. Accumulate enough fun dollars and you can redeem the balance for prizes from retailers like Victoria's Secret, Best Buy, and Apple, or donate the proceeds to charity. Selling your affection to the highest bidder has never been simpler!

If the idea of spending virtual money to get virtual webcam dates with strangers seems creepy to you, the people behind DateBid would like to assure you that you are wrong. "Our vision for DateBid is to combine the excitement of social gaming and online dating for a safe, fun, and socially engaging way to meet new people," said Alex Yamane, Chief Technology Officer for DateBid. "With our online and mobile webcam dates, we solve the problem of not knowing for sure whether the person you meet online is really who they say they are."

Hey, if it gets me an iPad, I don't care who's on the other end of that webcam.
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We haven't seen the No Spoil Genie in over two months, when Cafe World warned us that the Genie would go poof by June 28th, but now it's back!

The No Spoil Genie grants players the option of making sure your dishes never go bad. To use it, drag and place it into your restaurant. To turn it off, put it into storage. When it first appeared, such was its awesome power that one player dubbed it, the "Unwither Ring of Cafe World", after a similar item in FarmVille. But such a power comes with a hefty price tag.

Originally, the Genie cost 145 Cafe Cash, or roughly $25 USD. Now the price has rose to 160 Cafe Cash. But guess what? The real world price still hovers around $25 on account of the fact that Cafe World is having a Coins & Cash sale right now. 120 Cafe Cash is currently $17 USD. And you can boost that pass 160 CC by going for the 55 CC for $8 USD option. That'll leave you with 15 Cafe Cash to use on other premium items.

You can find the No Spoil Genie in the Special Items section of the store. Go to where you buy stoves and counters, then click on the blue gem icon.

In honor of Labor Day, Zynga has released new 'Back to School' Missions in the FrontierVille market.

The first mission, titled "Back to School," costs 5,000 coins (you can find it in the Market, under the *Special* section) and tasks you with prepping yourself for Labor Day to get a special dunce cap decoration. You only have five days to pick this one up and the mission expires September 10, so you better get crackin'.


See how to plan ahead for this series of limited-edition missions after the break.

Casual game developer OMGpop has just launched its first-ever Facebook game, Cupcake Corner. The game is strikingly similar to Baking Life by Zip Zap Play, but is much more active than most social games. Customers can enter your bakery at any time and order pastries that are coming hot out of the oven, and keeping up with all of it feels a lot like playing the classic time-management game, Diner Dash.

The idea of Cupcake Corner is to please as many customers as possible through preparing and selling various sweets like donuts, cookies and--you guessed it--cupcakes. Managing multiple ovens at once is key and becomes more challenging as you expand the size and scope of your bakery.

Ever wonder how your friend got all that cool stuff in Pet Society? With the hundreds of items released every few weeks, and not all of them permanent, it can be hard to find out what's still around. Now this sounds like the job for the Buy Directly icon! This newest feature is an icon button that you'll only find when you're visiting your friends. You can toggle it on the left side of your game screen.

When you click the icon to turn it on, it does the following things: