Zynga, Hasbro to Join Forces

While most companies are racing to join the digital revolution, one big name in gaming just announced it’s going retro.

Zynga (NASDAQ:ZNGA), the brains behind FarmVille, Mafia Wars and Words With Friends, announced Thursday that it has partnered with longtime game and toy maker Hasbro (NASDAQ:HAS) to create lines of products based around the social gamemaker’s popular titles.

Hasbro’s brand covers countless big-name toys and game, including original toys like Mr. Potato Head and My Little Pony, franchised toy lines like Transformers, Star Wars and G.I. Joe figures, and board-game classics such as Monopoly, Scrabble and Battleship.

In Zynga, Hasbro now will be harnessing some of Facebook’s most popular social games, with FarmVille and CityVille each drawing in tens of millions of users.

According to the companies’ joint press release, the partnership “also creates an array of opportunities for co-branded merchandise featuring a combination of both Hasbro and Zynga brands.”

Digital gaming companies already have found success in the toy world, with Rovio’s hit game Angry Birds spawning a line of plush toys through the Commonwealth Toy Co., as well as other themed products.

– Kyle Woodley, InvestorPlace.com Assistant Editor