Why can I not "Create New Game"... [ Edited ]

[FormerRBC]

Why can I not "Create New Game" because both lists of Facebook friends in either 2-player or 3-4-Player is blank? This major glitch first occurred after downloading Facebook Games Arcade (BETA) app so I uninstalled it immediately. I now play daily directly from facebook.com as I have done for the past 3 years and that problem is now there.

2016-06-27 FB Scrabble blank friends list.pdf

[EA_Zoe]

Hi @FormerRBC,

Try clearing your browser cache in case the beta version changed some settings. Keep us updated.

[FormerRBC]

I just check-marked all options and cleared browsing history from Google Chrome. I then restarted my laptop but the problem is still there.   By the way, I noticed yesterday that by clicking on "Facebook Games Arcade"  in its advertisement on the right hand side of my screen because I am still looking for any help. I found it interesting, even upsetting to find "Facebook Games Arcade by Facebook, Inc." at the top of that box. This may vey well have nothing to do with EA, and Facebook is not clearly indicating how and where one gets help. I have copied and pasted a pic here for you to see what I mean.

2016-07-11 FB Games Arcade by Facebook Inc.jpg

[FormerRBC]

How is it possible that one cannot find help from either EA nor Facebook to solve such a significant problem with a game? I cannot create a new game in Facebook Scrabble ever since I was tricked into believing "Facebook Games Arcade (BETA)" download would be an improvement.

[FormerRBC]

...in Facebook Scrabble since I downloaded "Facebook Games Arcade (BETA) by Facebook Inc."? And to boot, uninstalling it and playing directly from Facebook.com like I had been doing daily for over 2 years has resulted in the exact same problem. I may as well keep posting this here in EA and on Facebook Help Forum every single day....until someone somewhere helps me make sense of this.

[EA_Zoe]

Hi @FormerRBC,

I honestly know nothing about Facebook Games Arcade so I'm not sure what the issue might be. Try a different browser like Mozilla Firefox to see if the problem only occurs on Chrome or not.

In any case make sure that your browser is set to allow third-party cookies. Below you will find instructions for several major browsers. 

 

Chrome

1. Click on the Menu icon (three stacked lines) and select Settings .
2. Click Show advanced settings...  at the bottom of the screen.
3. Under Privacy, click the Content Settings button.
4. By default, "Block third-party cookies and site data" will not be selected. However, if it is, please click the button beneath it: Manage exceptions.
5. On the Manage exceptions window, enter [*.]facebook.com in the "Hostname pattern" field. This will allow subdomains such as apps.facebook.com to use cookies.
6. Click Allow. Then click Done.

A simpler solution may be to disable "Block third-party cookies and site data" entirely by unchecking the box for that setting. 

 

Mozilla Firefox

1. Choose Tools in the main menu bar. Select Options in the Tools menu drop-down.
2. In the Options window, select the Privacy tab.
3. In the drop-down labelled Firefox will: "Remember history" should be selected. This is the default setting.
4. If instead, it reads "Use custom settings for history," you will see additional options below:

"Accept cookies from sites" should be enabled. 

Under that, "Accept third-party cookies" can be set to "Always, From visited, or Never."
To ensure you are able to play SCRABBLE, please select Always or From visited. 

Internet Explorer

1. Click the gear icon to open the Tools menu.
2. Choose the Privacy tab.
3. Your current zone settings are outlined here. The default settings (Medium) allow most third-party cookies. If your zone is set to a higher security level that blocks all or most cookies, you can set an exception for Facebook that will allow SCRABBLE to use cookies.
4. To set an exception, click the Sites button.
5. Enter Facebook.com
6. Tap Allow, then OK

All browsers 

After you have checked to verify that your browser is set to enable third-party cookies, please try again to play SCRABBLE on Facebook.

Hope that helps.

[FormerRBC]

Thank you EA ZOE. Your help is very much appreciated. I downloaded Mozilla Firefox browser and logged in to Facebook.com to go check Scrabble but unfortunately, the problem is still there. I then made a point to follow your instructions to make sure "Block Third-Party cookies and site data" were at the correct setting in both Chrome and Mozilla Firefox and they were, but to no avail.

I am afraid that accepting the status quo is all I can do if I don't want to close my Facebook Account with 313 friends just to open a brand new FB account and take the risk of the unknown yet again that starting anew with the Scrabble app from facebook.com will reinstate my ability to Create New Game and rebuild my super high-score ratings of the past 2 years from scratch. Before doing so, and admittedly out of desperation, I am wondering if by chance you, as Community Manager at EA or any of your superiors, have means to draw someone from Facebook Inc. in on this issue because getting support should not be as complicated as it is especially when it says "Facebook Games Arcade by Facebook Inc.". You (may) have my email address on file so I give EA permission to provide them with it so that at the very least they could contact me directly there. 

[EA_Zoe]

Hi @FormerRBC,

I wouldn't close your current account if I were you. First try to create a new account with a new email address and try to play your games. This way you will be 100% sure if the issue lies with the account itself or your computer. If you still cannot access the game on this new account then we can try more in-depth troubleshooting. Keep me updated.

[FormerRBC]

I kept my main Facebook account and created a brand new one using a different email address. I purposely invited a lady with whom I have been playing Scrabble with for over 2 years to become my Facebook friend there so that I could first "Create New Game", then find her name on my FB friends list (who have already played it on FB before) and invite her to play with me in a 2-player game. This process is identical if I chose to invite 3 FB friends to play a 3-4-player game.

The FB friends drop-down list is blank here too (which is the exact same problem and absolutely bizarre because there is no link between both of my Facebook accounts).

2016-08-03 FB (for Scrabble) blank friends list and rating.jpg

[FormerRBC]

I am adding this attachment to show you a second very significant problem when playing from my main Facebook.com account.

The drop-down showing my player profile which is the result of playing since December 11, 2013 is completely lost in my new Facebook (for Scrabble) account I just opened. On here I have 505 bingos; 574 as highest scoring game; 167 for best word score, and; an ELO rating of 1555 as opposed to starting from scratch with all zeros and an ELO rating of 1200 from my new account. In addition, up until recently, I was 2nd in line to the highest ELO rating with numerous other FB friends' profiles (who have played FB Scrabble at one point) lined up in 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th on the bottom (where I now appear alone).

2016-08-03 FB Scrabble glitches.jpg