Watch out, Zynga: EA's The Sims Social is gaining on you ... and fast

Is that a drop of sweat we see on Zynga's brow? EA and Playfish's The Sims Social is already growing faster than one of the FarmVille creator's most popular games, The Pioneer Trail. Since its "open beta" release a little over two weeks ago, the game has amassed over 6 million daily players, according to AppData. That's 2 million more than Zynga's aforementioned expansion to FrontierVille, and less than 900,000 below the company's fourth-largest game, Empires & Allies.

At this rate, The Sims Social could surpass the mighty CityVille in daily players sometime in September, according to Mashable. While the game didn't explode as quickly as, say, E&A did during its June launch, these numbers are unprecedented for a non-Zynga game. The Sims Social's astronomical growth is even more significant considering the game suffered performance and connection issues right out of the gate, which would spell death for any other Facebook game.

But it seems EA nailed the dismount, and is now poised to turn The Sims Social into Facebook's most popular game. Leave it to a property like The Sims to threaten Zynga's Facebook throne, as no other type of Facebook game has come as close.

Gallery: The Sims Social on Facebook
However, it looks like the social game behemoth might already have a retaliation in the works, as the company recently registered a domain with the word "FamilyVille" in it. But regardless of how popular this rumored game becomes, it's still not The Sims. In the Facebook Thunderdome, two developers enter, one developer leaves.

he Sims Social 4 Comments The Sims Social: Celebrate the last days of summer with new Summer House theme

With the mass popularity of the Sims Social on Facebook, it's no surprise that Playfish / EA are continually adding new decorative items to the game's store, allowing you to personalize your home in new ways. Specifically, this week sees the launch of a "Summer House" theme of items, with items being available for your living room, bedroom and even outdoor areas. There are also plenty of decorative items here to take a look at, so we'll do our best to give you a complete guide to these new items. Check them out!

SolTrain Cubic (Shelving Unit)

    Costs: 35 SimCash
    Value: $5,150


SolTrain Chair (Buildable item)

    Costs: 2,250 coins
    Value: $1,800


SolTrain Kingsize (Bed)

    Costs: 79 SimCash
    Value: $11,700
    Sleep Stat: 11


SolTrain Rays (Lamp)

    Costs: 3 SimCash
    Value: $450


BasketCase Travel (Requires Level 30)

    Value: $350


SolTrain UV Lite

    Costs: 12 SimCash
    Value: $1,750


BasketCase XL (Requires Level 30)

    Value: $600


SolTrain UV XL (Lamp)

    Costs: 22 SimCash
    Value: $3,250


Summer Tones (Painting - requires level 30)

    Value: $750


Woody Divider (Requires Level 24)

    Value: $1,300



SolTrain BagelUp

    Costs: 5 SimCash
    Value: $750


Woody Boxout B (Kitchen cabinet - requires Level 26 - Buildable item)

    Value: $1,650


Woody Boxout L (Kitchen Cabinet - requires Level 26 - Buildable item)

    Value: $1,650


SolTrain Panama (Outdoor Bed)

    Costs: 49 Sim Cash
    Value: $7,250


SolTrain Snug (Buildable item - requires Level 30)

    Value: $2,200


Palm Tree

    Costs: 1,750 coins
    Value: $1,650
    Happiness Stat: 3
    Social Stat: 3


SolTrain Parasol

    Costs: 59 SimCash
    Value: $8,700


SolTrain Swing (Buildable item - requires Level 30)

    Value: $4,850
    Sleep Stat: 3


UltiMax Top Deck (Stereo)

    Costs: 59 SimCash
    Value: $8,700
    Fun Stat: 5


In addition to all of these items, there's a full set of windows available in the Build menu is a new "Alpine" theme, which consists of a dark tan, almost orange colored frame. Four flooring options are available for either Social Points or (at most) a single SimCash per tile, and the theme is rounded out with a "SolTrain Beach" wallpaper that costs 55 Social Points per square.

As with previously released themes, these Summer House items don't appear to be limited edition; rather, they should be available permanently in the game's store. That being the case, you should be able to save up coins, or Social Points, or have time to purchase SimCash long into the future to create this theme in your home as far into the future as you like. If we see this change, we'll make sure to let you know.

What do you think of these Summer House items in Sims Social? What kinds of items would you like to see released next in the game?