Taking the entire gaming world by surprise, FrontierVille and FarmVille developer Zynga has just released a brand new game on Facebook: Empires & Allies, a “CityVille meets Risk” type of game where strategy and social elements will be the key element of something that appears to be a really promising title.

Created by Zynga’s Los Angeles Studio, Empires and Allies comes with some really hot features:

Building an Empire

Feared by his allies and hated by his enemies, “The Raven” is an unapologetic tyrant who wanted his pet mascot to be an eagle, but he couldn’t catch one. In a tirade, “The Raven” has destroyed your empire. Once the rubble from the attack on your empire is cleared, build your empire’s population back up. Build island huts, cottages, houses and more to collect rent to fund your expanding empire.

Mobilizing Your Troops

Get ready to fight “Captain Krunsch,” an old school seaman who relishes taking out his enemies the old-fashioned way–with his bare, arthritic hands. Build formidable ground, naval and air defense to protect your empire and beat those invaders back. Use Unit Research Laboratories to upgrade your armies and unlock new attack bonuses.

Fight With Friends!

Sometimes the best defense is a good offense. Build up your troops, recruit your friends and send them out to invade in-game villains and advance the story line, or choose to invade your neighboring friends’ empires to collect Infamy Points. Strategically select from different ground, naval and air units to build your battalion based off their effectiveness against the opposing army. You might just want to unleash “Wingo,” a pilot who was born to fly – first class. His mama was a stewardess and his daddy made tiny pretzels for the airlines.

Guided Play

As the nation’s leader, you must build up your empire’s defenses to ward off “The Raven” and his evil minions. Scarlett, your personal military advisor, will always show you fun things to try next to guide you on building a powerful empire. Scarlet keeps an eye on all military functions. She’s seen it all. She knows there’s no “I” in “team.” Despite her mysterious past, she has the respect of her troops, who eagerly shout “Aye aye!” to every one of her orders. Once tasks are complete, you can unlock increasingly advanced buildings and decorations.

Neighboring Empires

Visit your neighbors’ empires to help them secure more energy, decorations and collectible items, gaining Honor Points along the way. Tending to your friends’ empires is a surefire way to speed up your progress and amass your army. Enlist your neighbors help in combat to quickly finish off your enemies with special attacks. And don’t forget to call on “The Admiral,” the most experienced fleet commander in the seven seas. His only limitation – his refusal to trim his eyebrows makes it harder to find the port. Or the starboard.

If you want to be kept up to date with evertything related to Empires & Allies, check out the best fansite on the net, Empires & Allies Fans.