Back in November 2016, Facebook released a new feature on its Messenger app. To the delight of some and maybe the annoyance of others, US-based users could start playing games from within a chat.
Now, the social media giant announced that it will make this option, called Instant Games, globally available. Also, it will be releasing some new features, teased during the F8 conference.
Instant Games Will Readily Come With 50 Titles
Instant Games for Messenger will face its global release with 50 titles which should please everyone. Its activities will number quite a variety of games, from 8 Ball Pool to Pac-Man, to Words With Friends from Zynga.
With this new feature, Facebook will be basically sidestepping app stores as its titles don’t have to be downloaded. Instead, they will be HTML5 “instant” activities from directly within Messenger. These games can be used both in a direct and a group chat.
Facebook presented the Instant Games as both a conversation starter and a pastime as you’re waiting for a reply. During its F8 conference, the social media company said that the option was used some 1.5 billion times in just 90 days.
One of the best things about this new option is that the games will not have ads or come with in-game purchases. Over the next few weeks, Instant Games will start being rolled out globally in both an Android and iOS version.
Also, the feature will come with some new powers. In a seemingly frequently requested option, it will soon support turn-by-turn games. Initially, the games only came with a single-mode and score leaderboards.
With the turn-by-turn option, the games will become even more of a social feature than before. Words With Friends by Zynga was one of the first to come with this feature as it also allows a simultaneous chat. More games are expected to turn to such a play mode.
Facebook is also testing a dedicated Games tab. Set in Messenger, this will be curated to offer top games, but more details on its function are still to come.
As announced during the F8, Facebook will now encourage developers to create game bots. These latter will be able to communicate with the playing users. As they do so, they will announce new levels or tease with future rewards.
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