Facebook Messenger now has Instant Games

Facebook Messenger now has Instant Games

In a move clearly meant to make you glued to its Messenger app, Facebook has launched Instant Games. These are mobile games built on the HTML5 mobile web standard, which instantly loads right into your message threads instead of having to download them as you would any native app.

So the next time you find yourself staring down at the Messenger app waiting on your friend to reply. You can kill time by starting a game or even challenge your friend to a high score competition. Facebook Instant Games game lets you play versus your friends to attain the highest score, and the best part is that you compete asynchronously.

The game will first be available in 30 countries before every Facebook user in the world can access it, and it already has 17 games for the player. Classical games developed by Konami, Bandai Namco, Taito, and Taito to the new studios like King and Zynga.

You can play Instant Games on the newer Android and iOS devices. To initiate a game, hit the game controller button located in the Facebook Messenger threads right next to the photos and stickers buttons. That games can also be played across platforms; on your desktop and your mobile.

Gaming on Facebook making a comeback

Back in the days, around 2008, Facebook mobile games were pretty a popular thing, especially on the desktop. At its peak, the social network is said to have earned a quarter of a billion dollars each quarter after the 30% tax it imposed on in-game purchases. The games were addictive and quickly went viral, and helping Facebook grow its user base and levels of engagement.

However, all that changed when Android and iOS smartphone started becoming popular. People were now playing native apps install on their phones. Nonetheless, about 15% of the times users are on Facebook they still play games. However, the revenue Facebook makes out of it is not as much as they used to be; last quarter the social network recorded $196 million.

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