- Aug 09, 2018
Facebook builds AR Games for Messenger
Facebook has released its own versions of in-app Snapchat-like
multiplayer AR games for its Messenger platform, which users can play with up
to 6 people at a time. The two games that have been released are called Don’t Smile
– where users compete against each other in a staring contest and the first of
them to laugh loses, and Asteroids Attack – where users move their faces around
to navigate a space ship whilst defending it from rocks and laser beams. Two
other games, Beach Bump and Kitten Craze are also being planned to be released
soon.
To play the games, users simply need to click the star icon to open the
filter menu and select a game to play. The games are obviously meant to be
played with people you’re video-calling, and can be used to liven up otherwise
dispirited conversations. These apps were built by Facebook using its own AR
Studio tool that was launched recently to help people make their own AR
filters.
The AR game-making capability is currently not available to
developers, but Facebook says that it always aims to providing top-notch AR
content to its users. For now, the AR games do not feature any branding or ads,
but can be effectively used to place ads, help promote events and launches, and
even let users ‘buy’ powerups. Though the games look less refined and wholesome
than Snapchat’s, they are made specifically for split-screen multiplayer.
These
AR games are separate from the Messenger Instant Games platform, which are more
of a solo effort on the users’ part and are already open for monetization and
in-game purchases. With its 1.3 billion users, Messenger will be looking to
capitalize on its success by having people more and more time on the app.
Read more at techcrunch.com