Facebook today confirmed the launch of its Instant Games platform which will enable its billion-plus users to indulge in casual gaming on Facebook Messenger as well as in their News Feed. The HTML5 gaming platform will power games inside Messenger and News Feed so users won’t have to download anything and since games are cross-platform, they work on both mobile and desktop.
Instant Games has been launched today in beta with 17 games which include the likes of Words With Friends, Pac-Man, Space Invaders, and more. Facebook will provide a mix of classic and new games for this platform and as time goes by it will find out which games tend to perform the best.
Facebook has been tinkering around with the idea of enabling users to play games without having to go through lengthy processes or having to download stuff. It added a secret basketball game in Messenger during March Madness but with Instant Games is now making a proper effort to enable easy casual gaming.
The Messenger app will get a controller icon in the main menu which will bring up a list of titles available to play. Players can share their achievements and high scores in the News Feed to add an element of virality to the entire experience.
Check out the video from Facebook posted below to see how the new Instant Games platform works.
https://web.facebook.com/FacebookApps/videos/1338084292888851/