Snapchat’s new in-app gaming platform will sound familiar to WeChat users in China
- Snapchat users can now play games without leaving the social app, which resembles WeChat’s mini game function
It looks like Snapchat is the latest Western app to take a leaf out of WeChat’s playbook.
Los Angeles-based Snap Inc. on Thursday rolled out its Snap Games platform that lets users play real-time, multiplayer games inside the company’s flagship messaging app. Without downloads or installations, players can access these games through Snapchat’s chat feature and invite their friends to join.
Snap Games will be competing against similar in-app gaming platforms like Facebook’s Instant Games and Apple’s iMessage Games. It also follows forays into video games by Google and Apple, both of which recently announced their subscription-based gaming services.
The idea of in-app gaming is familiar to China’s WeChat users. In December 2017, WeChat – operated by Chinese social media giant Tencent – launched a new feature allowing users to play games inside the app without having to download them separately.
The so-called mini games soon took off with viral titles such as Jump Jump, where players move a hopping block from one platform to another by tapping the smartphone screen.
At its peak, Jump Jump had 100 million daily users at the start of last year, attracting global brands like McDonald’s and Nike to place ads in the game.
