Soon, Facebook will remove Instant Games from Messenger
At the recent F8 conference, Facebook had announced plenty of changes for Messenger, noting that the service would become faster/lighter than ever. The company hadn't given specific insight into the move back then, but now, it seems that the plan is to remove some stuff out of the platform. And, sadly enough, the first thing to go would be the Instant Games. Here's more.
Facebook has been offering Instant Games since 2016
Facebook has been offering some very interesting Instant Games on Messenger, including the likes of Ludo Club, Basketball, Words With Friends Frenzy, Pac-Man, and Space Invaders. The feature was introduced all the way back in 2016 and took off immediately due to its social nature. Basically, it allowed Messenger users to team up with their friends and play while interacting all the time.
Now, Instant Games will get a new home
Now, Leo Olebe, Facebook's Global Director of Games Partnerships, has announced that Instant Games would be moved into the main Facebook app as part of an effort to make Messenger faster, lighter, simpler. The games would get a new home in the form of Facebook's Gaming tab that debuted in March; this is similar to the dedicated tab for videos but is for gaming.
Migration to take place in several stages
The migration of Instant Games will happen in a phased manner, Olebe said in a blog post noting that the section would first become inaccessible for those using Messenger on iOS. Once the migration is complete, you'd be able to launch the game in the main Facebook app either from the Gaming tab or from chatbots and game threads in the Messenger app.
This could disrupt Facebook users' gaming experience
Despite being phased and planned, the relocation of Instant Games could disrupt the experience of users who are used to playing games inside Messenger with their friends. Olebe said they would do everything possible to limit the issues occurring during migration and will also enable a new application process for developers and review system for players to bolster the growth of Instant Games.
