Arcade classics Pac-Man & Space Invaders set for belated Facebook debut
Facebook is seeking to burnish its video gaming credentials further following the success of hit titles such as Farmville and Candy Crush by introducing a whole new generation of gamers to the simple delights of Pac-Man and Space Invaders.
Both titles are being converted for web operation for play on Messenger and embedded within the news feed as part of the social network’s Instant Games push which aims to keep browsers on the website for longer by deploying the tried and tested ‘just one more go’ formula.
Coveting Facebook’s 1.8bn users game studios such as Konami and Zynga have been quick to sign-up for trials, buoyed by the early success of simple basketball and soccer in-app games which have already been tested.
Speaking to Business Insider Facebook’s director of games partnerships Leo Olebe said: “People have put games inside of messaging platforms before. Facebook has not. And it’s really exciting for us to do it in a way that can engage people on the Messenger platform."
Instant Games will be accessible via a dedicated gaming tab with Facebook leveraging its social expertise to encourage friends to battle against one another in pursuit of high scores.