Microsoft Mixes Casual, Social Gaming with Windows Live Messenger & Bing
A recent upgrade to MSN Games brings together all of the elements that make casual gaming and social gaming great. Microsoft is working with CrowdStar to weld multiple search and social products together with social games produced by multiple developers. Players can find games using Bing, log into Windows Live Messenger and chat with their friends while they play, or just log into them by visiting the new MSN Games preview page.
Windows Live Messenger is one of the world’s most popular IM networks, with more than 9 billion messages sent every day. Today, Microsoft is infusing those chats with the social features of Microsoft Game Hub and a portfolio of new titles from leading publishers, including iWin, PopCap, Arkadium, GameHouse and more.
Simply log in to Windows Live Messenger, click on the Games tab, and choose from a wide selection of popular and independent casual games available to play directly in the chat window either solo or against a friend in 11 countries around the world. With the addition of Microsoft Game Hub, players can connect with and challenge their Facebook or Windows Live friends and the people they care about most on the new MSN Games preview and Bing Games.
This comes on the heels of other joint operations between Microsoft and Facebook even while they compete for the social networking market—recently Windows Live Messenger made the top 10 social apps. By joining forces between Bing, Windows Live Messenger, and Facebook, Microsoft is creating a powerful focus for interactivity.
“We’ve made it easier to find and play the games you love while connecting to the people who matter most,” said Kevin Unangst, senior global director of PC and mobile gaming at Microsoft. “MSN Games, Windows Live Messenger and Bing reach millions of consumers every month, and we’re connecting all those players — and their social circles — for the first time with a great games experience at the center.”
Since the service will launch this afternoon, there is little to review yet, but Microsoft will connect two massive demographics together which have considerable crossover. By allowing people to hook up their social circles through Live Messenger and Facebook people can leverage their competitiveness by showing off their scores or nurse their cooperative spirits by bringing their friends into their games. Players will connect together using the a new social feature called Microsoft Game Hub. It would be really interesting to see something similar integrate games from Zynga—such as Farmville—allowing users to send care packages and cooperate together in group chat sessions.
One of the very first to roll off the MSN Games assembly-line for social integration is the ever popular “Plants vs. Zombies” by PopCap.
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