Facebook have placed a hidden Easter egg in their Messenger app, a new football / soccer game to keep you entertained while you probably have more important things to be doing…
Easter Eggs not just at Easter
It’s always a great feeling to discover a hidden jewel in any device or game, and some people have uncovered a soccer (or ‘football’ as our British friends would call it, and I guess as they invented the game, they are allowed that privileged,) game tucked away inside the Facebook Messenger app.
The game is to celebrate two international football tournaments happening at the moment, the Copa America being held in the United States and the UEFA European Championships taking place in France.
This is not the first time Facebook has done something like this. There was a very popular hidden basketball game and a chess game that were available at certain points, that could be found on iOS, Android or the web versions.
The name is simple and self explanatory, #keepyUpChallenge. As yo would expect, you need to keep the ball in the air, and this is achieved by tapping the ball before it hits the ground.
How to find the game in Facebook Messenger:
- Open the Messenger app. (You may need the latest version for the game to work)
- Either start a new conversation with a friend or click into an already existing conversation
- Instead of typing anything, find the football (soccerball) emoji
- Send this emoji to a friend – you will no doubt get some confused replies from friends wondering what the heck you are up to…
- Once the message has been sent, and the football emoji is in the conversation, tap the emoji
- This will load the game and now is your chance to emulate the Messi’s, Donovan’s and Ronaldo’s of the world
The game is ‘keepy-uppies’, keep the ball in the air and set a high score for glory. The tapping away nature of the game is a little it reminiscent of the ‘Flappy Bird’ game. The game is strangely addictive and gets pretty tricky, pretty quickly.
The move is seen as another step in Facebook’s attempt to get as many people using, and staying within their own messenger app, as they face increased competition, (including their own property Whatsapp!) in the instant messaging space.
After the first 10 or so, you will find a steep increase in difficulty. Good luck and happy ‘keepyuppying…’
