LinkedIn has officially launched its new in-stream games after they were spotted in testing back in March. The puzzle games are designed to give professionals a break from their workday while also increasing in-app engagement. The goal is to provide professionals with a way to exercise their brains, take a quick break, and connect with others through banter, conversations, and healthy competition. Three games are being launched to start with: Pinpoint, Queens, and Crossclimb. These games are updated daily and will show scores and performance stats on a leaderboard that shows comparative performance between connections, companies, schools, and more.
The addition of in-stream games on LinkedIn seems like an effort to boost time spent in the app and engage users in a new way. However, this move can also be seen as an attempt to provide users with a competitive distraction during their workday. Games like Worldle and HQ Trivia have been successful in engaging large audiences, and it seems like LinkedIn is aiming to replicate this success with their new games. With cross-company rankings, employees may feel a dedication to their employer and a compulsion to participate in the games, which could boost overall engagement on the platform.
While adding games to a professional networking platform may seem off-topic, it makes sense for LinkedIn to experiment with this new feature to increase engagement levels. The platform has already been experiencing record levels of engagement, and adding in-stream games could further enhance this trend. Although it may raise questions about whether this aligns with LinkedIn’s broader mission to connect professionals to economic opportunities, the primary focus seems to be on increasing user engagement. As long as the engagement numbers continue to rise, the addition of games is likely to be seen as a positive development for the platform.
The comparison to popular games like Worldle and HQ Trivia suggests that LinkedIn’s new in-stream games have the potential to attract a large audience of users looking for a quick and entertaining distraction during their day. The competitive nature of the games, with cross-company rankings, could drive employees to actively participate and engage with their colleagues and connections on the platform. Overall, the addition of games to LinkedIn could be a strategic move to keep users entertained, connected, and engaged while also increasing overall time spent on the platform.
In conclusion, the launch of in-stream games on LinkedIn signifies a new direction for the platform in terms of user engagement and entertainment. The puzzle games are designed to provide professionals with a break from their workday while fostering connections and healthy competition among users. While the addition of games may seem unexpected for a professional networking site, it could prove to be a successful strategy for increasing user engagement and retention. As more users try out these new games and compete with their connections, companies, and schools, LinkedIn may see a boost in overall platform activity and interaction.