LinkedIn Adds Another In-App Puzzle Game

LinkedIn’s adding another puzzle game to its in-app collection, adding more opportunity for professionals to compete for top score, and challenge their colleagues.

LinkedIn’s latest addition is called “Zip”, which is a simplified connective puzzle.

So you create a single line that connects the number in sequence, while also filling every cell.

Yeah, it kind of seems like a dumbed down puzzle for those who’ve had trouble with its other games, which LinkedIn alludes to in its announcement:

 “For those of you who love Queens or Tango, think of Zip as a quick warm-up to get your brain jogged before jumping into your favorites. For those of you who’ve found the rules for Queens or Tango a little complex, we’ve designed Zip just for you – it’s something you can learn within seconds, while still giving your brain a real workout.”

So, yeah, good for you dummies, now LinkedIn has given you a way to participate also.

As with LinkedIn’s other games, LinkedIn will release a new Zip puzzle every day, with the difficulty of each progressing over time.

“And don’t worry – if the puzzles get tricky, we’ve got your back with an intelligent hint tool that helps guide you through tough spots.”

It remind me of that Simpsons episode, where Lisa goes to the smarter girl’s house: “You know what? I have a ball, perhaps you’d like to bounce it.”

Subtle jibes aside, it could be a fun way to engage in a simple game, and push your colleagues to compete for top scores, as recorded in LinkedIn’s games center.

LinkedIn also records streaks for participating in its daily games (which can now be frozen), provides leaderboards for top scores (including company and school listings), enables invites, comparisons, etc.

LinkedIn also recently added a new games widget for both iOS and Android, which highlights your progressive game performance at a glance.

But the bigger question is, are people actually playing these games, and does the addition of a new puzzle option indicate that games have been a winner for the app.

On that front, LinkedIn hasn’t given any real indicators, with the app only noting that:

“Since launching games last year, millions of professionals have made our games a part of their daily routine, with 84% of players returning the next day and 80% still playing a week later.”

So these games are compelling, and “millions” of people are playing them, seemingly.

But as is typical of LinkedIn, the insights here are pretty vague, and don’t give any real indication of exactly how popular its games are, and whether gaming is becoming a bigger part of the LinkedIn experience.

I mean, 80% of “millions” sounds like a lot. But then again, at a billion members, and 400 million actives, that could be only a small percentage.

Whatever the case, LinkedIn is clearly happy with the results that it’s seeing, which is why it’s adding another game to enhance engagement.