wePlay (iOS/Android) review

wePlay is a new iOS and Android game from Thumper Studios. It's available now as a free download from the App Store and Google Play. wePlay is an asynchronous online multiplayer take on the popular free Creative Commons-licensed party game Cards Against Humanity. The gameplay is very similar to Cards Against Humanity -- every turn, players are presented with a sentence or phrase with a gap in it, and are given a hand of cards with words or short phrases on them which they can use to fill in the blank. After everyone has submitted a card, everyone votes on which one they found the "best" or the "funniest," and the winner receives a prize of in-game currency, with total winnings being used to rank players at the end of each five-round game. Unlike Cards Against Humanity, where players keep the same hand and simply replace the cards they used, wePlay provides players with a fresh hand of response cards for each new round. As with Cards Against Humanity, a number of the cards designed to fill in the blank feature words or phrases that can be rather offensive or darkly humorous if used in the "correct" (for want of a better word) context, meaning that each round players must decide whether to go for something that makes sense, something surreal and ridiculous or something that may make people laugh with its obscenity -- or simply offend them. The game is only rated 12+, however, so it seems unlikely that some of Cards Against Humanity's more colorful, genital-themed response cards will have made it into the mix. Soft currency earned in the game, acquired via in-app purchase or picked up in exchange for completing offers from W3i Mobile Solutions may be used to add to a stock of "bombs." Each bomb allows the player to swap one card from a single round for a new one if they don't think any of their drawn cards will win. The player may also pick up a pack of 75 bombs via in-app purchase, and remove all advertising from the game in the same manner. wePlay is a good implementation of the Cards Against Humanity format, and works well with the asynchronous multiplayer format. The addition of a chat facility has the potential to make it a highly social experience, though during testing chats largely seemed to consist of players berating one another for taking a long time over their turn, or simply remaining silent. There's something missing, though; the appeal of Cards Against Humanity is having to look your fellow players in the eye after owning up to playing something particularly obscene, and that "party game" aspect is lost in the faceless world of online play. Text-based chat allows players to react to each other, but the long periods of time that can elapse between turns means that the fast-paced, light-hearted nature of the original game and the banter that surrounds it is lost. It remains to be seen whether or not this factor will impact this otherwise well-implemented game in a negative manner -- and also whether or not the rather generic-sounding name convinces people to check it out. wePlay does not currently appear to be listed on the App Store or Google Play leaderboards. Check back shortly to follow its progress with AppData, our tracking service for mobile and social games and developers. Wait A decent online implementation of a riotous party game, but it remains to be seen whether the lack of face-to-face interaction will negatively impact wePlay.

Social Pro Daily

wePlay (iOS/Android) review

Pete Davison

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Pete Davison