Nokia Snake Game, Mask Now Available As Facebook AR Filters

- August 06, 2018

Owners of old-school Nokia phones may remember the classic Snake game, and will likely be glad to hear that it's now available on whatever Android device they have in their pocket as an AR filter in the Facebook camera, along with a matching Snake mask. You can find these in the same area of the app where you'll find any other camera filters. To celebrate, YouTuber Matt Keck used the filter to remake a famous video from a while back that was based on the classic mobile game. The new filters are rolling out gradually, and should be available to all within the next few weeks.

The game is a voxel-graphics affair that can be played on any surface and at any angle. Once you pick a speed, fast, normal or slow, the game begins. You get two buttons for turning the snake. As in classic Snake, you'll eat fruit to grow, and avoid running into your own tail. Unfortunately, the play space has a limit all its own, which means that playing in a massive room with lots of open floor space will not give you a huge play space. Running into those boundaries is not a death sentence for your snake, but causes it to wrap around to the other side. Once your snake gets longer than the playing field, traveling in one direction long enough will cause the snake to run into its side as it struggles to straighten itself out, making the game very hard to play beyond a certain point. The mask, meanwhile, takes the same snake head from the game and puts it on whoever the camera sees. When the subject opens their mouth, the snake mask sticks out its tongue. With the right movements and timing, you can use this gesture to eat fruit, increasing your score.

Though Nokia popularized Snake by including the game on many of its phones over the years, it actually originated in a 1970s arcade game called Blockade. The first instance of the popular game in its most common format was back in 1982, and Nokia picked it up and began putting it on phones in the 1990s. The company developed a number of spinoffs and sequels, including a 3D version for its failed N-Gage gaming phone. This recent version for Facebook is also Nokia's work. The concept has obviously seen some traction in the intervening years, including 2016's hit online variant, Slither.io.