Image by Piotr Laskawski on Unsplash

By Tina Nasiri and Timothy Chhor 

Game Pigeon is a popular, multiplayer iMessage extension played by many in the St. Augustine community. The app features games such as word hunt, chess, 8 ball, and even cup pong. After playing the different games in a series of sessions, here are our personal rankings of how engaging the different games are from worst to best.

23. Mini Golf

The different obstacles in the mini golf courses make it nearly impossible to hit the ball in the hole without multiple attempts. This game is nothing like real-life mini golf, proving itself to be a waste of time. 

22. Tanks

Tanks is like a discounted version of Angry Birds. The aim is to hit the other person’s tank which is very small and difficult to target.

21. Checkers

When you think of playing a game on Game Pigeon or simply in real life, checkers is the last thing you would consider. It is a forgettable and plain game that does not compare to the more interesting selections you can find. 

20. Sea Battle

This game is more or less based on guessing; you can develop strategy once you know the player well enough. However, if you have only played the game once, it is a long and painful experience filled with misery and agony. 

19. 9 Ball

9 ball lacks a game manual, which is inconvenient for those who are unfamiliar with the concept of pool. The rules are not easy to follow and playing it feels like a chore. 

18. Gomoku

It’s basically connect five, but there is no game manual. It is not necessarily one of the worst games, but it can be boring at times. 

17. Reversi 

Due to it not being very well-known, it’s a bit difficult to understand how the game works. It gets stressful when the board is almost full and there are so many options of where to put your piece.

16. Paintball

It is literally a guessing game. Your goal is to psychologically manipulate the other player and try to make them guess the wrong spot.

15. Knockout

The concept of knocking your opponent’s penguins off the board is easy to understand, but the feeling of constantly being knocked out is sad. 

14. Mancala

It is hard to understand, but once you do it can be quite fun to play. There are unique strategies that you can employ to beat your opponent. The colors are also aesthetically pleasing. This is one of the games that actually has a game manual, so it can be learned quite easily.

13. Shuffleboard

While the game is average because it’s similar to the real-life sport of curling, the accuracy of the hits can be slightly off at times. 

12. 20 Questions

Horrible game if you get a horrible opponent, but otherwise it is perfectly fine. You can have a lot of fun playing this game. There are very funny and creative topics to confuse the guesser.

11. Darts

Throwing darts is not a bad use of time since you can practice your aiming skills. 

10. Dots and Boxes

Fun game once you understand the strategy. It is a relatively simple game, kind of like an advanced version of tic-tac-toe. 

9. Filler

This involves a minimal amount of thinking when sending your opponent your moves. You just need to decide on a colour and your turn is done, most likely making it the game that calls for the least amount of effort and time. 

8. Archery

Archery is simple, easy to understand, and fun. There is not really a strategy, but you are able to become more and more skilled at the game. It’s like real life archery.

7. Word Games

These games are a great way to expand your vocabulary while challenging your brain to think of words in a limited amount of time. 

6. Crazy 8 

It is UNO but online. It is quite fun, and a game that can be played with a group of people.

5. Four in a row

This is one of the most basic games in Game Pigeon that can be played with anyone, regardless of their intellectual abilities. 

4. 8 Ball

It is a fun game with simple concepts. It is just like the real 8 ball game and simple to learn. It involves hitting balls of certain styles into the holes one by one. The first one to hit every ball of their style wins. 

3. Basketball

No prior skills are required to play basketball with your finger. The physics are fairly accurate and there’s nothing that can stop you from getting the ball into the basket, unlike some of the Game Pigeon games, specifically mini golf. 

2. Chess

It’s just like real chess. You can play it online with your friends when you cannot meet in person. Chess is a well thought out game that involves a lot of strategy and thinking, so you can get smarter by playing it. 

1. Cup Pong

Cup pong is a game that involves knowledge of the physics of the game. Not only do you need a strategy, but you also need to know how the ball will bounce. This game is fun because you can get better at it, learn how the game works, and you can use different strategies to try to win the game.