Just to be clear, Game Center is not a place for friends. It’s for rivals. Some you know, some you don’t. They’re everywhere on iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. They’re all in on the action. And one by one, they’ll be under your thumb.
Beat them at your own game.
Game Center lets you expand your social gaming network. And we mean really expand. It’s every iPad, iPod touch, or iPhone for itself.* Just tap the Game Center icon on your Home screen and sign in with your Apple ID. Then feel free to create an alias and add a profile pic that will intimidate friends and enemies alike. Get recommendations and download new games by tapping links in Game Center. And you’re good to go. Once you sign in to Game Center, you’re always connected. Until you victoriously (or begrudgingly) sign out.
Sure, you call them friends now.
It all starts out friendly. Once you’re signed in to Game Center, you can invite someone by sending a friend request using a nickname or email address. Or have Game Center suggest some new friends based on the games you play and the opponents you’ve already met. Your friends show up in a separate Friends list in Game Center. Tap friends’ names, and you can see which games they’ve been playing. Check out pending friend/foe requests. Then decide exactly how you’d like to crush them. It’s no more Mr. Nice iPad.
You have one new deathmatch request.
It’s easy for opponents everywhere to hunt you down in Game Center. Want to get a multiplayer game going? Auto-match will find your friends if they happen to be looking for an auto-match, too. Or get set up with a soon-to-be-friend-slash-rival from anywhere around the world. You can also choose to invite friends and have auto-match fill the number of players needed for a game.
There’s nothing cute about this status update.
There are winners, and there are losers. Who’s who? Check out the leaderboards and see how your score ranks against your friends, as well as all players of each game. You can also compare game achievements. Look for leaderboards and achievements in the Game Center app and in each game app. And know when to smack talk or cower in fear.