Wikimedia Apps/Team/iOS/"Which came first?" Game

About the game

This feature builds on the successful Android release and introduces a more integrated experience on iOS through the Games hub, Activity tab, and multiple entry points across the app.

The game has been released as of June 11, 2026.

Background

In September 2024 the team participated in a Sprinthackular which was designed to create proof of concept for product ideas and get feedback from real users about the feasibility of the concept.

The Android team created a proof of concept for a Trivia game.

The usability testing insights were positive enough for us to build out the game and offer it in the app permanently.

After positive reception of the production “Which came first” game on Android by both community members, and the press, we feel confident in bringing this game to iOS Users and continuing to improve it.

The Annual Plan includes an objective to increase retention of logged-out users, and we believe games could be an engaging way to retain readers and knowledge lovers.

How Game Questions Are Generated

Each day, the Wikipedia Trivia Game pulls real historical events from the "On This Day" pages on Wikipedia in each language.

The questions are then randomly paired, and you get to guess which event came first. Since the game uses local Wikipedia content, the questions reflect each language’s unique historical and cultural perspective.

That means the experience may vary depending on the language you’re playing in, and that’s part of what makes it interesting!

FAQ

Q: How to access games?

A: On Android, From the bottom bar, tap “More”, then select “Games”.

A: On iOS, from the Explore Feed.

Q: Where do the events come from?

A: All the events are real and sourced from each language Wikipedia’s "Days of the year" pages. They’re curated from history and matched by date—so if you're playing on May 14, all events happened on a past May 14.

Q: How is my score saved?

A: Your score and history are saved locally on your device. They are not tied to your Wikipedia account or shared with anyone.

Q: Can I play past or future games?

A: Once you’ve played today’s game you can access the game archive from the results page which will give you access to past games. Past games may be slightly different than they appeared on the day they were first published to account for updates to the Wikipedia page related to the day of the year.

Q: Can I share my score?

A: Yes! You’ll have the option to share your score at the end of each game.

Q: Do I need to sign in to play?

A: Nope! No login required—just open the app and start playing.

Q: Which languages is the game available in?

A: The game is currently available in English, French, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, and Turkish.

Objective & Key Result

Objective

Readers from multiple generations engage and stay engaged with Wikipedia.

Hypothesis

If we test the addition of the “Which came first” daily-play trivia game to the iOS App, we’ll see 15% of engaged logged-out readers return to play the game on multiple days.

Features & User Experience

Core gameplay

5 daily questions based on historical events
Ability to pause and resume the game
Progress saved across sessions
Full event text accessible (scroll or expand)
Randomized answer order

Results experience

Final score display
List of all events shown in the game
Ability to read, save, or share related articles
Game statistics (streak, average score)

Activity integration

Game stats visible in Activity tab
Easy access to streaks and progress

Audience

Logged-in and logged-out readers
Users across supported Wikipedia languages (DE, EN, FR, PT, RU, ES, AR, ZH, TR)
iPhone and iPad users
Users relying on accessibility features (VoiceOver, Dynamic Type)

Measurement

Key Results

8% higher retention for users who complete the game
70% completion rate
15% repeat play rate across days
Comparable retention vs control group

Guardrails

At least 50% of users click on a game entry point (Explore, Profile, Announcement)

Curiosities

Percentage of users interacting with articles (read/save/share)
Most effective entry point (Explore vs Profile vs Announcement)
Impact on pageviews per user
Percentage of users sharing results and resulting installs
Number of accounts created through gameplay

Experiment

15-day experiment period
Measure engagement and retention impact before scaling

Timeline

Design: March 2026
Development: April–May 2026
Experiment: around May 20 – June 3
Measurement: early June
Scaling: June rollout to all users

Designs

Designs for the “Which Came First?” game have been created for iOS.

The designs follow a similar gameplay flow and interaction style to the existing Android version.

Splash screen
Gameplay screen
Incorrect answer state
Correct answer state
Results screen
Archive screen

Discussion

We welcome feedback from the community. Users can share thoughts, report issues, or suggest improvements on the discussion page.