Live Activity in Arcade games

Live Activity is a real-time view of who's in your game, whether they've started playing, and how they're progressing. When you turn it on, everyone who opens the game can see the panel, which makes it a natural fit for synchronous classroom moments like a warm-up at the start of class or a review session before a quiz.

Turning Live Activity on

Live Activity is off by default. To turn it on:

1. Open your game and click Edit.
2. Click the Settings tab at the top of the edit panel.
3. Under Live Activity, click On.

You can switch it back off at any time from the same place. When the setting is off, the Live indicator and panel are hidden for everyone, including you.

What Live Activity looks like

When Live Activity is on, you'll see a LIVE indicator in the top navigation, next to the Edit button. Click it to open and close the Live Activity panel on the right side of the screen.

The panel header shows a player count (the small avatar icon with a number) so you know how many players are currently connected.

Players in the panel are grouped by status:

• Joined: a player has entered their name and is on the start screen, but hasn't pressed Play yet.
• Playing: a player has started the game and is working through it.
• Finished: a player has submitted their answers and completed the game.
• Left: a player closed the tab or navigated away before finishing.

Each entry shows the player's avatar, the name they entered, and their current status.

Who Can See Live Activity

When Live Activity is on, anyone who opens the game sees the same panel: you, your students, and anyone else with the link. Everyone sees the same names, statuses, and counts.

When Live Activity is off, no one sees the panel, including you. Players just see the regular game without any indication that other players are connected.

The Live Activity setting itself is only visible to the game creator in the Settings tab. Players cannot turn it on or off.

Tips for Using Live Activity in Class

Use it as a quick attendance check. A glance at the player list tells you who's in and who's still loading. If someone hasn't joined a minute or two in, you can step over and help.

Watch for stalled players. A student who joined but never moved into Playing might be stuck on the name entry screen, or they may have walked away. Live Activity shows you that without interrupting the rest of the class.

Lean on the social energy. Because everyone in the game can see the panel, students notice when classmates join, finish, or drop off. That shared awareness can build a friendly competitive vibe and motivate stragglers.

Turn it off for take-home assignments. Live Activity is most useful in synchronous classroom settings. If you're sharing a game for students to play on their own time, turning it off keeps the experience focused on the game itself, without showing names of other players who happen to be in the game at the same time.