The term “push notification” comes from how it enables developers to “push” users, even when they’re not active.

An app developer can (potentially) vibrate a device, make it emit noise, flash a light, appear on the screen, and exist in a set of notifications pinned to the tops of the screens.

Check out Three Minute Games’ mobile game series Lifeline. I think that it beautifully illustrates “pushing”. How the game pushes you to help someone survive in real time, through messages that appear alongside your real notifications.

The game tells you when you’re playing, not the other way round. Buzz buzz, come and play with me.