Older or Newer 🕰️
Was the right emoji added to Unicode before or after the left one?
This emoji…
flag: Venezuela
added: v2.0…vs. this one?
pinched fingers: medium-dark skin tone
😊 Easy3,789 emojis spanning Unicode versions 0.6 (2010) through 16.0 (2024).
About Older or Newer
Older or Newer is a trivia-style game that tests your knowledge of emoji history. Two emoji are displayed side by side and you must decide which one was introduced in an earlier Unicode version. With more than 3,700 emoji spanning from the first Unicode standards in 2010 all the way through 2024, there are plenty of surprising answers to discover.
How to Play
- 1Two emoji appear on screen at the same time, each showing only the character — no hints.
- 2Think about when each emoji might have been added to the Unicode standard.
- 3Click or tap the emoji you believe is older (came first in Unicode history).
- 4The game reveals both emoji's Unicode versions and release years after your guess.
- 5Score a point for each correct answer and keep a streak going for bonus points.
- 6The game continues with a new pair — see how many you can get right in a row.
Tips & Tricks
- ✓Older emoji tend to be simpler, more "universal" concepts — faces, hands, hearts, and common objects were added in early rounds.
- ✓Newer emoji often represent niche ideas, specific foods, inclusive skin tones, or recently coined symbols like newer flag emojis.
- ✓Technology and internet-culture emoji like certain symbols debuted earlier than you might expect — Unicode has been around since the 1990s.
- ✓Track the version numbers shown after each answer; patterns emerge that help you calibrate future guesses.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Unicode version came first?
Emoji were formally part of Unicode from version 6.0 (2010). Earlier versions had some symbol characters, but the major emoji sets began with 6.0 and grew through each subsequent release up to Unicode 16.0 in 2024.
How many emoji are in the game?
The game draws from a pool of over 3,700 emoji covering all Unicode versions from 2010 through 2024.
What counts as a correct answer?
You must tap the emoji that belongs to the earlier Unicode version number. If both emoji share the same version, the game will not pair them together.